1960 Houston Oilers season
| 1960 Houston Oilers season |
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| Head coach |
Lou Rymkus |
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| Home field |
Jeppesen Stadium |
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| Results |
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| Record |
10–4 |
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| Division place |
1st AFL Eastern |
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| Playoff finish |
Won AFL Championship (Chargers) (24–16) |
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| Timeline |
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| Previous season |
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Next season |
| N/A |
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1961 |
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The 1960 Houston Oilers season was the team's inaugural season. Head Coach Lou Rymkus led the Oilers to the AFL Eastern Division title, with a 10–4 record. It was also the inaugural American Football League season. It ended with a 24–16 victory in the AFL Championship over the Los Angeles Chargers.
Offseason
AFL Draft
In the 1960 AFL Draft, the Houston Oilers selected the following players.
- Peter Arena, G, Northwestern
- Dick Bass, HB, College of Pacific
- William Bohler, E/T, St. Ambrose
- Larry Cadwell, T, Louisville
- Billy Cannon, HB, Louisiana State
- Doug Cline, LB, Clemson
- DeJustice Coleman, HB, Illinois
- Bob Crandall, HB, New Mexico
- Cleatus Drinnon, C, Hardin-Simmons
- John Gremer, G, Illinois
- George Herring, G/T, North Texas State
- Steve Johnson, QB, Pepperdine
- John Lands, E, Montana
- Jacky Lee, QB, Cincinnati
- Bruce Maher, HB, Detroit
- Don Mattson, T, Southern California
- Mike McGee G, Duke
- Hugh McInnis, E, Mississippi State
- Max Messner, T, Cincinnati
- George Mulholland, E, New Mexico State
- Gary O'Steen, HB, Alabama
- Gene Prebola, E, Boston University
- Palmer Pyle T, Michigan State
- William Roach, T, Texas Christian
- Robert Simms, E, Rutgers
- Phillip Snowden, QB, Missouri
- Don Underwood, G/T, McNeese State
- Duane Whetstone, FB, George Washington
- Bob White FB, Ohio State
- Maury Youmans, T, Syracuse
Regular season
- The Oilers scored an important victory over the NFL when they signed LSU's Heisman Trophy winner, All-America running back Billy Cannon. Cannon joined other Oiler offensive stars such as quarterback George Blanda.
Standings
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
Season schedule
| Week |
Date |
Opponent |
Result |
Attendance |
Team Record |
Game Site |
TV |
| 1 |
September 11, 1960 |
at Oakland Raiders |
W 37–22 |
12,703 |
1–0 |
Kezar Stadium |
TBA |
| 2 |
September 18, 1960 |
Los Angeles Chargers |
W 38–28 |
20,156 |
2–0 |
Jeppesen Stadium |
TBA |
| 3 |
September 25, 1960 |
Oakland Raiders |
L 13–14 |
16,421 |
2–1 |
Jeppesen Stadium |
TBA |
| 4 |
Bye |
| 5 |
October 9, 1960 |
New York Titans |
W 27–21 |
16,151 |
3–1 |
Jeppesen Stadium |
TBA |
| 6 |
October 16, 1960 |
Dallas Texans |
W 20–10 |
19,026 |
4–1 |
Jeppesen Stadium |
TBA |
| 7 |
October 23, 1960 |
at New York Titans |
W 42–28 |
21,000 |
5–1 |
Polo Grounds |
TBA |
| 8 |
October 30, 1960 |
at Buffalo Bills |
L 24–25 |
23,001 |
5–2 |
War Memorial Stadium |
TBA |
| 9 |
November 6, 1960 |
at Denver Broncos |
W 45–25 |
14,489 |
6–2 |
Bears Stadium |
TBA |
| 10 |
November 13, 1960 |
at Los Angeles Chargers |
L 21–24 |
21,805 |
6–3 |
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum |
TBA |
| 11 |
November 20, 1960 |
Denver Broncos |
W 20–10 |
20,778 |
7–3 |
Jeppesen Stadium |
TBA |
| 12 |
November 25, 1960 |
at Boston Patriots |
W 24–10 |
27,123 |
8–3 |
Nickerson Field |
TBA |
| 13 |
December 4, 1960 |
at Dallas Texans |
L 0–24 |
20,000 |
8–4 |
Cotton Bowl |
TBA |
| 14 |
December 11, 1960 |
Buffalo Bills |
W 31–23 |
25,247 |
9–4 |
Jeppesen Stadium |
TBA |
| 15 |
December 18, 1960 |
Boston Patriots |
W 37–21 |
22,352 |
10–4 |
Jeppesen Stadium |
TBA |
Week 1: at Oakland Raiders
Box Score
|
1st Quarter |
2nd Quarter |
3rd Quarter |
4th Quarter |
Total |
| Houston |
7 |
0 |
13 |
17 |
37 |
| Oakland |
0 |
7 |
7 |
8 |
22 |
Week 2: vs. Los Angeles Chargers
Box Score
|
1st Quarter |
2nd Quarter |
3rd Quarter |
4th Quarter |
Total |
| Houston |
14 |
7 |
17 |
0 |
38 |
| Los Angeles |
7 |
7 |
0 |
14 |
28 |
Week 3: vs. Oakland Raiders
Box Score
|
1st Quarter |
2nd Quarter |
3rd Quarter |
4th Quarter |
Total |
| Houston |
0 |
10 |
3 |
0 |
13 |
| Oakland |
7 |
0 |
0 |
7 |
14 |
Notable Stats
| Player |
Comp. |
Att. |
Comp% |
Yards |
TD's |
INT's |
| George Blanda (HOU) | 169 | 363 | 46.6 | 2413 | 24 | 22 |
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Roster
Postseason
AFL Championship Game
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
Total |
| Chargers |
6 |
3 |
7 |
0 |
16 |
| Oilers |
0 |
10 |
7 |
7 |
24 |
Houston Oilers 24, Los Angeles Chargers 16
- January 1, 1961 at Jeppesen Stadium, Houston, Texas
Attendance: 32,183
Scoring
- LA – Field goal Agajanian 38 LA 3–0
- LA – Field goal Agajanian 22 LA 6–0
- HOU – Smith 17 pass from Blanda (Blanda kick) HOU 7–6
- HOU – Field goal Blanda 18 HOU 10–6
- LA – Field goal Agajanian 27 HOU 10–9
- HOU – Groman 7 pass from Blanda (Blanda kick) HOU 17–9
- LA – Lowe 2 run (Agajanian kick) HOU 17–16
- HOU – Cannon 88 pass from Blanda (Blanda kick) HOU 24–16
Awards
The American Football League did not have an All-Star game after its first season in 1960, but an All-League team, selected by vote of the AFL players themselves, was published by the Sporting News. In later years, the All-League players were augmented by other All-Stars to form two squads, Eastern and Western, to play in the All-Star Game. The exception was 1965, in which the League Champion Buffalo Bills played against a team of All-Stars from the rest of the League.
Offense
| Player | AFL Team | Position | AFL Division |
| Bill Groman | Houston Oilers | End | Eastern |
| Dave Smith | Houston Oilers | Fullback | Eastern |
References
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| | Division championships (9) | |
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| | Super Bowl appearances (1) | |
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| | League championships (2) | |
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| | Retired numbers | |
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| | Current league affiliations | |
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| | Media | |
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