Coach pg 10 3-28-13

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Category: Current Issue

By Ron P. Coderre
It was quite fitting that the funeral for coach Bob Deveau, who died March 20 at the age of 77, was on a Saturday.  It seems like it was only yesterday, when on Saturday afternoons at Murphy Park that Deveau and his Clipper football teams performed in front of avid cheering football fans, on hand to watch some of the best teams in the history of Putnam football.
Saturday morning in cavernous St. Mary Church in Putnam approximately 100 family members, friends, former coaches, former players and former students gathered to pay their final respects to the man who they respectfully referred to as “Coach.”  There wasn’t any loud cheering, only whispered words and couched sobs as the gathering said its final good bye.
 In a quiet fashion Bob Deveau was a very proud man.  Proud of his time spent with the U.S. Marine Corps.  Proud of his days on the gridiron at his high school alma mater Griswold and his college, little Arnold College, which has morphed into Bridgeport University.  Proud of his children and family, and his sister Julie Rawson and her son Gerry, who were his family during his bachelor days.  But when the topic turned to Putnam football that’s what evoked the biggest smile on Deveau’s cherubic face.
Coach Deveau came to Putnam in 1972 to assume the football job from the legendary coach Jim Greenhalgh, no small task.  With the exception of one season when he was an assistant at Fitch, Deveau molded a winning program that he nurtured for 25 years, which will always be remembered whenever and wherever Putnam football is discussed.
There was a point in his tenure as Putnam coach beginning in the fall of 1983, when that team produced a 10-0 record, that Deveau and his Clippers were owners of the highest winning percentage of any high school team in Connecticut.  It seemed every fall his teams were undefeated or had only a single loss.  And whether it was luck or skill, Deveau produced a stable of running backs season upon season that was unparalleled.
On Saturday, the co-captains from his first undefeated season Bob Mooney and Dave Coderre were on hand to see their former coach off, as were former players Steve Faucher, Brian Herlihy, Rick Weiss, Chris Coderre and John, Michael and Peter Deary, and probably other.  It was Peter Deary, who was not only a co-captain but later served as an assistant, in delivering the eulogy, lauded Deveau as a “coach, teacher and mentor of young men, whom he loved equally in a special way.”      
Coach Bob Deveau has heard his final cheers but the memories will linger.  He’ll always be remembered for his famous ‘20-trap pass’, a play that worked to perfection for his teams.  He’ll be remembered as an innovator, which many claim he developed offensive formations that later became famous in the college and professional ranks.  But most of all, when the name Coach Deveau comes up in future conversations, it will be synonymous with caring, loyal friend.
The last time I saw Bob Deveau, about two months ago, I recognized him when I saw the license plate - 20-Trap.  If it wasn’t for the plate I might not have known it was him because he appeared to have aged beyond his 77 years.  He suffered through some tragic moments in life, which contributed to his aging, but always persevered.  His passing, though sad, will certainly serve as an inspiration when times are tough, to those who knew the man they lovingly called “Coach.”