Noel Devine

Devine signed with the Edmonton Eskimos on July 8, 2014.

Subsequently, the then second-ranked Mountaineers were upset 13-9 by Pittsburgh in the 100th edition of the Backyard Brawl. Devine had only 11 yards on 7 carries; a 1.6 average. However, in the 4th quarter, Devine returned a kickoff 48 yards in the final minutes of the game. But, ultimately, the Mountaineers were stopped on fourth down to end the game.

Devine signed with the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League on February 10, 2012. In six games with the Alouettes, Devine fumbled six times, including a three-fumble game on August 8 during a 38-13 loss to the Toronto Argonauts. After fumbling a punt-return in the fourth quarter, he left that game with an ankle injury. In a telephone interview with the Montreal Gazette on August 9, interim head coach and general manager Jim Popp suggested Devine may be released by the team, when and if he is cleared to play by the medical staff.

Despite Devine's high-profile coming out of high school and subsequent successful college career, he was projected to be a seventh-round pick in the 2011 NFL Draft. His injuries, coupled with his inability to perform at the NFL Combine, prevented him from being drafted.

Devine was signed by the Philadelphia Eagles as a free agent on July 26, 2011. The Eagles waived him on July 30 after he left the squad.

The Omaha Nighthawks of the United Football League signed Devine on August 18, 2011.

On January 14, 2010, Devine announced his intention to forgo the NFL draft and returned for his senior season with the Mountaineers.

Devine had a successful football career for the West Virginia Mountaineers. He was a former blue chip prospect and holds many high school rushing records. Devine completed his freshman season at West Virginia University, finishing with 73 carries for 627 yards and 6 touchdowns. Devine ended the season with 1,316 all-purpose yards, the 24th most in a single-season in school history. His performance in the 2008 Fiesta Bowl included a 65-yard TD run, the longest run by a West Virginia player in the school's NCAA bowl history.

Devine was given honorable mention for the Freshman All-American team by various sources, including SportingNews, and was awarded the team's Danny Van Etten Rookie of the Year Award by head coach Rich Rodriguez. After Rich Rodriguez left the team before the 2008 Fiesta Bowl that offseason Devine thought about transferring. He finished his freshman season with 73 carries for 627 yards and 6 touchdowns. He also added 7 receptions for 90 yards and 26 returns for 599 yards. Devine ended the season with 1,316 all-purpose yards, the 21st most in a single-season in school history. Devine also finished the year ranked tenth in the Big East in rushing yards per game and #5 in the conference in kickoff return yards.

After former head coach Rich Rodriguez left West Virginia and announced his decision to accept the head coaching job at the University of Michigan, Noel Devine considered transferring, but decided he would finish his career at West Virginia. On January 14, 2008, West Virginia starting running back Steve Slaton announced his desire to enter the NFL Draft instead of returning for his senior season. Slaton's departure meant Devine would be the probable starter for the 2008 season.

Devine and quarterback Pat White were named the #1 "scary star" of the 2008 by Rivals.com. Shortly afterwards, the Mountaineers began their first spring practice. West Virginia running backs coach, Chris Beatty, said of Devine, “He’s as quick as he looked on television...So quick and yet he has great patience and things like that. My goal is to just let him run fast and do the things he does so well.” Devine also commented that he could handle at least 30 carries a game as the feature back, despite his size; which he said he wanted to jump up to 180 pounds. Head coach Bill Stewart also said that Devine maxed out at 405 pounds at the bench press during the spring.

To begin the 2008 season, Noel Devine rushed for 47 yards on 9 carries and also had 37 yards on 6 receptions in the season opening victory against the Villanova Wildcats, 48-21. In the following 24-3 loss to the ECU Pirates, Devine rushed 12 times for 94 yards (7.8 yard per carry average) and returned two kickoffs for 47 yards. In West Virginia's following 17-14 overtime loss to Colorado, Devine rushed 26 times for 133 yards and also had 11 yards on three receptions (second on the team in rushing behind quarterback Pat White).

Devine was interviewed by ESPN The Magazine under their NEXT editions, which picks the next big athlete of the year. Devine was a nominee for the 2008 edition, along with Brandon Roy, Joba Chamberlain, Tyson Gay, Patrick Willis, and Novak Djokovic. In the interview, Devine stated that his idol is Barry Sanders, and that his best game of his career at that point was against Maryland.

Devine was the #3 ranked running back (and #6 prospect overall) in the nation by ESPN's 2007 Recruit Tracker. Before signing with West Virginia, he was recruited by coaches from some of the nation's other top collegiate programs, such as the University of Nebraska, University of Alabama and Florida State University.

Devine has a relationship with Deion Sanders, who himself is a graduate of North Fort Myers High School. At one point, Sanders planned to become Devine's legal guardian. Devine moved to Prosper, Texas, where he lived with Sanders, but after a few weeks, he took Sanders' wife's vehicle to the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, where a plane ticket back to Florida awaited him. Devine and Sanders remained in contact, perhaps more so as the 2007 signing day approached, when Sanders assisted Devine in preparing to sign a letter of intent to play football in the college ranks. Sanders revealed the nature of his mentor role in Devine's decisions in his column for The News-Press, a Fort Myers news outlet. He had recommended that a prep school would better prepare Devine for college.

On October 20, 2006, Noel became the all-time leader in rushing yards for Lee County, surpassing former Mariner High School student and Tampa Bay running back Earnest Graham. Coincidentally, it was Graham's alma mater against which Devine was playing when the record was broken - he scored on a 65-yard touchdown run late in the 3rd quarter.

Noel Devine (born February 16, 1988) is an American football running back who is currently with the West Virginia Roughriders of the AAL. He was signed by the Philadelphia Eagles as an undrafted free agent in 2011 and was released four days later after leaving the squad. He played college football at West Virginia.

Devine was only three months old when his father died in 1988 of complications from AIDS, and 11 years old when his mother also died of AIDS. Custody passed to his maternal grandmother, but the two were not compatible. Eventually, Noel moved in with Liz and Robert Harlow Sr, parents of one of Noel's friends. By his junior year in high school, Devine had fathered two children by two different women. He was also witness to a shooting in late 2004, in which one of his friends, 15-year-old Rashard Patterson, was killed by a shotgun blast to the chest.

In the second game of the season, Devine helped the WVU seal a 4th quarter victory over in-state rival Marshall. Devine only had 5 carries, but managed to rack up 76 yards and 2 touchdowns to help the third-ranked Mountaineers beat the Thundering Herd 48-23. Devine also had two kickoff returns for 40 yards. His longest run of the day was 39 yards.

In the 27-3 victory over Marshall, Devine rushed 14 times for 125 yards (8.9 yards per run) and his first touchdown of the season. To begin Big East play, Devine rushed 19 times for 55 yards, a 2.9 yard per carry average, in the 24-17 victory over Rutgers. In the following 17-6 victory over Syracuse, Devine rushed for 188 yards on 18 carries for a touchdown. His 188 yards was a career-high, and his 92-yard rushing touchdown in the 4th quarter not only was a career-long, but also was the second-longest rush in school and stadium history. Devine's performance in the Syracuse win won him the Big East Offensive Player of the Week honors. Following the 188-yard performance against Syracuse, Devine totaled a career-high 207 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries in the Mountaineers' 34-17 victory over Auburn. For the game, Devine recorded six runs of at least 20 yards. The two-game stretch totaled 395 yards and two touchdowns.

Devine got his first chance to play in the 4th quarter of West Virginia's season opener against Western Michigan. Devine showed his speed as he beat the defense to the corner as he went 23 yards after spinning off of a defender. Devine scored his first collegiate touchdown on an 8-yard run to score WVU's final score, as the #3 ranked Mountaineers beat Western Michigan 62-24. Devine finished the game with 7 carries for 44 yards and a reception for 19 yards.