Gene 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.
