Mike Bellotti (Born December 21, 1950) helped guide the University of Oregon football program from a consistent bowl participant to a national title contender in his three decades with the program.
Born in 1950, Bellotti played tight end and receiver at UC Davis from 1969-1972 and stayed on as a graduate assistant before coordinating offense at Hayward State (now Cal State-East Bay) and Weber State. Mike’s first head coaching experience came at Chico State where he spent five seasons before being hired at Oregon as offensive coordinator under Rich Brooks.
1989 was the start of Oregon’s ascendence in the college football world. The breakthrough bowl trip was followed by three more. When the Ducks reached the Rose Bowl following the 1994 season, Coach Brooks gave significant credit to Coach Bellotti. Then when Brooks left for the NFL that winter, it was natural move up for Mike Bellotti to take over.
The excellence continued. Over the next fourteen seasons, Bellotti’s record as head coach of the Ducks was 116-55. Oregon won ten or more games four times and played in twelve bowl games. The Ducks finished second in both major rankings for the 2001 season following a 38-10 win over Colorado in the 2002 Fiesta Bowl.
Bellotti turned the program over to Chip Kelly in 2009 to become Athletic Director, although for just one year. He then became a popular broadcast analyst.
Overall, Bellotti went 137-80-2 in 19 years as a head coach. He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2014 and has served as chair of the NCAA Football Rules Committee and on the American Football Coaches Board of Trustees.