| Personal information | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born: | (1894-07-12)July 12, 1894 Cisco, Illinois, U.S. | ||||||
| Died: | February 25, 1976(1976-02-25) (aged 81) Decatur, Illinois, U.S. | ||||||
| Height: | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | ||||||
| Weight: | 191 lb (87 kg) | ||||||
| Career information | |||||||
| High school: | Cambridge (NE) | ||||||
| College: | none | ||||||
| Position: | Center | ||||||
| Career history | |||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||
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John Theodore Mintun (July 12, 1894 – February 25, 1976) was professionalAmerican football player who played as acenter for seven seasons for theDecatur/Chicago Staleys (1920–1921), theRacine Legion (1922–1924), theKansas City Cowboys (1925), and theRacine Tornadoes (1926).[1][2]
Mintun grew up inPiatt County, Illinois before moving to Decatur as a teenager, where he played for the independent Decatur Indians team; during a November 1915 game, he received the nickname "Jack" from a local newspaper. He later joinedA. E. Staley's baseball team before being drafted into theUnited States Army in 1918; he served with the34th Infantry Division in France until his discharge. In 1919, he was a member of Staley's new football team, where he played center and kicker.[3] He scored three touchdowns for the Staleys that year on an interception return, muffed punt return, and a fumble return.[4][5][6] The following year, he became an employee at A. E. Staley as amillwright, and was named their night supervisor in 1932.[3]
