| Mizzou Athletics Hall of Fame - Class of 1990 |
| Dan Devine is one of the most important figures in Missouri athletic history, both for his contributions as head football coach and as athletic director. Dan came to Mizzou in 1958 after three strong years as head football coach at Arizona State. In 13 seasons at MU, he had a record of 93-37-7 with Big Eight Conference championships in 1960 and 69. During the decade of the 1960s, Mizzou was the only team in the country never to lose more than three games in a season and had the nations eighth-best winning percentage (.762). His teams appeared in six bowl games, and nine times they finished the season ranked in the nations top-20, with bests of fourth (AP) and fifth (UPI) in 1960. That team could well have been the national champions if the final polls had been conducted after the bowl games. The only blemish on MUs record was a final-game regular-season loss to Kansas, which eventually had to forfeit the game for using an ineligible player Bert Coan and MU went on to defeat Navy and Heisman Trophy winner Joe Bellino in the Orange Bowl. Minnesota was crowned national champs prior to the bowls but lost its Rose Bowl matchup with Washington. The 1969 Mizzou team was one of the most prolific and exciting teams in Mizzou history, with players like QB Terry McMillan, TB Joe Moore, WR Mel Gray and SB Jon Staggers. The Tigers met undefeated Penn State in the Orange Bowl but fell 10-3 to the team that finished undefeated and second in the national polls. Missouri finished sixth. At MU, Devine coached eight all-Americans and 49 all-Big Eight players. He left after the 1970 season to become head coach and general manager of the Green Bay Packers. Several years later he returned to the collegiate ranks as the head coach at Notre Dame where he coached the Irish to the national championship in 1977. He had huge accomplishments as Missouris athletic director, too. In 1967, he closed the deal and hired Norm Stewart as basketball coach. In 1992, interim chancellor Gerald Brouder was faced with a dilemma when Dick Tamburo retired as athletic director. Not wanting to handcuff the permanent chancellor with an AD hire, he sought someone who could step in and unite the state. Devine was his choice and he came back out of retirement to help. He hired Larry Smith as football coach who ended Mizzous football malaise with bowl seasons in 1997 and 98. But most importantly he worked with the university administration and the Board of Curators to put in place changes that would enable the Tigers to be competitive in the ever-changing athletic landscape. Chief among those moves was a master facilities plan that put in motion most of the improvements that Tiger athletes and fans enjoy today. He served as AD until 1994. Devine was named to the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 1973, and the National Football Foundation Hall of Fame in 1985. |
It's been just over a year since Dan Devine returned to the University of Missouri for his second term as director of athletics, and during that period, he's raised the spirits of the Tiger faithful, raised nearly $2 million for much-needed facility improvements, some of which have already been constructed, and charted the athletic department's course for the remainder of the century.
Chancellor Charles Kiesler, who inherited the arrangement by which Devine was brought back to Mizzou for a limited engagement, couldn't be happier about what was ensued. "Dan Devine's return to MU as athletic director has been a colossal success, and I am especially indebted to his strong commitment to the University," he said in late May.
Because of those strong feelings, Kiesler encouraged Devine to stay longer than his original one-year appointment, and the former Tiger football coach (1958-70) will continue at the MU helm through February, 1994. And, because of Devine's keen perception and feel for the Mizzou constituency, Kiesler tabbed Devine as chairman of a blue-ribbon committee to identify his successor.
Devine has enjoyed his return to the scene of his football triumphs of the 1960s, a period in which Missouri was the only school in the nation that never lost more than three games in any one season. Upon accepting Kiesler's invitation to chair the search committee for his successor, Devine said, "The last 10 months have been very rewarding for me. We've accomplished a great many things in addressing some of the pressing needs of the athletic program. But there is more work to do. The face of intercollegiate athletics nationwide is undergoing many changes, and the University of Missouri has its own special challenges."
Befitting MU's stature as one of the nation's top academic institutions, Devine's value structure is clear — recruit the very best student-athletes and provide them with the tools that will enable them to develop their fullest potential — both in the classroom and on the field of competition. He's talked often of providing Missouri athletics with a level playing field, and that's why updating the University's facilities has been such a driving priority.
Shortly after his return, MU embarked on an ambitious project to expand the Dutton Brookfield/Tom Taylor training complex, to build a long awaited outdoor track facility, and to add a permanent grandstand to the baseball field. The first phase of that project — doubling the size of the MU strength and conditioning area and adding a series of team meeting rooms — was completed in August. The next phase — construction of an addition to house a Tiger Learning Center — is nearing implementation.
Devine has crisscrossed the state — and the nation — promoting Mizzou, and everywhere he goes, he's made people feel better about the institution.
He's grabbed the baton and conducted both Marching and Mini Mizzou. He's sat on the bench while urging the basketball Tigers on to the Big Eight Tournament championship and a berth in the NCAA Tournament. He was there when baseball coach Gene McArtor was inducted into the American Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame. He's been in the lockerroom to revel in Tiger victories and to console them in defeat. He's thrown the first pitch at MU softball games, and presented flowers to triumphant gymnasts.
And he's quick to throw an arm around his acquaintances to offer thanks, encouragement, or direction. His presence has injected new life into all those associated with the Missouri Department of Intercollegiate Athletics, which is just what Gerald Brouder envisioned when he hired Devine on June 17, 1992. Brouder, interim chancellor at the time, said then that "Dan Devine brings commitment, respect and overwhelming support to the University and the athletic department. He is a proven leader with an impressive record of accomplishments and expertise. Dan Devine can direct a program with a focus on quality, integrity and competitiveness."
Devine said his loyalty and love for the University of Missouri prompted his return. "The things that I've found in sports that are trite to a lot of people are really not trite. I'm coming home. I'm needed."
Devine coached the Tiger football team during its most successful period. During the decade of the 1960s, Devine's winning percentage of .767 was the best of any college coach. He took the Tigers to six bowl games (winning four). In 13 seasons, he compiled a 93-37-7 record. Throughout the '60s decade, Devine-coached Missouri teams ranked consistently among the nation's top-20 teams. Eight of his players were first-team All-America selections. When he left Mizzou after the 1970 season to join the Green Bay Packers, Devine was the dean of Big Eight coaches.
In the national polls, the 1960 Tiger team — Orange Bowl winners over Navy and Heisman Trophy winner Joe Bellino — achieved the highest niche, fifth in the final ratings, after having held the only number-one ranking in school history earlier in the season. The 1965 Tiger team was ranked sixth nationally — and so was the '69 team.
The 1969 Tigers were acclaimed by the Touchdown Club of Columbus (Ohio) as "the best major college football team playing the toughest schedule."
During his previous term as MU's director of athletics, he put into place plans for what resulted in the construction of Hearnes Center, saw the construction of a new press box at Memorial Stadium, and hired Norm Stewart to resurrect what was then a sagging men's basketball program.
In 1971, he became coach and general manager of the Green Bay Packers, where he was the NFL "Coach of the Year" after winning a Central Division championship in 1972 — Green Bay's first title of the post-Vince Lombardi era.
He moved on as head coach at Notre Dame in 1975, and took the Fighting Irish to the national championship in 1977. During six years at Notre Dame, he had a record of 53-16.
Devine returned to Arizona State in 1981, where he had begun as a college coach in 1955, to become executive director of the Sun Angel Foundation. Later, he served as director of community education and substance abuse prevention at ASU. In 1990, he received the Distinguished Arizonian Award, ASU's centennial medal, and was placed in the Arizona State Hall of Distinction.
With a 172-57-9 record overall, Devine was inducted into the National Football Foundation Hall of Fame in 1985. He was inducted into the State of Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 1973, was a charter member of the University of Missouri Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame in 1990, and also that year, was selected by Tiger fans as the coach of MU's all-century team. In 1992, he was a special inductee to the Minnesota High School Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame, for service to Minnesota high school football, even though he never coached in Minnesota.
In 1978, Devine's service as an Irish-American "to God and Country" was recognized when he was presented the prestigious John F. Kennedy Award. He's served on the National Council on Alcoholism, and in 1987, was appointed by President Ronald Reagan to the White House Conference for a Drug-Free America.
Devine was hired by Athletic Director Don Faurot in 1958, to replace Frank Broyles, who had spent one year as MU's football coach. That was after Devine had compiled a 27-3-1 record in three sparkling seasons at Arizona State.
A Wisconsin native, Devine played football, basketball and baseball at Duluth State (now Minnesota-Duluth), captaining the football and basketball teams. He enrolled there in 1941, but a tour of Army Air Force duty in World War II as a first lieutenant bombardier extended his graduation date until 1948.
Then followed two seasons of high school coaching at East Jordan, Mich., with a couple of unbeaten teams there undoubtedly providing a springboard for his jump to Michigan State, in 1950. There he formulated much of his coaching philosophy during five years on the staff of Clarence "Biggie" Munn and Hugh "Duffy" Daugherty. He earned a master's degree in guidance and counseling at Michigan State in 1952.
Devine, 68, is married to the former Joanne Brookhart, a Duluth native. They are the parents of seven children — two of whom live in Columbia. He was born Dec. 23, 1924, in Augusta, Wis.