DEVINE
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Former Ohio State University football coach Earle Bruce is being remembered for the opportunity he gave a local man to climb the coaching ladder.
Bruce died Friday morning at the age of 87 at his home in Columbus.
Steve Devine, a 1968 graduate of Marysville High School, said he will always be grateful for the chance he received to join Bruce’s Buckeye coaching staff back in 1979.
“I had been a graduate assistant coach at the University of Washington,” said Devine, who is currently a scout for the New York Giants. “I joined his staff as a graduate assistant in 1979 and helped with recruiting and coaching the offensive line.”
Devine rejoined Bruce’s staff as a full-time coach with the offensive line in 1983 and was with him through the 1987 campaign when Bruce was dismissed from his position.
Devine took a break from his schedule during a Friday afternoon telephone call from New Jersey, where he is currently helping the Giants prepare for next week’s NFL Draft.
“I will forever be grateful for the opportunity that Earle gave me to become a full-time college coach,” said Devine. “It was an unforgettable opportunity.
“Earle was a tremendous football coach and person,” he said. “He had a great knowledge of the game of football and also had a tremendous feel for personnel.”
Devine said he has many good memories of his time on the OSU coaching staff.
“We would have Senior Day each year in the stadium and Earle gave each senior a silver dollar,” he said. “The players really appreciated who he was.”
Another memory involved Bruce’s final game against Michigan, after it had been announced in November of 1987 that he would not be returning the following season.
The Buckeyes won the game, 23-20, in Ann Arbor.
“We upset that school up north and I think we might have knocked them out of a bowl game,” said Devine. “Earle did a great job of getting the team ready for that game and it was a great moment.
“After the game, the coaching staff was sitting around when there was a knock on the door.
“It was Coach (Michigan coach Bo) Schembechler,” he said. “He shook all of our hands and then he gave Earle a big hug.”
Devine said that Bruce passed along many important lessons.
“He taught me that coaching is a profession and that you have an obligation to the young men you coach,” he said. “His advice was ‘always treat them as men, but also as your son.’
“It was a tremendous lesson for me,” said Devine. “It taught me to never give up on a player.”
Devine left OSU after Bruce’s dismissal.
His coaching endeavors then took him to Ohio University and San Diego State University.
He and his family returned to Ohio and he subsequently coached at both Marysville and Fairbanks High Schools before landing his current position as a scout for the Giants.
During his time in the NFL, the Giants have won two Super Bowls. A member of both of those teams was linebacker Chase Blackburn, a 2001 Marysville High School graduate.
Blackburn will be starting his first season as the special teams coordinator for the Carolina Panthers this summer.
“The news of Earle’s passing put a damper on the day,” said Devine. “I will always feel blessed that I was able to coach for him.”