Hamilton County Councilman, hall of fame coach Jim Belden dies at 77

Beloved Hamilton County Councilman and Indiana Football Hall of Fame coach Jim Belden has died.

Steve Dillinger, a Hamilton County commissioner and Belden's best friend of nearly 40 years, told IndyStar the legendary coach died Sunday surrounded by loved ones at his Carmel home after battling a serious illness.

He was 77 years old.

After decades of serving as both a coach and an elected official in Hamilton County, Belden's impact and presence will not soon be forgotten.

"He is a legacy in Hamilton County. He truly is," Dillinger said. "There are a lot of young men that he mentored and I'm sure they’re going to be devastated.

"He was probably one of the most compassionate and loving people I've ever known."

Belden was born in Battle Creek, Mich., in 1939 and later moved to Indianapolis, according to the Indiana Football Hall of Fame. As a teen, he attended Shortridge High School where he was an all-city and all-state fullback before graduating in 1957.

After high school, Belden earned a bachelor's degree from Butler University and a master's degree from Ball State University.

His first coaching job came in 1964 when he turned around a struggling Westfield football program. In 1967, he made the move to Noblesville to lead the Millers.

"That is when I first met him. He moved in the house across the street from me," Dillinger said. "When he arrived, Noblesville’s football program was kind of at an all time low, so he was hell-bent on correcting that issue."

Dillinger was coaching the Noblesville Grinders elementary football team at the time, and the two men became fast friends as Belden fought to turn his new team around.

While at Noblesville, his teams won nine Sagamore Conference titles.

"That first year he went 0-10, the next year he went 5-5, and I don’t think he had a season under 7-3 after that. He did a phenomenal job of rebuilding the program," Dillinger said.

Even with all the success at Noblesville, his best coaching years came in Carmel. In 17 years under Belden, the Greyhounds won four big-school state titles.

After more than 33 years and more than 350 games, he retired from coaching in 1996 with a 283-80-2 lifetime record. According to IndyStar archives, Belden-coached teams won 25 conference titles, 16 sectionals, 10 regionals, five semistates, as well as a state runner-up.

He was inducted into the Indiana Football Coaches Hall of Fame in April 1996 and has served as president, vice president and regional director of the Indiana Football Coaches Association.

Hamilton County Commissioner Mark Heirbrandt said he knew of Belden before he even met him.

"The Belden family. Everybody knows who they are," he said. "And everybody that I talk to ... it's just unbelievable the impact that he made on a lot of young people's lives. He was an incredible man."

Heirbrandt even got to see two generations of Belden coaching first-hand as Belden's son, Bo, would go on to coach Heirbrandt's son at Westfield High School.

When discussing the impact of Belden's passing, Heirbrandt spoke of Belden's selflessness and his desire to make Hamilton County the best place it could be.

He also remembers the warmth and positive attitude that Belden brought to the county council every single day.

"He was the type of guy who — whenever I saw him — a big smile went on his face, and he'd come up and pat you on the back or hug you," Heirbrandt said. "He was always asking 'what can I do for you?' and 'is there anything I can do to help you?' That’s just the kind of guy he was.

"What a horrible day for Hamilton County."

Thanks in part to urging from Dillinger, Belden joined the Hamilton County Council in 1993.

He said the same things that made him a great coach made him a great councilman.

"Everyone thought he was a really tough coach, but that was just a professional put-on thing to get performance out of players because he was never that tough. He just wasn’t that type of a person," Dillinger said. "But even on the council, I watched him at times when things were challenging and he would put on his coaching face. He was really, really good at pulling things together, calming things down and he had such a unique ability with leadership. Particularly when he'd put on that coaching face.

"He just had a tone and a look on his face that you didn’t want to mess with."

But no matter if he was on the field or in the council chambers, Belden will be remembered for doing everything in his power to lead his team to victory.

"He really loved being a councilman," Dillinger said. "He said to me hundreds of times, he loved coaching a winning team, and he very much considered the Hamilton County government a winning team. He played a major part on it."

Call IndyStar reporter Justin L. Mack at (317) 444-6138. Follow him on Twitter: @justinlmack.