Sept. 26, 1964 - It’s a little hard to picture — like Ringo Starr singing for the Metropolitan Opera — but the Buffalo Bills tonight are one of the two undefeated and untied teams in the AFL. The Bills and the Boston Patriots, each with a record of 3-0, are tied for first place in the Eastern Division. (Pictured below are Buffaloe’s Joe Auer and Cookie Gilchrist.)
In former years, whenever a large crowd gathered in War Memorial Stadium to watch the Bills in a key game, you could almost count on the home team swooning.
But a record sellout crowd of 40,167 tonight saw the Bills wink at pressure, shrug off a bad start, and conquer the AFL champion San Diego Chargers, 30-3.
“Buffalo has always had fine personnel,” analyzed Sid Gillman, the Charger coach, after the game, “but it always has been one thing or another. I think they have a sound, well-balanced team now.”
Three of the most electrifying plays of the AFL’s five years were featured in the game:
— A 75-yard runback of an intercepted Tobin Rote pass for a touchdown by rookie Butch Byrd.
— A 53-yard punt return for a touchdown by another rookie, Hagood Clarke.
— An unbelievable diving catch of Daryle Lamonica’s 40-yard scoring pass by Elbert Dubenion.
But while these three plays sent the customers home ecstatic, they weren’t what impressed the opposition.
“The difference in Buffalo’s team,” remarked Rote, “is that it is playing as a unit.”
Quarterback Jack Kemp played an effective game, mixing his plays carefully and throwing well on short patterns, but when Lamonica was sent in to relieve him, the tempo was stepped without loss of cohesion.
Cookie Gilchrist summed it up as well as anyone:
“We have a terrific chance to win it all now. We balanced off our running with our passing. The defense was just great. The guys are all pulling together. We can do it.”
The game’s pivotal play was Clarke’s return of John Hadl’s punt. Hagood fielded it on the Bill 47, took several steps to his right, then cut to his left. He seemed to be heading for a half dozen Chargers.
Somehow, he slipped through the crowd to the San Diego 35. There, he broke a tackle and weaved down the sidelines with one man to beat, Hadl.
Clarke directed Mike Stratton in Hadl’s direction. Stratton flattened the Charger with a bone-crushing block, and Clarke swept into the end zone.
“That was just before the half,” said one San Diego player. “It gave Buffalo a lead of 14-3 instead of 7-3. It really demoralized us.”
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