Hall of Fame Profile: Mike Durrah Continued to Make an Impact After Football

Mike Durrah was one of the all-time greats on defense for South Carolina football. Now he’s getting his due and will be immortalized in the University of South Carolina Athletics Hall of Fame on October 14. Durrah passed away in 2014 at the age of 52, but he made an impact on many people, even after his football days were over.

“He taught English, worked his way up the ranks and became a high school football coach (North Chicago High School) and later an athletics director (Evanston Township High School) before eventually becoming an assistant principal in Illinois,” said Durrah’s sister, Vickie. “He rebuilt the football program at North Chicago. He was able to turn that program completely around to make sure they were a winning team, not just on the field, but off the field.

“He just felt the need to give back to young African-American boys in an underserved community. We didn’t grow up that way but having worked in the high school in an impoverished neighborhood, he saw there was a need and that he had the skills to turn the school around. Sometimes you don’t know what your calling is until you’re immersed in a new situation. He was eager to give back of himself to these young men who needed a great teacher, a coach, a role model, and a mentor.”

Originally from Spartanburg County, Durrah played linebacker for the Gamecocks from 1980-83, recording 396 tackles, which still ranks third on the school’s all-time list. He was recognized on the All-South Independent team following his senior season after recording a school-record 179 tackles.

“I think he would be smiling ear-to-ear to know that he was in the Hall of Fame. I think he would have been overwhelmed with joy.”
– Vickie Durrah

“Mike was an every-down guy,” said teammate J.D. Fuller (1979-83), who was inducted in the Hall of Fame in 2011. “He had the single season record for tackles. He was a big-play guy. That’s what I remember about Mike the most. He was really steady. He worked hard and was a good leader and a good person.

“I played high school ball against Mike, and then we got a chance to play together for three years at South Carolina. He was a good friend. I got a chance to know his family really well. He was a good guy and good player.”

“He loved football,” Vickie Durrah said. “One of the articles in the newspaper here had said he could never get football out of his system.”

Durrah, Fuller, and James Seawright (1981-84), who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2003, were all outstanding defensive players who helped give rise to the legendary “Fire Ant” defense.

“Playing against Mike in high school and playing with him and James Seawright means a lot to me,” Fuller said. “We played a lot of downs, and now all three of us have been inducted into the Hall of Fame.  We’re all from the Upstate, and it makes me very proud. It’s bittersweet because they’ve both passed, and I wish they were both here to see it. It’s kind of cool that all three of us from that little Upstate region are all in the Hall of Fame now.”

An outstanding player on the field, Durrah was well-liked off the field as well.

“He was the life of the party,” Vickie Durrah said. “He was a huge jokester who was very personable and very out-going.”

Hall of Fame induction ceremonies will take place on October14 and the 10 members of the 2021 class will also be honored at the football game on October 16 as South Carolina hosts Vanderbilt.

“We’re truly honored that our brother’s memory will still live on in the Hall of Fame, so that all that he’s done won’t be forgotten and is not in vain,” Vickie Durrah said. “I think he would be smiling ear-to-ear to know that he was in the Hall of Fame. I think he would have been overwhelmed with joy.”