1963 Oakland Raiders season

1963 Oakland Raiders season
Owner	F. Wayne Valley
General manager	Al Davis
Head coach	Al Davis
Home field	Frank Youell Field
Results
Record	10–4
Division place	2nd AFL Western
Playoff finish	Did not qualify

The 1963 Oakland Raiders season was the team's fourth in Oakland. The campaign saw the team attempt to improve upon its abysmal 1962 record of 1–13.

In his first year with the organization, Raiders legend Al Davis, formerly a receivers coach with the San Diego Chargers, replaced the team's original gold and black uniforms with the current "silver and black" scheme. Under his leadership as head coach and general manager, the Raiders stunned the rest of the AFL by winning ten games. They finished with a record of 10–4, which was good for second place in the Western Division, one game behind the eventual AFL champion Chargers, whom they had defeated twice. The Raiders swept the Western division in 1963, winning all six games. For his role in the Raiders' miraculous turnaround, Al Davis was named the AFL's "Coach of the Year".

Season schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Attendance
1	September 7	at Houston Oilers	W, 24–13	1–0	24,749
2	September 15	Buffalo Bills	W, 35–17	2–0	17,568
3	September 22	Boston Patriots	L, 14–20	2–1	17,131
4	September 28	at New York Jets	L, 7–10	2–2	17,100
5	October 5	at Buffalo Bills	L, 0–12	2–3	24,846
6	October 11	at Boston Patriots	L, 14–20	2–4	26,494
7	October 20	New York Jets	W, 49–26	3–4	15,557
8	October 27	at San Diego Chargers	W, 34–33	4–4	30,182
9	November 3	Kansas City Chiefs	W, 10–7	5–4	18,919
10	November 8	at Kansas City Chiefs	W, 22–7	6–4	24,879
11	November 17	Bye week
	November 24	Scheduled AFL games postponed to December 22
12	November 28	at Denver Broncos	W, 26–10	7–4	14,763
13	December 8	San Diego Chargers	W, 41–27	8–4	20,249
14	December 15	Denver Broncos	W, 35–31	9–4	15,223
15	December 22	Houston Oilers	W, 52–49	10–4	17,401

Roster

1963 Oakland Raiders roster

Quarterbacks (QB) 19 Cotton Davidson 15 Tom Flores Running backs (RB) 36 Clem Daniels 33 Doug Mayberry 37 Alan Miller     Jesse Murdock 32 Glenn Shaw 29 Mike Sommer Wide receivers (WR) 42 Dobie Craig 84 Art Powell 40 Bo Roberson Tight ends (TE) 82 Jan Barrett 86 Ken Herock

Offensive linemen (OL) 66 Sonny Bishop 65 Wayne Hawkins 77 Proverb Jacobs 70 Dick Klein 87 Bob Mischak 00 Jim Otto 63 Ollie Spencer 78 Frank Youso Defensive linemen (DL) 80 Dalva Allen 53 Dan Birdwell 46 Dave Costa 88 Jon Jelacic 73 Chuck McMurtry 72 Jim Norris

Linebackers (LB) 44 Bob Dougherty 56 Archie Matsos 81 Clancy Osborne 48 Charlie Rieves 49 Jackie Simpson Defensive backs (DB) 25 Claude Gibson 27 Joe Krakoski 45 Jim McMillin 35 Tommy Morrow 20 Warren Powers 39 Herman Urenda 24 Fred Williamson Special teams 10 Mike Mercer

Rookies in italics

Game summaries

Week 1: at Houston Oilers

See also: 1963 Houston Oilers season

Week One: Oakland Raiders at Houston Oilers – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Raiders	0	0	10	14	24
Oilers	6	0	0	7	13

at Jeppesen Stadium, Houston, Texas

• Date: September 7
• Game weather: 88 F, wind 6 mph
• Box Score

Scoring summary

Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP Raiders Oilers 1 Oilers 30-yard field goal by George Blanda 0 3 1 Oilers 46-yard field goal by George Blanda 0 6 3 Raiders Clem Daniels 2-yard touchdown run, Mike Mercer kick good 7 6 3 Raiders 11-yard field goal by Mike Mercer 10 6 4 Raiders Art Powell 85-yard touchdown reception from Tom Flores, Mike Mercer kick good 17 6 4 Raiders Fumble recovery returned 15 yards for touchdown by Ken Herock, Mike Mercer kick good 24 6 4 Oilers Charley Hennigan 34-yard touchdown reception from Jacky Lee, George Blanda kick good 24 13 "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 24 13

Week 2

1 2 3 4 Total Bills 0 10 7 0 17 • Raiders 0 21 7 7 35 Date: September 15 Location: Frank Youell Field, Oakland, California Game attendance: 17,568 Game weather: 66°F; wind 12

Scoring summary Q2 OAK Powell 5-yard pass from Davidson (Mercer kick) OAK 7–0 Q2 BUF Yoho 32-yard field goal OAK 7–3 Q2 OAK Daniels 73-yard pass from Davidson (Mercer kick) OAK 14–3 Q2 OAK Miller 2-yard run (Mercer kick) OAK 21–3 Q2 BUF Dubenion 17-yard pass from Kemp (Yoho kick) OAK 21–10 Q3 OAK Davidson 5-yard run (Mercer kick) OAK 28–10 Q3 BUF Dubenion 58-yard pass from Kemp (Yoho kick) OAK 28–17 Q4 OAK Jelacic 1-yard interception return (Mercer kick) OAK 35–17

Week 7

1 2 3 4 Total Jets 7 6 0 13 26 • Raiders 21 14 7 7 49 Date: October 20 Location: Frank Youell Field, Oakland, California Game attendance: 15,557 Game weather: 62°F; wind 13

Scoring summary Q1 NYJ Heeter 34-yard pass from Wood (Guesman kick) NYJ 7–0 Q1 OAK Miller 3-yard run (Mercer kick) Tie 7–7 Q1 OAK Craig 93-yard pass from Flores (Mercer kick) OAK 14–7 Q1 OAK Daniels 8-yard run (Mercer kick) OAK 21–7 Q2 NYJ Guesman 51-yard field goal OAK 21–10 Q2 NYJ Guesman 16-yard field goal OAK 21–13 Q2 OAK Herock 38-yard pass from Davidson (Mercer kick) OAK 28–13 Q2 OAK Daniels 56-yard pass from Davidson (Mercer kick) OAK 35–13 Q3 OAK Miller 8-yard pass from Davidson (Mercer kick) OAK 42–13 Q4 OAK Daniels 74-yard run (Mercer kick) OAK 49–13 Q4 NYJ Smolinski 49-yard pass from Hall (Guesman kick) OAK 49–20 Q4 NYJ Hall 6-yard run OAK 49–26

Week 8

1 2 3 4 Total • Raiders 7 7 7 13 34 Chargers 10 7 9 7 33 Date: October 27 Location: Balboa Stadium, San Diego, California Game attendance: 30,182 Game weather: 68°F; wind 6

Scoring summary Q1 OAK Powell 20-yard pass from Flores (Mercer kick) OAK 7–0 Q1 SD Blair 23-yard field goal OAK 7–3 Q1 SD Alworth 32-yard pass from Rote (Blair kick) SD 10–7 Q2 OAK Miller 5-yard pass from Flores (Mercer kick) OAK 14–10 Q2 SD MacKinnon 69-yard pass from Hadl (Blair kick) SD 17–14 Q3 SD Harris 23-yard interception return (kick failed) SD 23–14 Q3 OAK Craig 39-yard pass from Davidson (Mercer kick) SD 23–21 Q3 SD Blair 36-yard field goal SD 26–21 Q4 OAK Powell 46-yard pass from Davidson (Mercer kick) OAK 28–26 Q4 SD Lincoln 51-yard run (Blair kick) SD 33–28 Q4 OAK Shaw 9-yard pass from Davidson (run failed) OAK 34–33

• Clem Daniels 19 Rush, 125 Yds

Week 9

1 2 3 4 Total Chiefs 0 7 0 0 7 • Raiders 0 3 0 7 10 Date: November 3 Location: Frank Youell Field, Oakland, California Game attendance: 18,919 Game weather: 55°F; wind 12

Scoring summary Q2 OAK Mercer 10-yard field goal OAK 3–0 Q2 KC Haynes 1-yard run (Brooker kick) KC 7–3 Q4 OAK Gibson 85-yard punt return (Mercer kick) OAK 10–7

Week 10

1 2 3 4 Total • Raiders 3 19 0 0 22 Chiefs 0 0 7 0 7 Date: November 8 Location: Kansas City Municipal Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri Game attendance: 24,879 Game weather: 57°F; wind 10

Scoring summary Q1 OAK Mercer 14-yard field goal OAK 3–0 Q2 OAK Mercer 41-yard field goal OAK 6–0 Q2 OAK Powell 24-yard pass from Flores (Mercer kick) OAK 13–0 Q2 OAK Wilson tackled in end zone OAK 15–0 Q2 OAK Powell 34-yard pass from Flores (Mercer kick) OAK 22–0 Q3 KC McClinton 4-yard run (Spikes kick) OAK 22–7

• Clem Daniels 31 Rush, 122 Yds

Week 12

1 2 3 4 Total • Raiders 2 0 14 10 26 Broncos 0 3 0 7 10 Date: November 28 Location: Bears Stadium, Denver, Colorado Game attendance: 14,763 Game weather: 39°F; wind 9

Scoring summary Q1 OAK Safety, Joe tackled in end zone OAK 2–0 Q2 DEN Mingo 52-yard field goal DEN 3–2 Q3 OAK Roberson 39-yard pass from Davidson (Mercer kick) OAK 9–3 Q3 OAK Jelacic 19-yard fumble return (Mercer kick) OAK 16–3 Q4 OAK Mercer 16-yard field goal OAK 19–3 Q4 OAK Shaw 1-yard run (Mercer kick) OAK 26–3 Q4 DEN Joe 34-yard pass from Breaux (Mingo kick) OAK 26–10

Week 13

1 2 3 4 Total Chargers 7 13 7 0 27 • Raiders 3 7 0 31 41 Date: December 8 Location: Frank Youell Field, Oakland, California Game attendance: 20,249 Game weather: 48°F; wind 6

Scoring summary Q1 SD Norton 32-yard pass from Rote (Blair kick) SD 7–0 Q1 OAK Mercer 37-yard field goal SD 7–3 Q2 SD Jackson 14-yard run (Blair kick) SD 14–3 Q2 OAK Powell 44-yard pass from Flores (Mercer kick) SD 14–10 Q2 SD MacKinnon 5-yard pass from Rote (kick failed) SD 20–10 Q3 SD Alworth 15-yard pass from Rote (Blair kick) SD 27–10 Q4 OAK Powell 10-yard pass from Davidson (Mercer kick) SD 27–17 Q4 OAK Mercer 30-yard field goal SD 27–20 Q4 OAK Davidson 9-yard run (Mercer kick) Tie 27–27 Q4 OAK Powell 41-yard pass from Davidson (Mercer kick) OAK 34–27 Q4 OAK Miller 2-yard run (Mercer kick) OAK 41–27

• Art Powell 6 Rec, 132 Yds

Week 14

1 2 3 4 Total Broncos 7 3 14 7 31 • Raiders 14 7 7 7 35 Date: December 15 Location: Frank Youell Field, Oakland, California Game weather: 41°F; wind 5

Scoring summary Q1 OAK Roberson 32-yard pass from Flores (Mercer kick) OAK 7–0 Q1 OAK Powell 18-yard pass from Flores (Mercer kick) OAK 14–0 Q1 DEN Joe 9-yard run (Mingo kick) OAK 14–7 Q2 OAK Daniels 26-yard pass from Flores (Mercer kick) OAK 21–7 Q2 DEN Mingo 35-yard field goal OAK 21–10 Q3 OAK Daniels 43-yard pass from Flores (Mercer kick) OAK 28–10 Q3 DEN Prebola 9-yard pass from Slaughter (Mingo kick) OAK 28–17 Q3 DEN Dixon 2-yard run (Mingo kick) OAK 28–24 Q4 OAK Powell 3-yard pass from Flores (Mercer kick) OAK 35–24 Q4 DEN Taylor 29-yard pass from Slaughter (Mingo kick) OAK 35–31

• Clem Daniels 5 Rec, 127 Yds

Week 15

1 2 3 4 Total Oilers 14 21 14 0 49 • Raiders 7 28 7 10 52 Date: December 22 Location: Frank Youell Field, Oakland, California Game weather: 46°F; wind 7

Scoring summary Q1 OAK Gibson 69-yard punt return (Mercer kick) OAK 7–0 Q1 HOU Hennigan 4-yard pass from Blanda (Blanda kick) Tie 7–7 Q1 HOU Smith 2-yard run (Blanda kick) HOU 14–7 Q2 HOU Dewveall 12-yard pass from Blanda (Blanda kick) HOU 21–7 Q2 OAK Herock 7-yard pass from Flores (Mercer kick) HOU 21–14 Q2 OAK Daniels 56-yard pass from Flores (Mercer kick) Tie 21–21 Q2 HOU Smith 25-yard pass from Blanda (Blanda kick) HOU 28–21 Q2 OAK Powell 81-yard pass from Flores (Mercer kick) Tie 28–28 Q2 HOU Tolar 1-yard run (Blanda kick) HOU 35–28 Q2 OAK Powell 20-yard pass from Flores (Mercer kick) Tie 35–35 Q3 OAK Powell 45-yard pass from Flores (Mercer kick) OAK 42–35 Q3 HOU Dewveall 26-yard pass from Blanda (Blanda kick) Tie 42–42 Q3 HOU McLeod 21-yard pass from Blanda (Blanda kick) HOU 49–42 Q4 OAK Powell 23-yard pass from Flores (Mercer kick) Tie 49–49 Q4 4:37 OAK Mercer 39-yard field goal OAK 52–49

• Tom Flores 17/29, 407 Yds
• Clem Daniels 22 Rush, 158 Yds
• Art Powell 10 Rec, 247 Yds

Standings

AFL Western Division
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	PF	PA	STK
San Diego Chargers	11	3	0	.786	3–3	399	255	W2
Oakland Raiders	10	4	0	.714	6–0	363	282	W8
Kansas City Chiefs	5	7	2	.417	2–4	347	263	W3
Denver Broncos	2	11	1	.154	1–5	301	473	L7

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings in the AFL.

External links

• 1963 Oakland Raiders at Pro-Football-Reference.com