Reese Snell (1978) - Southern Miss M-Club Hall of Fame

Reese Snell

Induction:
1978

Reese Snell was a talented two sport athlete for the University of Southern Mississippi in the late 1940s. As an offensive and defensive guard for Coach Reed Green and Coach Thad (Pie) Vann, he was a part of some of the school’s most successful teams and as a catcher for the Southern Miss baseball team he played an active role in helping the program establish itself.
   The three football teams that Snell was a part had a record of 21-9 and recorded the school’s first big win of the post World War II era when they knocked off Auburn 19-13 in 1947.
   Snell wasn’t a large lineman by any stretch of the imagination, but he was able to take the assets that he did have and use them to his advantage.
   One of those assets was a great knowledge of the game. Snell was like a coach on the field. He just had a feel for the game and what to do in certain situations on both offense and defense.
   Snell’s career at Southern Miss began in 1947 and as a key reserve for Green he was able to make a contribution to the team that finished 7-3 and had the big win over Auburn. With Snell and others up front blocking the team had an awesome running attack led by future Hall of Famer Bubba Phillips. The defense with Snell helping to put the pressure on up front forced 16 interceptions that season.
   In 1948 the squad would record another 7-3 there and Snell’s playing time continued to grow as he gained experience. That team was even more explosive offensively and with Snell one of the primary blockers up front halfbacks Philips and Hall of Famer Frank Spruiell had banner years. The defense recorded two shutouts that year and held three other opponents to a single touchdown.
   Snell’s final year at Southern Miss would be Vann’s first as head coach and Southern Miss recorded a third straight 7-3 record. After an opening loss on the road at Kentucky the team reeled off six straight wins and twice that year scored over 50 points, including a 67-28 victory over Northwestern Louisiana.
   The offense in 1949 averaged 379.2 yards a game, almost seven yards per play and nearly 30 points a game.
   Snell was also a standout catcher for Southern Miss from 1948 to 1950. The 1948 team under Vann finished 11-11 with Snell hitting .333 in a reserve role. The team broke even again in 1949 with a 10-10 mark with Snell hitting just .200. But finishing fourth on the team in runs batted in. The 1950 season was one of Snell’s finest as he hit .318 on a team that finished the year 5-6.
   Following his career at Southern Miss, Snell went on to become a very successful coach in his own right on the high school level, spending many years at Hattiesburg (Mississippi) high School were he coached some of the schools finest teams.