Joe Fortunato

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Joe Fortunato
Position (s):
Linebacker 		Jersey number (s):
31
born March 28, 1930 in Mingo Junction , Ohio
died on November 6, 2017 in Natchez , Mississippi
Career information
Active : 1955 - 1966
NFL Draft : 1952 / Round: 7 / Pick: 80
College : Virginia Military Institute , Mississippi State University
Teams
Career statistics
Games     155
Interceptions     16
Touchdowns     3
Stats at pro-football-reference.com
Career highlights and awards

Francis Joseph "Joe" Fortunato (* 28. March 1930 in Mingo Junction , Ohio ; † 6. November 2017 in Natchez , Mississippi ) was an American American Football- players and trainers. He played as a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for the Chicago Bears .

Player career

College career

Joe Fortunato received an athletic scholarship from the Virginia Military Institute in 1948 . The following year, the coach of the local football team moved to Mississippi State University and Fortunato, who had not felt comfortable in Lexington , Virginia , followed him. From 1949 to 1952 he studied in Starkville , Mississippi. For the college football team, he played in various positions, but established himself in particular as a linebacker. In 1950 he was able to achieve eleven interceptions in the season . In the same year, his team was able to defeat the eventual national college football champions 7-0. In 1951 Fortunato was voted All-American .

Professional career

Fortunato's trainer George Halas

Joseph Fortunato was in 1952 by that of George Halas trained Chicago Bears in the seventh round at the 80th spot drafted . Fortunato was only able to play for the Bears from 1955 due to his military service. In the ranks of the Bears were numerous all-pro players such as Bill George , Ed Sprinkle and George Connor . Fortunato played as a linebacker for the Chicago team. 1956 Paddy Driscoll took over the coaching office with the Bears and led the team in the NFL final . Opponents in the final were the New York Giants , who were also able to prevail with 47: 7. In 1958, Halas took over as coach again. It was not until 1963 that the Bears were able to qualify again for the NFL final and beat the Giants there with 14:10. The defense of the Bears around Joe Fortunato succeeded again and again to put the opposing quarterback under pressure. YA Tittle , who was actually known for his reliability, threw five interceptions in the game and thus (unintentionally) contributed significantly to the victory of the Bears.

After the 1966 season, Fortunato ended his playing career after 12 years. During his career he was able to secure 22 fumbles , which was an NFL record at the time. Only in 1964 did Fortunato miss a game due to an injury. Otherwise he played all games for his team during his career.

Coaching career

Joe Fortunato was an assistant coach with the Chicago Bears for two years in 1967 and 1968 .

According to the NFL

After his career, Fortunato moved back to Mississippi and now lives in Natchez . His first wife died after 46 years of marriage; after that he was married a second time. Fortunato died on November 6, 2017 at the age of 87 in Natchez.

Honors

Joseph Fortunato played five times in the Pro Bowl , the final game of the best players of the season. He has been elected all-pro six times and is a member of the NFL 1950s All-Decade Team , the Chicago Bears Ring of Honor , the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame, and the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame.

Web links

literature

  • Lew Freedman: Game of my Life, Chicago Bears, Memorable Stories of Bears football. Champaign 2006, ISBN 1596701005

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Annual statistics of the Bears 1956
  2. ↑ 1956 NFL final - statistics
  3. ↑ Annual statistics of the Bears 1963
  4. ^ NFL final 1963 statistics
  5. ↑ MISSISSIPPI STATE FOOTBALL LEGEND JOE FORTUNATO PASSES AWAY , accessed on November 28, 2017
NFL 1950s All-Decade Team

Otto Graham  | Bobby Layne  | Norm Van Brocklin  | Frank Gifford  | Ollie Matson  | Hugh McElhenny  | Lenny Moore  | Alan Ameche  | Joe Perry  | Raymond Berry  | Tom Fears  | Bobby Walston  | Elroy Hirsch  | Rosey Brown  | Bob St. Clair  | Dick Barwegan  | Jim Parker  | Dick Stanfel  | Chuck Bednarik  | Len Ford  | Gino Marchetti  | Kind Donovan  | Leo Nomellini  | Ernie Stautner  | Joe Fortunato  | Bill George  | Sam Huff  | Joe Schmidt  | Jack Butler  | Dick Lane  | Jack Christiansen  | Yale Lary  | Emlen Tunnell  | Lou Groza

personal data
SURNAME Fortunato, Joe
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Fortunato, Joseph Francis
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American football player and coach
DATE OF BIRTH March 28, 1930
PLACE OF BIRTH Mingo Junction , Ohio
DATE OF DEATH November 6, 2017
Place of death Natchez , Mississippi