University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Vic Purvis To Be Inducted In Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame
8/18/2005 12:00:00 AM | Football
Vic Purvis To Be Inducted In Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame
Included in the induction class are Raymond Brown, an All-SEC football star from Greenville who played on championship teams with the Ole Miss Rebels and the NFL's Baltimore Colts; Billy Chadwich, a Jackson native who was a star tennis player at Belhaven college and an acclaimed championship collegiate tennis coach for the Ole Miss Rebels; Lloyd Clark, a native of Drew who coached the Delta State Lady Statesmen women's basketball team to three NCAA Division II National Championships; Vic Purvis, a star college quarterback for Southern Miss from Puckett and Morton who played for the AFL Boston Patriots and the longtime color commentator on Golden Eagle football game broadcasts; Anton Reel, a World Champion weightlifter who pioneered Mississippi high school athletic weightlifting at Brookhaven and Walt Suggs, an All-SEC and All Pro offensive tackle for the Mississippi State Bulldogs and the AFL's Houston Oilers from Hattiesburg who is a member of the Oilers All-Time 30-Year Team.
With the induction of the MSHOF Class of 2006, membership in the MSHOF will increase from 233 to 239 athletes, coaches, administrators, and sports media.
The MSHOF Class of 2006 is the final class to be selected to the shrine under a 1994 agreement between the Jackson Touchdown Club and the Mississippi Sports Foundation. The nomination and selection process will be administered in the future by the Mississippi Sports Foundation, Inc.. Biographical profiles of the 44th Anniversary Class will be provided upon request.
The Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame was created in 1960 by the Jackson Touchdown Club at the suggestion of MSHOF Member Jimmie "Mississippi Red" McDowell.
Vic Purvis was born November 17, 1943. He created a national sensation in 1965 with back-to- back 200 yard rushing games for Southern Miss. He moved ahead of Southern Cal RB Mike Garrett as the nation's leading rusher, however, Garrett would retake the lead and win the Heisman Trophy. As a player and broadcaster, Vic has been involved in 372 Southern Miss football games.
He was a star college quarterback for Southern Miss from Puckett and Morton who played for the AFL Boston Patriots and is the longtime color commentator on radio broadcasts of Golden Eagle football games.
Though he was born in
As a junior at Morton, his basketball coach was Kenneth Gordon, and he averaged 14 points per game. As a senior on the hard court at Puckett, he was guided by his brother and head coach Don Purvis as he scored 25 points per game including 42 points in one contest.
On the prep baseball diamond, Purvis played shortstop, third & second base, and centerfield in addition to being part of the pitching rotation. In high school track, He won district and
Purvis was coached at Southern Miss by MSHOF member Thad "Pie" Vann. He arrived as a freshman quarterback in 1961 and played sparingly on the freshman squad. He was then redshirted and took over as the Southerners starting QB in 1963. Purvis led Southern Miss to a record of 18-8-1 during his college career. He established numerous rushing records at the school, some of which have not been broken.
He was one of the most versatile and talented players in school history. Playing in a run oriented offense, Purvis became one of the team's most dangerous weapons and became one of the school's top rushing quarterbacks. In his sophomore year, he was the team's second leading rusher and led the squad in rushing in his junior and senior seasons.Only one other QB in Southern Miss history, Don Fuell, has ever led the school in rushing for a single season.
As a senior in 1965, he put together two consecutive 200 plus yard rushing performances against
After the second 200 yard game versus
He held the Southern Miss top two rushing game records until RB Ben Garry broke into second place with 206 yards in the 1976 season. The 238-yard game record held up for almost 20 years until RB Sam Dejarnette broke the standard in the early 1980's. Besides the 200 yard rushing games, Purvis had three other 100-plus yard rushing games.
As a Southern Miss quarterback, only Reggie Collier had more 100-yard rushing games than Purvis. He led the team in passing and total offense for three-straight seasons, and he finished his college career with 1,738 yards passing, 1,497 yards rushing and 10 touchdowns.
His 79-yard run against
Purvis? accomplishments drew national attention to Southern Miss and the state of
While at Southern Miss, he was a Dean's List & President List scholar, a member of Who's Who in
Purvis signed a free agent contract with the Boston Patriots (now known as the New England Patriots) of the AFL in 1965 where he made the team as a defensive back and kick returner. He played two seasons with the Pats in 1966 and 1967, appearing in 16 games before he suffered a severe shoulder injury that ended his pro career. His teammates at
He played in the pros at 5-11, 190 pounds. After his pro career, Purvis returned to
He was so outstanding in his game analysis in the booth that he was invited back later that season. At the end of 1974, Purvis was asked to take over as color commentator of the radio broadcasts full time. He has broadcast over 300 (345, total) Southern Miss football games since becoming the color commentator, one of the longest analyst stints at college football programs in the South. Counting games as a player and broadcaster, Purvis has been involved in 372 Southern Miss gridiron contests. In 2005, he will enter the radio booth for his 32nd season working with longtime legendary voice of Southern Miss athletics, John Cox. On April 29, 1972, he was honored with induction into the Southern Miss Athletic Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.
VIC PURVIS CAREER CHRONOLOGY
Full Name: James Victor Purvis
Date of Birth: November 17, 1943
Birthplace: Brandon, Miss.
High School: Morton High School, Morton, Miss. (1953-56)
Puckett High School, Puckett, Miss. (1957-61)
College: Southern Miss (1961-65)
Pro Teams: Boston Patriots (AFL) (1966-67)
RECORD AS A PLAYER:
1957-61
Puckett High School,
Earned 14 letters in football, basketball, baseball and track
Led football teams to record of 22-6-3
Most Valuable Back, Capital Athletic Conference
1961 Mississippi High School All Star Football game
1961 Southern Miss, team record 8-2
Freshman, not eligible
(Coached by MSHOF member Thad "Pie" Vann)
1962 Southern Miss, team record 9-1
UPI College Division National Champions
Redshirted
1963 Southern Miss, team record 5-3-1
Completed 41 of 94 passes, 460 yards, 1 TD, 3 INT
207 plays, 870 yards total offense, 2 TDs
1964 Southern Miss, team record 6-3
Completed 55 of 114 passes, 802 yards, 5 TDs, 10 INT
231 plays, 1,224 yards total offense, 8 TDs
1965 Southern Miss, team record 7-2
Completed 33 of 109 passes, 465 yards, 2 TDs, 8 INT
353 plays, 1,128 yards total offense, 8 TDs
1966 Boston Patriots (AFL), team record 8-4-2
14 games, 5 punt returns for 43 yards, 8 kick
returns for 185 yards, 1 fumble
1967 Boston Patriots, team record 3-10-1
2 games
(shoulder injury ended pro career)
SPECIAL RECOGNITION:
Mr. USM, USM Student Hall of Fame, 1965-66
Who's Who in
Dean's List, President's List Scholar
Color commentator for Southern Miss football radio broadcasts, 1974 to present
SOUTHERN MISS RECORDS:
200-yard rushing games:
238 yards v.
203 yards v.
300-yard passing games:
9/25/65 v.
10/2/65 v.
HALL OF FAME MEMBERSHIPS:
Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame 2006
