Joe Bellino

Infobox AFLretired


position=Halfback
number=
birthdate=Birth date and age|1938|3|13|mf=y
Winchester, Massachusetts
deathdate=
debutyear=1965
finalyear=1967
NFLdraftyear=1961
NFLdraftround=17
NFLdraftpick=227
(By the Washington Redskins)
draftyear=1961
draftround=19
draftpick=146
college=Navy
teams=
* Boston Patriots (AFL) (1965-1967)
stat1label=Games played
stat1value=35
stat2label=Offensive yards
stat2value=115
stat3label=Touchdowns
stat3value=1
nfl=BEL732825
highlights=
* Heisman Trophy (1960)
* Maxwell Award (1960)
CollegeHOF=50029

Joseph Michael Bellino (born March 13, 1938 in Winchester, Massachusetts) is a former American football halfback in the American Football League for the Boston Patriots. He won the Heisman Trophy in 1960.

High school

Bellino attended the town's public schools, and was a three-sport star at Winchester High School. In baseball he batted well over .400 and was courted by major league teams. The basketball team on which he starred won the state championship his sophomore and junior years. They moved up to the Class A (largest schools) tournament his senior year, where the team's 55 game winning streak came to an end at the hands of much larger Durfee High of Fall River. He was a dominant halfback on Winchester's outstanding football team, although his senior season was shortened by the 1955 polio epidemic.

College career

After a year at the Naval Academy Prep School in Rhode Island, Bellino entered the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland along with his former high-school teammate, Frank Dattilo. He was an outstanding baseball player at Navy, but his legendary exploits occurred on the football field. In his senior year, he rushed for 834 yards, caught 15 passes for 264 yards and three TDs, threw two touchdown passes, averaged 47.1 yards as a punter, and returned kicks and punts. He won the 1960 Heisman Trophy by a wide margin, garnering the most votes in each of the five national voting regions. In Bellino's final college football game, Navy's loss to the University of Missouri in the 1961 Orange Bowl, he scored his team's final touchdown with a spectacular diving catch in the end zone.

Following graduation, Ensign Bellino began his four years of active Navy service, until he was discharged to reserve duty.

Professional career

Bellino was drafted in 17th round of the 1961 NFL Draft by the Washington Redskins, as well as in the 19th round of the 1961 AFL Draft by the Boston Patriots. He decided to join the Patriots of the American Football League, and played three seasons, primarily as a kick returner.

After football

Bellino served a total of 28 years in the United States Navy and the Naval Reserve, and retired with the rank of Captain.

Since the close of his playing career, he has been a successful businessman in the Boston area, where he has also been active in charitable organizations. He and his wife, former high school sweetheart Ann Tansey, have two children, Therese and John, and currently live in Bedford, Massachusetts.

Bellino Park in Winchester was dedicated in his honor in November 2004.