Sept. 7, 1963 - Tom Flores, the Oakland quarterback, came off the bench in the second half today to lead the Raiders, a last-place team in the American Football League last year, to a 24-13 victory over the Houston Oilers. Flores, who was out all last year with tuberculosis, led the Raiders 56 yards on 7 plays in the first four minutes of the third quarter to wipe out the Oilers’ 6-0 lead and put them ahead to stay. It was a bad night for Houston, last year’s Eastern Division champions. They suffered their first loss in a league opener; their star halfback, Billy Cannon, was knocked out of the game; and they made four fumbles and had six passes intercepted. The Raiders sewed it up early in the fourth quarter on an 85-yard pass play involving Flores and Art Powell. Powell took the pass in the flat and went all the way after two Oiler defenders ran into each other. Both Powell and Flores were factors in the first touchdown, scored by halfback Clem Daniels on a two-yard burst for a 7-6 lead in the third period. Flores pitched short ones, moving the Raiders 77 yards in seven plays, then capped the drive with a 22-yarder to Powell on the two. Daniels did the rest over center in a pileup of Houston’s huge line. On the ground, Daniels was the best grinder on either side. He scrambled for 80 yards in 16 tries and kept the Oilers loose with his receptions when he wasn’t pounding.
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