1960 Dallas Texans season
| 1960 Dallas Texans season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Hank Stram |
| Home field | Cotton Bowl |
| Results | |
| Record | 8–6 |
| Division place | 2nd AFL Western |
| Playoff finish | did not qualify |
The 1960 Dallas Texans season was the inaugural season of Lamar Hunt’s American Football League franchise from Dallas, Texas. Head coach Hank Stram led the team to an 8–6 record and second place in the AFL’s Western Conference.[1]
For the Texans' inaugural season, team owner Lamar Hunt pursued both legendary University of Oklahoma coach Bud Wilkinson and New York Giants defensive assistant Tom Landry to lead his Texans franchise. Wilkinson opted to stay at Oklahoma, while Landry was destined to coach the NFL’s expansion franchise in Dallas. Hunt settled on a relatively unknown assistant coach from the University of Miami, Hank Stram. “One of the biggest reasons I hired Hank was that he really wanted the job,” Hunt explained. “It turned out to be a very lucky selection on my part.”[2]
The Texans set up offices in the Mercantile National Bank Building, while Jerry Foss headquartered the AFL offices out of Dallas, as well.[1] Reserved seats were USD $4, general admission USD $2 and high school students paid USD $.90 that initial season. Don Rossi served as the team’s General Manager until November when he was succeeded by Jack Steadman.
The Texans conducted their inaugural training camp at the New Mexico Military Institute in Roswell, New Mexico. The club embarked on a whirlwind pre-season barnstorming tour that featured road games in Oakland, Tulsa, Boston, Abilene, and Little Rock. An announced crowd of 51,000 at the Cotton Bowl witnessed a 24–3 victory against Houston on September 2 as the club concluded a perfect 6–0 preseason record.[1]
The Texans had a strong home-state identity with quarterback Cotton Davidson from Baylor, linebacker Sherrill Headrick from TCU and running back Abner Haynes from North Texas. Haynes led the league with 875 rushing yards and nine TDs, as well as combined net yards (2,100) and punt return average (15.4).[1]
The Texans also had a flashy, high-scoring club which finished the year at 8–6 as three close losses kept the squad from challenging for the division title. The Texans averaged 24,500 for their home games, the highest average in the league.[1]
Contents
1960 AFL Draft
In the inaugural American Football League Draft, the Texans chose the following players to fill-up their squad:
|
|
Regular season
The Texans finished their inaugural season 8–6, with three wins coming by shut-out.[1]
Standings
| AFL Western Division | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | PF | PA | STK | ||
| Los Angeles Chargers | 10 | 4 | 0 | .714 | 5–1 | 373 | 336 | W4 | |
| Dallas Texans | 8 | 6 | 0 | .571 | 4–2 | 362 | 253 | W3 | |
| Oakland Raiders | 6 | 8 | 0 | .429 | 2–4 | 319 | 388 | W1 | |
| Denver Broncos | 4 | 9 | 1 | .308 | 1–5 | 309 | 393 | L3 | |
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
Schedule
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Game site | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 10, 1960 | at Los Angeles Chargers | L 20–21 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 17,724 | |
| 2 | September 16, 1960 | at Oakland Raiders | W 34–16 | Kezar Stadium | 8,021 | |
| 3 | September 25, 1960 | Los Angeles Chargers | W 17–0 | Cotton Bowl | 42,000 | |
| 4 | October 2, 1960 | New York Titans | L 35–37 | Cotton Bowl | 37,500 | |
| 5 | October 9, 1960 | Oakland Raiders | L 19–20 | Cotton Bowl | 21,000 | |
| 6 | October 16, 1960 | at Houston Oilers | L 10–20 | Jeppesen Stadium | 19,026 | |
| Week 7 — Bye | ||||||
| 8 | October 30, 1960 | at Denver Broncos | W 17–14 | Bears Stadium | 13,102 | |
| 9 | November 6, 1960 | at Buffalo Bills | W 45–28 | War Memorial Stadium | 19,610 | |
| 10 | November 13, 1960 | Denver Broncos | W 34–7 | Cotton Bowl | 21,000 | |
| 11 | November 18, 1960 | at Boston Patriots | L 14–42 | Nickerson Field | 14,721 | |
| 12 | November 24, 1960 | at New York Titans | L 35–41 | Polo Grounds | 14,344 | |
| 13 | December 4, 1960 | Houston Oilers | W 24–0 | Cotton Bowl | 20,000 | |
| 14 | December 11, 1960 | Boston Patriots | W 34–0 | Cotton Bowl | 12,000 | |
| 15 | December 18, 1960 | Buffalo Bills | W 24–7 | Cotton Bowl | 18,000 | |
Postseason
The Texans did not participate in the AFL Championship by finishing the season in second place of the Western Conference.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Kansas City Chiefs History 1960s KCChiefs.com
- ↑ Kansas City Chiefs History AFL Origins"
