John George Mellus (June 16, 1917 – November 28, 2005) was an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

player who played professional football as an tackle for eight seasons in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL) and the

All-America Football Conference The All-America Football Conference (AAFC) was a professional American football league that challenged the established National Football League (NFL) from 1946 to 1949. One of the NFL's most formidable challengers, the AAFC attracted many of the ...

(AAFC).

Career

Mellus was born in 1917, at

Plymouth, Pennsylvania Plymouth is a borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located west of Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania, Wilkes-Barre, along the Susquehanna River. The population was 5,763 as of the 2020 census. History ...

, the grandson of

Lithuanian Lithuanian may refer to: * Lithuanians * Lithuanian language * The country of Lithuania * Grand Duchy of Lithuania * Culture of Lithuania * Lithuanian cuisine * Lithuanian Jews as often called "Lithuanians" (''Lita'im'' or ''Litvaks'') by other Jew ...

immigrants, and graduated in 1934 from Hanover High School at

Hanover Township, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania Hanover Township is a township in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 11,424, making it the most populous township in the county. History Establishment Hanover Township was one of the original townships laid ...

. Mellus attended

Villanova University Villanova University is a Private university, private Catholic church, Roman Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania. It was founded by the Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinians in 1842 and named after Thomas of Villanova, Sa ...

from 1934 to 1937, where he played football. In 1937 he was named to the New York Sun's collegiate All-America team (first-team) and to the Associated Press's 13th annual collegiate All-America team (second-team). Mellus was drafted in the ninth round of the 1938 NFL Draft. In 1938, Mellus played for the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...

on their championship team, and on their teams of 1939 to 1941. In December 1941, he was named to the first-team of the Associated Press's NFL All-Star team. After being drafted into military service in February 1942, Mellus played for the Eastern Army All-Star Team. In December 1943, he was named to the Associated Press's military service All American team. Following his discharge from the military, Mellus played in 1946 for the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

and from 1947 to 1949 for the

Baltimore Colts The Baltimore Colts were a professional American football team that played in Baltimore from its founding in 1953 to 1984. The team now plays in Indianapolis, as the Indianapolis Colts. The team was named for Baltimore's history of horse breed ...

. He was inducted into the Luzerne County Sports Hall of Fame in 1988,''Wilkes-Barre Times Leader'', July 7, 1989, page 29. and into the Villanova University "Wall of Fame" in 2002. Mellus died at

Dallas, Pennsylvania Dallas is a borough in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,692 at the 2020 census. The local government describes the borough as the "Pride" of the Back Mountain (a 118 square mile region in northern Luzerne County). ...

in 2005.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mellus, John 1917 births 2005 deaths American football tackles Baltimore Colts (1947–1950) players Camp Davis Fighting AA's football players Camp Lee Travellers football players New York Giants players San Francisco 49ers (AAFC) players Villanova Wildcats football players United States Army personnel of World War II People from Plymouth, Pennsylvania Players of American football from Pennsylvania Military personnel from Pennsylvania