As the Hall of Fame selection committee revised its roster of
candidates, the name Albert Bellos stood out. "One thing is clear,"
said one committee member, "wherever I go, the name Al Bellos comes
up as one of WPI's all-time best athletes."
"Al Bellos should be highly considered," said another. "He was
very highly thought of within his era."
And what an era it was. The storied WPI football team of 1938
was undefeated. As a sophomore, Al played end on that team (he
would later play fullback and quarterback). The 1938-39 basketball
team was one of WPI's all-time best, and Al was an integral part of
that squad. They played some of the iron in New England-Harvard,
Northeastern, Boston University and the University of Connecticut.
And they beat them all.
Al Bellos scored 508 points in his WPI basketball career. That
wouldn't be considered a high total these days, but points were
hard to come by then. Time after time, Al led WPI in scoring,
especially in key games.
He is credited with being the first on the East Coast to employ
a move developed on the West Coast a year or so before. It was
called the jump shot. And thanks to Al's athleticism, the jump shot
gained in popularity on the Atlantic shore.
A Worcester native and a graduate of Classical High School, Al
was a natural leader. He co-captained the 1939-40 and the 1940-41
WPI basketball teams. He was said to be another coach on the floor.
He won letters four years in basketball, three years in
football, and one year in baseball. He was also a member of Skull.
"Al would have been thrilled with this honor," says his wife,
Anne. "In fact, I think it would have been the highlight of his
life. He talked about his four years at Tech quite a bit, and often
mentioned how they were such happy days for him. I'm sure he's
wearing a broad smile right about now."
It is a privilege to induct Albert Bellos, posthumously, into
the WPI Athletic Hall of Fame.
