The 1960 Houston Oilers season was the first season for the

Houston Oilers The Houston Oilers were a professional American football team that played in Houston from its founding in 1960 to 1996 before relocating to Memphis, and later Nashville, Tennessee becoming the Tennessee Titans. The Oilers began play in 1960 a ...

as a professional

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

franchise; Head Coach Lou Rymkus led the Oilers to the AFL Eastern Division title, with a 10–4 record. It was also the first

American Football League The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1970, when it merged with the older National Football League (NFL), and became the American Football Conference. ...

season. It ended with a 24–16 victory in the

AFL championship game For its first nine seasons, 1960 through 1968, the American Football League determined its champion via a single playoff game between the winners of its two divisions (although ties in the standings in 1963 (Eastern) and 1968 (Western) necessitat ...

at home over the

Los Angeles Chargers The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division, and ...

(10–4).

Offseason

AFL draft

In the

1960 AFL draft The 1960 American Football League draft was held on November 23–24, 1959, in Minneapolis, shortly after the organization of the league, and lasted 33 rounds. An additional draft of 20 rounds was held by the AFL on December 2. Teams were req ...

, the Houston Oilers selected the following players. * Peter Arena, G, Northwestern *

Dick Bass Richard Lee Bass (March 15, 1937 – February 1, 2006) was an American football running back from who played for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL) from 1960 to 1969. Early life and education Born in Georgetown, Missis ...

, 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 Eugene Nicholas Prebola (June 30, 1938 – December 10, 2021) was an American football tight end who played four seasons in the American Football League (AFL) with the Oakland Raiders and Denver Broncos. He was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the ...

, E, Boston University *

Palmer Pyle William Palmer Pyle (June 6, 1937 – September 30, 2021) was a former professional American football guard who played in the National Football League (NFL) and the American Football League (AFL). He played for six seasons for the NFL's Baltimore ...

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 the

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and har ...

winner,

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

running back Billy Cannon of LSU. Cannon joined other Oiler offensive stars such as veteran quarterback

George Blanda George Frederick Blanda (September 17, 1927 – September 27, 2010) was an American football placekicker and quarterback who played professionally in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL). Blanda played 26 seasons ...

Standings

Schedule

Week 1: at Oakland Raiders

Week 2: vs. Los Angeles Chargers

Week 3: vs. Oakland Raiders

Notable stats

Roster

Postseason

AFL Championship Game

Houston Oilers 24, Los Angeles Chargers 16 :''January 1, 1961, at

Jeppesen Stadium John O'Quinn Field at Corbin J. Robertson Stadium (often referred to as simply Robertson Stadium) was a multi-purpose stadium in Houston, located on the campus of the University of Houston. It was the home of the Houston Cougars football and wo ...

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

''
Attendance: 32,183 Scoring * LA – Field goal Ben Agajanian 38 LA 3–0 * LA – Field goal Agajanian 22 LA 6–0 * HOU – Smith 17 pass from

(Blanda kick) HOU 7–6 * HOU – Field goal Blanda 18 HOU 10–6 * LA – Field goal Agajanian 27 HOU 10–9 * HOU – Bill Groman 7 pass from Blanda (Blanda kick) HOU 17–9 * LA – Paul Lowe 2 run (Agajanian kick) HOU 17–16 * HOU – Billy Cannon 88 pass from Blanda (Blanda kick) HOU 24–16

Awards

''
Sporting News The ''Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a pr ...
''
American Football League The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1970, when it merged with the older National Football League (NFL), and became the American Football Conference. ...
All-League Team – 1960

The

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 The ''Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a pr ...

''. In later years, the All-League players were augmented by

References

Oilers on Pro Football Reference

Oilers on jt-sw.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:1960 Houston Oilers Season

American Football League championship seasons Houston Oilers seasons