One man tops the list of people responsible for the success of the University of Nebraska athletic teams–Bob Devaney. For 35 years he was the driving force behind the University of Nebraska championships, first as a Hall of Fame football coach (1962-72), then as Athletic Director (1967-93) and Athletic Director Emeritus (1993-96).

Devaney retired in 1996 and lived in Lincoln until he passed away at the age of 82 on May 9, 1997.

Although Devaney no longer has a physical presence at Nebraska, his mark will remain forever. The memories of the storybook national championship seasons of 1970 and 1971 will inspire generations of Husker fans for years to come. His commitment to building one of the nation’s best all-around athletic programs is reinforced with every athletic and academic honor earned by Husker student-athletes. And his legacy continues with the passing of each successful season.

From the time he took over athletic director duties for Tippy Dye in 1967, to his final year as athletic director in 1993, his vigor, enthusiasm and administrative excellence earned him a reputation as one of the nation’s outstanding athletic directors. Those same characteristics helped make him a football coaching legend. A 1981 inductee into the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame, under Devaney’s leadership Nebraska developed one of the nation’s most successful all-around athletic programs.

Devaney arrived in Lincoln in 1962, after posting a 35-10-5 (.750) five-year record at Wyoming. During his 11-year stint as Husker football coach, Devaney’s teams won 101 games, lost only 20 and tied two for an .829 winning percentage. His career mark of 136-30-7 (.806) ranked him as the nation’s winningest active coach at the time of his retirement in 1973, and he ranks 11th on the all-time list today, six spots behind the man he tabbed as his replacement, Tom Osborne. He is the only coach in NCAA Division-1A history win five consecutive AFCA Regional Coach-of-the-Year awards.

In all, his Husker gridiron teams won eight Big Eight titles and two national championships (1970, 1971) and went to nine bowl games. He wound up with three straight Orange Bowl wins, two Outland Trophy winners, a Lombardi Award winner and a Heisman Trophy winner. Twice his teams won four consecutive Big Eight titles, 1963-66 and 1969-72.

Bob Devaney Record