In the current college sports landscape, Texas quarterback Arch Manning is believed to be the highest paid player, reportedly receiving nearly $7 million last season.
Manning and players across the country can thank the late Dick DeVenzio for helping to lead the charge for what has become the Name, Image and Likeness program for compensating college athletes.
“He was way ahead of his time,” said DeVenzio’s younger brother, Dave. “What’s going on with NIL now, he was championing that cause 40 or 50 years ago.”
Considered one of top point guards in WPIAL history, DeVenzio, who grew up in Springdale, went on to star at Duke before playing and coaching professionally overseas. He also became an accomplished author and a prominent advocate for the rights of college athletes.
“People thought he had an ulterior motive to make money for himself. Nothing was further from the truth,” Dave said. “He just saw a wrong and wanted to right it.”
DeVenzio died in 2001 at the age of 51. He will be honored posthumously at the Alle-Kiski Valley Sports Hall of Fame’s 55th induction banquet on May 16 at Pittsburgh Shriner Center, Harmar.
“With some people, you might be envious of their success,” said Dave, who lives in Pine Township. “I don’t think people felt that way about Dick because they saw how hard he worked at everything.”
DeVenzio will follow in his father’s footsteps. A legendary WPIAL basketball coach, Chuck DeVenzio was inducted into the A-K Hall in 1987.
“Dick and my dad are in a lot of halls of fame,” said Dave. “But the A-K is different because we grew up in Springdale. I think it would have been extra special for Dick.”
At 5-foot-10, 155 pounds, DeVenzio played for his father at Springdale. As a junior, he averaged 30 points, leading the Dynamos to numerous victories over larger schools, including Gateway, Fox Chapel and Penn Hills.
“He was very cerebral, and that’s how his whole life was,” Dave said. “He thought out everything ahead of time. He knew what was going to happen and could anticipate things. He also was quicker than most people who played the game.”
During the summer, Dave recalled his brother spending six to eight hours a day honing his skills at an outdoor court on School Street in Springdale.
“He would take two basketballs with him,” Dave said. “If someone else stopped and wanted to shoot, Dick would give him the other ball and ask him to go down the other end of the court. He wasn’t being rude. He just didn’t want to be interrupted while he was working on something.”
Before Dick’s senior year at Springdale, Chuck DeVenzio took the head coaching job at Ambridge, relocating the family to the Beaver County town along the Ohio River.
“For me, moving was horrible, but for Dick it wasn’t that bad,” Dave said. “He was so basketball centered and realized he had a better chance for success at Ambridge.”
Dick joined a Bridgers team that already boasted major college prospects Dennis Wuycik and Frank Kauffman. Wuycik went on to star at North Carolina, while the 6-9 Kauffman played at Purdue.
With DeVenzio running the offense, the Bridgers rolled to a 27-0 record, including a 93-61 victory over previously undefeated Chester in the state championship game. The 1967 Ambridge squad is considered one of the best in Pennsylvania history.
“Dick didn’t score as much as at Springdale, but he still averaged 20 points,” Dave said. “He had guys to distribute the ball to and didn’t have to score as much. He wanted to succeed as an individual, but the main thing was winning as a team.”
A first-team Parade All-American selection, DeVenzio drew recruiting interest from major colleges across the country. Dave remembers Dean Smith, John Wooden and Bob Cousy, among others, visiting the DeVenzio home.
He ended up choosing Duke, where he played point guard from 1969-71. He was an All-ACC selection in 1969 and set a school record for career assists (388).
In the classroom, DeVenzio was a three-time All-ACC academic selection and was named to the Academic All-American team 1971.
“Dick put in more time than most people to become a really good student,” Dave said. “When he went to Duke, he studied four or five hours a day.”
Considered too small for the NBA, DeVenzio played and coached professional basketball in Europe and the Caribbean from 1972-80.
“Even though it was a natural transition from playing to coaching, it really wasn’t what Dick wanted to do,” Dave said. “He wanted to become a writer. He aspired to write fiction, but it’s a tough business to break in to.”
After his coaching days, DeVenzio founded Point Guard College, a summer camp still focused today on teaching players how to think the game.
To quench his writing thirst, DeVenzio authored various basketball-related books, including the highly regarded “Stuff! Good Players Should Know.” He also wrote a syndicated column about ACC basketball.
DeVenzio became an outspoken critic of the NCAA and an early proponent of paying college athletes. As a result, he authored “Rip-Off U,” which exposed the hypocrisy of big-time college athletics.
“He would be on an average of two talk shows a day around the country talking about it,” Dave said. “People would call in and be mad at him because the basic opinion was that players already were receiving a scholarship. But he was very prepared to respond to them.”
Dave was asked what his brother would think of today’s NIL landscape, which has had a major impact on college sports.
“That’s a good question,” he said. “I think he’d be happy, but he would want to have some regulatory board to control things. Right now, it’s pretty crazy with what some players are making.”
DeVenzio was diagnosed with cancer in March 2001 and died just six weeks later at his home near Charlotte, N.C.
“I couldn’t believe how positive he handled things,” Dave said. “He said he was prepared for the day. … I think he died without many regrets.”
Dave, who recently retired after a 32-year career as a coach and activities coordinator at CCAC, will accept DeVenzio’s induction into the A-K Hall.
“I think part of my message will be that Dick lived in Ambridge, North Carolina and other places, but he always considered Springdale and the A-K Valley as home,” he said.
Tickets for the banquet are $40 and can be purchased by visiting akhof.com.