Gene Mingo
| Career history | |
|---|---|
| AFL Denver Broncos AFL Oakland Raiders AFL Miami Dolphins NFL Washington Redskins NFL Pittsburgh Steelers | |
Eugene L. Mingo (born September 22, 1938 in Akron, Ohio) is a former professional American football player who played several positions including halfback, placekicker, and kickoff/punt returner. He is widely recognized as the first African American placekicker in American Football.
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 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. Gene Mingo holds the Broncos' franchise record for the longest touchdown run, an 82-yarder against the Raiders in 1961. He also played for the AFL's Oakland Raiders and the Miami Dolphins. He kicked for the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1970.
See also
External links
 | This biographical article relating to an American football kicker is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
- American football placekicker stubs
- 1938 births
- Living people
- People from Akron, Ohio
- American football placekickers
- American football running backs
- American football return specialists
- Denver Broncos (AFL) players
- Oakland Raiders (AFL) players
- Miami Dolphins (AFL) players
- Washington Redskins players
- Pittsburgh Steelers players
- AFL All-Star players