what would be the benefit of putting a reverse flow water pump on a gen I sbc? if any...i belive napa makes one for gen i blocks, would this help increase compression safely on pump gas to a little less than 10.5-11? and would it be a problem with it also running throuhg the intake (which i know it doesnt on a gen II or III)? Just a interesting thing i read when reading about the procharger serpentine set up, and wondering if it would have a similar effect as a gn II or III...
Thanks.

how would the thermostat work?

Nope, not how it works.
Reverse rotation means you need to spin it backwards, ie with a serpentine setup (1987-1995) rather than a v-belt setup (pre 1987 or so). It still moves coolant the same direction through the engine.
LT engines are the only reverse flow engines, and you cannot simply "mod" an engine to reverse the coolant flow, needs a complete redesign.

Keep in mind the LT engines were succeeded by the LS engines, which have "normal" coolant flow. That should lead you to believe that the reverse flow wasn't the end all eh?

I always thought the LS engines had reverse coolant flow...oh well just a thought...it would be nice though...

Reverse rotation didn't start until '88. that motor in mine is from an '87 IROC and uses a standard rotation pump.