FOXBORO – It was announced Wednesday that 1967 AFL MVP Jim Nance has been voted the 14th player inducted into the New England Patriots Hall of Fame.

Nance was the choice in an online fan vote over offensive lineman Jon Morris and defensive lineman Houston Antwine; all three men were with the Patriots from their early days, as the franchise is celebrating its 50th anniversary season this fall.

"I am glad that the fans selected Jim Nance for this honor," New England owner Robert Kraft said. "Like so many others, he was one of the reasons I became a Patriots fan. He was an attraction. He brought fans to the games and that was very important in building a loyal fan base. The fact that he still holds some prominent rushing records 38 years after his playing career speaks volumes."

Drafted in the 19th round of the 1965 AFL draft after leading Syracuse in rushing the previous fall and tying Jim Brown's school record with 13 rushing touchdowns, it didn't take Nance long to make an impact with the Patriots.

In just his second season, the 6-foot-1 Nance was selected AFL MVP after leading the league with 1,458 yards rushing, gaining just under 5 yards per attempt. Against the Raiders that year, Nance had 38 carries for 208 yards and two touchdowns. Also that season, Nance became the first Patriots player on the cover of "Sports Illustrated."

He was the only player in AFL history to eclipse 1,400 yards in a season, and his average of 104.1 yards per game that year remains a franchise record.

In 1967, Nance went to the AFL All-Star game again after again accumulating the most rushing yards in both the AFL and NFL at 1,216. He was the only back in the AFL's 10 seasons to eclipse 1,000 yards in consecutive years.

Nance totaled 45 rushing touchdowns in seven seasons with the Patriots, still tops for the franchise.

Teammate Gino Cappelletti was asked how Nance's game would translate 40 years later.

"He would really be recognized as a strong player and one of the top running backs in the game," said Cappelletti, who characterized Nance as a bigger Emmitt Smith with his combination of traits. "We all know the game has changed, the evolution of the game, and all that is a part of the different types of football that's played today, but he had quickness and he had speed and he had size and he had power … MVP in '66, richly deserved, and I would say that exemplifies what kind of player he was."

Nance passed away in 1992 at age 49; daughter Rachel will represent him at the Hall of Fame induction ceremonies during the weekend of New England's preseason opener in August.

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Notes and observations from day one of the three-day mini-camp:

* Tom Brady has been doing more scrambling. In 11-on-11 work, he rolled to his right on one play (something we hadn't really seen in previous sessions), and on a couple of others, he tucked the ball and headed upfield when he scanned the field;

* Cornerback Terrence Wheatley picked off Kevin O'Connell in 11-on-11 work, picking off a ball intended for receiver Terrence Nunn. Wheatley also broke up a pass from Matt Gutierrez intended for Nunn later on;

* As the kicker, Stephen Gostkowski's practices are different than other players, and sometimes he has to find ways to keep himself occupied. On Wednesday the Pro Bowler was shagging punts from Chris Hanson and Tom Malone; after some, he'd half-heartedly punt the ball back toward the pile for long snappers Nathan Hodel and Jake Ingram, and was remarkably accurate with his efforts. Called onto the field during New England's two-minute drill, Gostkowski hit a field goal of about 60 yards;

* The prospective punt returners – Wes Welker, Kevin Faulk and Joey Galloway – continued to field punts with one ball already tucked into one arm. While typically they've done well with this, it wasn't a particularly good day for the trio, with a few punts getting away from them;

* New England may account for the departure of fullback Heath Evans through different means – tight ends Alex Smith and David Thomas as well as offensive line utilityman Russ Hochstein all lined up as a true fullback on Wednesday.

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Brady apparently doesn't take losing too well: Kraft revealed that after coming in second to Tedy Bruschi in the long drive contest at Monday's team charity golf event, 287 yards to 281, Brady noted to Kraft several times during their round that Bruschi had used regular golf balls for his attempts, while Brady used lower-quality range balls. … Bill Belichick wasn't biting when asked about new Jets' coach Rex Ryan's recent comments that he "never came here to kiss Bill Belichick's rings." Upon hearing the question on Wednesday, Belichick gave a mischievous laugh and then a fairly stock answer: "I have a lot of respect for Rex. What he did in Baltimore - the defense his team has played. We've always had great battles with the Jets, so I'm sure that will continue. It's a good rivalry. They beat us up here last year. They kind of got the last punch in on that one (fight)."

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With Vince Wilfork present, there were 13 players not in attendance for the first day of mini-camp, all of whom were not spotted during OTAs over the last couple of weeks. The list: DL Ty Warren, LB Jerod Mayo, DL Jarvis Green, RB Sammy Morris, S Brandon Meriweather, T Mark LeVoir, DB Ray Ventrone, CB Mike Richardson, S Brandon McGowan, WR Tyree Barnes, WR Shun White, WR Brandon Tate and LB Tyrone McKenzie.

smanza@projo.com