Joe Arenas Guadalupe Joseph Arenas ( born December 12 , 1925 in Cedar Rapids , Iowa ) , also known as " Lupe Joe " Arenas and " Little Joe " Arenas , is a former American football player . He was a halfback and defensive back for the San Francisco 49ers from the 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 . Military service . Arenas was born in Cedar Rapids , Iowa in 1925 . Arenas served in the United States military for four years during and after World War II . He participated in the invasion of Iwo Jima , was wounded with shrapnel and received a Purple Heart decoration . Arenas credited his military background with giving him the mental and physical toughness that led to his success in football . University of Nebraska - Omaha . Arenas did not play football in high school and did not become involved in football under after he was discharged from the military . He later recalled that his introduction to football began after a night of carousing : " We were out partying one night , and my mom said , ' What are you going to do with your life ? ' That hit me — ' What am I going to do . ' I said I was going to school , and from that day lorward , I prepared myself to go play basketball for the University of Nebraska . And , by God , I made it . " He began his college career playing basketball for the Nebraska Cornhuskers , but he transferred to the University of Nebraska - Omaha , then known as Omaha University , so that he could play football . He played college football at Omaha from 1947 to 1950 . He was chosen as the most valuable player on Omaha ' s 1948 football team . During the 1949 season , he led Omaha in both rushing and passing yards . Arenas opened the 1950 football season by throwing three touchdown passes in a 33 - 7 win over Nebraska Wesleyan . Arenas also played basketball at Omaha ; he was the team ' s second leading scorer in 1950 with 144 points on 56 field goals and 32 free throws in 23 games . San Francisco 49ers . Arenas was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the 8th round of the 1951 NFL Draft . He played seven seasons in San Francisco from 1951 to 1957 . On December 16 , 1951 , he knocked the Detroit Lions out of the NFL division championship with 51 - yard punt return . He led the NFL with 814 kick and punt return yards in 1951 , and also led the NFL in yards per touch in both 1951 ( 13 . 1 yards per touch ) and 1955 ( 11 . 1 yards per touch ) . In December 1956 , two long returns by Arenas helped the 49ers beat the Baltimore Colts 30 - 17 . The Associated Press coverage of the game opened by noting , " Little Joe Arenas , who earlier returned a kickoff 96 yards , returned a punt 68 for San Francisco ' s winning touchdown . " After the game , 49ers coach Frank Albert said of Arenas , " He ' s the greatest clutch artist I ' ve ever seen . He was the difference between the two clubs today . " A newspaper columnist in 1957 described Arenas ' value to the 49ers : " Arenas is a valuable man on a pro football team , specifically the 49er team . He is more than a thoroughly dependable player . He is an inspirational holler - guy who can lift flagging spirits ; who refuses to be whipped even if the score is top - heavy in the other side ' s favor . Team devotees feel a sense of complete confidence watching a well kicked ball sail in the direction of Arenas , playing safety . Joe hardly ever bobbles one . On those rare occasions when the spinning ball briefly twists out of his waiting arms , he is on the pellet with the speed of a mongoose . " Arenas was " a popular and capable performer " in his seven year with the 49ers . A columnist for the " Oakland Tribune " in July 1958 wrote that the 49ers lineup would not be the same without him and added , " Arenas has a spectacular quality which appeals to the customers . He is dead game , possessing in spirit and aggression what he may lack in sheer talent . He is no speedburner , yet last year and the season before he made long runs which brought the audiences to its collective feet . " Arenas announced his retirement from football in September 1958 , saying he was quitting to devote full time to his job as a salesman and public relations man for the coffee company , Schilling & Co . Arenas had been working in the coffee business during the off - season for several years . He compared selling with football in a 1957 interview : " Selling is like football . The buyers are defending , I ' m on the offense . It ' s axiomatic in football for every good offense there is a proper defense — and vice versa . That goes for selling , too . " After he announced his retirement , the " Oakland Tribune " called him " a scrappy little back " who " made up with hustle what he lacked in ability " and became " the most popular player on the 49ers . " In seven years in the NFL , Arenas accumulated 987 rushing yards , 675 passing yards , 774 punt return yards , 3 , 798 kick return yards , 17 touchdowns , six interception . Over the course of his career , he averaged 27 . 3 yards per kick return , a figure that remains ninth best in NFL history . His 4 , 572 career kick and punt return yards was the best in NFL history at the time of his retirement ; Al Carmichael broke his record in 1958 . After retiring from the 49ers , he covered the team for the " San Francisco Call - Bulletin " during the 1958 season . In December 1958 , Arenas wrote that he had been banned from the 49ers ' bench and dressing room for things he had written in his newspaper column . According to Arenas , team owner Vic Morabito claimed that his former teammates " had not appreciated my comments about their playing . " In an interview in 1990 , Arenas said of his time with the 49ers , " It was something I will always cherish . It was the highlight of my life . " Later years . Acquittal on forgery charges . In March 1961 , the Santa Clara County Sheriff ' s Department issued an all points bulletin for Arenas after he was charged with forging a business partner ' s name on a $ 264 check at a Bank of America branch in San Jose , California . In June 1961 , Arenas was ordered to stand trial in San Jose , California on a forgery charge . In November 1961 , a San Jose jury acquitted Arenas of the charge . The check had been made out to both Arenas and his partner , and Arenas contended he had authorization from his partner to endorse the check with both names . Coaching . For 23 years from 1963 to 1986 , Arenas was an assistant football coach for the Houston Cougars football team under College Football Hall of Fame coach Bill Yeoman . Arenas worked with the receivers at the University of Houston and developed such NFL receiving talents as Riley Odom and Carl Hilton . Arenas recalled , " I was just fortunate enough to be able to do both with Coach Yeoman . I was part - time for a while , and then the NCAA said you could only have so many coaches , and then I went voluntary for a while . " He also worked as a volunteer coach at Rice University from 1987 to 1988 . From 1991 until at least 2002 , Arenas served as an unpaid volunteer coach with the Ball High School football team in Galveston . Interviewed in 2002 , Arenas said , " It ' s lot of fun . It just keeps me busy . That ' s the thing , and it ' s something I like to do . Anytime I can be around young men and help them along , that ' s good for me . " Property management . Arenas later worked as a property supervisor at Barney Rapp Realtors , Inc . , on Galveston Island in Texas . Arenas retired in 1991 , but he continued to " dabble " in property management before finally retiring for good in 1993 . Family , awards and honors . Arenas was married to Maxine Brynston Arenas . The couple had two daughters , Vicki Ritter and Tracey Arenas . His wife died in August 2008 at Webster , Texas . In 2000 , Arenas was inducted into the Laredo Latin American International Sports Hall of Fame . Arenas was also profiled in Mario Longoria ' s 1997 book , " Athletes Remembered : Mexicano / Latino Professional Football Players , 1929 - 1970 . " After reviewing Arenas ' career , Longoria concludes that the " exclusion " of Arenas from the Pro Football Hall of Fame is " a gross injustice . "