page_title: Joe Arenas
hierarchical_section_title: Joe Arenas
caption_attribution_description: English: American football player Joe Arenas on a 1954 Bowman card.
context_page_description: Guadalupe Joseph Arenas, also known as "Lupe Joe" Arenas and "Little Joe" Arenas, was an American football player. He was a halfback and defensive back for the San Francisco 49ers from 1951 to 1957. He was best known as a kickoff and punt returner. His 4,572 career kick and punt return yards was the best in NFL history at the time of his retirement, and his career average of 27.3 yards per kick return remains ninth best in NFL history. Arenas was, along with Tom Fears and Eddie Saenz, among the first Mexican-American players to achieve significant success in the sport of American football.
context_section_description: Guadalupe Joseph Arenas (December 12, 1925 – June 30, 2020), also known as "Lupe Joe" Arenas and "Little Joe" Arenas,  was an American football player.  He was a halfback and defensive back for the San Francisco 49ers from 1951 to 1957.  He was best known as a kickoff and punt returner.  His 4,572 career kick and punt return yards was the best in NFL history at the time of his retirement, and his career average of 27.3 yards per kick return remains ninth best in NFL history.  Arenas was, along with Tom Fears and Eddie Saenz, among the first Mexican-American players to achieve significant success in the sport of American football.
caption: Arenas on a 1954 Bowman football card
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