Gene Mingo
From Free net encyclopedia
Eugene Mingo (born September 22, 1938 in Akron, Ohio) was the first black field goal kicker in professional football in the United States, and was a very versatile American football player, playing several positions including halfback, kicker, and kickoff/punt returner.
In 1960, he had the first punt return for a touchdown in the American Football League, for the Denver Broncos. That touchdown won the first-ever American Football League game, as the Broncos defeated the Boston Patriots. Mingo also scored the first points in Mile High Stadium, then called Bears Stadium, with an 18-yard field goal. In the 1961 season opener at War Memorial Stadium against the Buffalo Bills, Mingo threw two touchdown passes , from the halfback position, to help the Broncos win 22-10: a 50-yarder to fellow Hall of Famer Lionel Taylor in the first quarter, and a 52-yarder to Taylor in the third. Mingo kicked the PATs after each score. He led the American Football League in scoring as a rookie in 1960 with 123 points and in 1962 with 137 points. He also played for the Oakland Raiders and the Miami Dolphins.