College Career
During his 1956-57 year at Columbian Academy in Washington D.C., Bellino starred in both football and basketball. On November 25, Bellino scored three touchdowns in Columbian's upset win over the Navy Plebes, 34-33. In the fall of 1957, Bellino entered the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland along with his former high-school teammate, Frank Dattilo. During his freshman year, the Plebes matched up against the Penn State freshmen and their star player Lew Luce. Penn State won the game 23-13 but Bellino took a lateral from his Columbian teammate Harry Dietz, and scored on an 85 yard kickoff return.
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 touchdowns, 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.
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