1961 American Football League draft

American Football League draft July 2026 August 2023 1961 AFL draft November 21–22, 1960 &December 5–6, 1960 AFL Mike McKeever, GSan Diego Chargers Ken Rice, OTBuffalo Bills 240 30 6 1960 1962 The 1961 American Football League draft, was held in 1960 because another league was in competition for the class of 1961 college stars, the American Football League draft for 1961 graduates. A six-round telephone draft was held on November 21 and 22, 1960, that saw the Buffalo Bills select Auburn's Ken Rice as the overall first draft pick.https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1961_AFL/draft.htm 1961 AFL Draft Listing Pro-Football-Reference.comhttps://news.google.com/newspapers?id=xalWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=4ecDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5956%2C2270514 Spokesman-Review Spokane, Washington Associated Press Keith Lincoln second pick of Chargers November 22, 1960 14 The draft was completed on December 5 and 6, with rounds seven through thirty. The San Diego Chargers were still the "Los Angeles Chargers" in this draft, as their relocation was not announced until late January 1961.https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=eagzAAAAIBAJ&sjid=iu4HAAAAIBAJ&pg=2522%2C421083 Lodi News-Sentinel California UPI LA Charger owner Hilton likes the setup in San Diego January 7, 1961 9https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=kqBWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=recDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6631%2C2588628 Spokesman-Review Spokane, Washington Associated Press Chargers move south January 25, 1961 13 https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=5_9VAAAAIBAJ&sjid=0-IDAAAAIBAJ&pg=3966%2C3810880 Eugene Register-Guard Oregon Associated Press Chargers go to San Diego January 25, 1961 3B Player selections Round 1 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 1 Buffalo Bills Ken Rice OT Auburn 2 New York Titans Tom Brown G Minnesota 3 Boston Patriots Tommy Mason RB Tulane 4 Denver Broncos Bob Gaiters HB New Mexico State 5 Oakland Raiders Joe Rutgens DT Illinois 6 Dallas Texans E. J. Holub C / LB Texas Tech 7 San Diego Chargers Earl Faison DE Indiana 8 Houston Oilers Mike Ditka TE Pittsburgh Round 2 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 9 Buffalo Bills Billy Shaw G Georgia Tech 10 New York Titans Herb Adderley HB Michigan State 11 Denver Broncos Jerry Hill RB Wyoming 12 Boston Patriots Rip Hawkins LB North Carolina 13 Oakland Raiders George Fleming HB Washington 14 Dallas Texans Bob Lilly DT TCU 15 Houston Oilers Tom Goode C Mississippi State 16 San Diego Chargers Keith Lincoln FB Washington State Round 3 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 17 Buffalo Bills Art Baker FB Syracuse 18 Buffalo Bills Tom Gilburg OT Syracuse 19 Boston Patriots Dan LaRose OT Missouri 20 Denver Broncos Bo Strange C LSU 21 Oakland Raiders Myron Pottios LB Notre Dame 22 Dallas Texans Jim Tyrer OT Ohio State 23 San Diego Chargers Marlin McKeever LB USC 24 Houston Oilers Walter Suggs OT Mississippi State Round 4 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 25 Buffalo Bills Stew Barber OT Penn State 26 Denver Broncos Sonny Davis LB Baylor 27 Denver Broncos Ron McDole DE Nebraska 28 Boston Patriots Mike Zeno G VPI 29 Oakland Raiders Elbert Kimbrough S Northwestern 30 Dallas Texans Claude Moorman E Duke 31 Houston Oilers Bobby Walden HB / P Georgia 32 San Diego Chargers Jimmy Johnson CB UCLA Round 5 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 33 Buffalo Bills Norm Snead QB Wake Forest 34 New York Titans Tom Matte RB Ohio State 35 Boston Patriots Fran Tarkenton QB Georgia 36 Denver Broncos Charley Cowan OT New Mexico Highlands 37 Oakland Raiders Dick Norman QB Stanford 38 Dallas Texans Jerry Mays DE SMU 39 San Diego Chargers Billy Kilmer QB UCLA 40 Houston Oilers Monte Lee LB Texas Round 6 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 41 Buffalo Bills Fred Brown HB Georgia 42 New York Titans Bill Brown RB Illinois 43 Denver Broncos Dale Evans HB Kansas State 44 Boston Patriots Larry Eisenhauer DE Boston College 45 Oakland Raiders Bobby Crespino SE Ole Miss 46 Houston Oilers Jake Gibbs QB Ole Miss 47 San Diego Chargers Calvin Bird HB Kentucky 48 San Diego Chargers Cliff Roberts OT Illinois Round 7 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 49 Denver Broncos Pat Patchen E Florida 50 Boston Patriots Paul Terhes QB Bucknell 51 Oakland Raiders Ray Purdin HB Northwestern 52 Buffalo Bills Al Bemiller C Syracuse 53 Dallas Texans Fred Arbanas TE Michigan State 54 New York Titans Fred Mautino E Syracuse 55 San Diego Chargers Claude Gibson CB NC State 56 Houston Oilers Dick Reynolds OT NC State Round 8 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 57 Oakland Raiders Dick Price G Ole Miss 58 Oakland Raiders Tom Watkins HB Iowa State 59 Boston Patriots Charlie Long G Chattanooga 60 Buffalo Bills Chuck Linning OT Miami (FL) 61 New York Titans Harold Beaty OT Oklahoma State 62 Dallas Texans John O'Day OT Miami (FL) 63 Houston Oilers Houston Antwine DT Southern Illinois 64 San Diego Chargers Charley Johnson QB New Mexico State Round 9 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 65 Denver Broncos Phil Nugent S Tulane 66 Boston Patriots Roland Lakes DT Wichita 67 Oakland Raiders Lowndes Shingler QB Clemson 68 Buffalo Bills Billy Majors DB Tennessee 69 Dallas Texans Dick Mills G Pittsburgh 70 New York Titans Bernie Casey HB Bowling Green 71 San Diego Chargers Bob Scarpitto FL Notre Dame 72 Houston Oilers Ralph White OT Bowling Green Round 10 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 73 Denver Broncos Charley Sturgeon HB Kentucky 74 Oakland Raiders Ken Petersen OT Utah 75 Boston Patriots Dick Mueller E Kentucky 76 Buffalo Bills Don Kern HB VMI 77 New York Titans Joe Scibelli G American International 78 Dallas Texans Jerry Daniels E Ole Miss 79 Houston Oilers Charley Lee C Iowa 80 San Diego Chargers Willie Hector G Pacific Round 11 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 81 Denver Broncos John Simko E Augustana (SD) 82 Boston Patriots Mel West HB Missouri 83 Oakland Raiders Doug Mayberry FB Utah State 84 Buffalo Bills Roy Wall HB North Carolina 85 Dallas Texans Marvin Tibbets HB Georgia Tech 86 New York Titans Art Gilmore HB Oregon State 87 San Diego Chargers Greg Larson C Minnesota 88 Houston Oilers Bob Bird G Bowling Green Round 12 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 89 Denver Broncos Jerry Miller E Howard Payne 90 Oakland Raiders Bob Schmitz G Montana State 91 Boston Patriots Wayne Harris C Arkansas 92 Buffalo Bills Floyd Powers G Mississippi State 93 New York Titans Norris Stevenson HB Missouri 94 Dallas Texans Paul Hynes DB Louisiana Tech 95 Houston Oilers Bob McLeod TE Abilene Christian 96 San Diego Chargers Hezekiah Braxton FB Virginia Union Round 13 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 97 Denver Broncos Ron Greene G Washington State 98 Boston Patriots Dan Underwood OT McNeese State 99 Oakland Raiders Jerry Burch WR Georgia Tech 100 Buffalo Bills Tom Causey E Louisiana Tech 101 Dallas Texans Glynn Gregory E SMU 102 New York Titans Joe Wendryhoski C Illinois 103 San Diego Chargers Dale Messer HB Fresno State 104 Houston Oilers Gerald Hinton G Louisiana Tech Round 14 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 105 Denver Broncos Bill Cooper FB Muskingum 106 Oakland Raiders Clark Miller DE Utah State 107 Boston Patriots Jim Wright DB Memphis State 108 Buffalo Bills Ron Kostelnik DT Cincinnati 109 New York Titans Jim Cunningham FB Pittsburgh 110 Dallas Texans Curtis McClinton FB Kansas 111 Houston Oilers Jimmy King OT Clemson 112 San Diego Chargers Billy Wilson OT Auburn Round 15 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 113 Denver Broncos Willie Crafts G Texas A&I 114 Oakland Raiders Bob Coolbaugh FL Richmond 115 Buffalo Bills Jerry Frye E South Carolina 116 Dallas Texans Roy Lee Rambo G TCU 117 Dallas Texans Ed Nutting OT Georgia Tech 118 New York Titans Irv Cross E Northwestern 119 San Diego Chargers Ernie Ladd DT Grambling 120 Houston Oilers Dennis Ferriter C Marquette Round 16 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 121 Denver Broncos Jim Larkin OT Hillsdale 122 Oakland Raiders Chuck Lamson HB Wyoming 123 Boston Patriots George Balthazar OT Tennessee A&I 124 Buffalo Bills Vince Scott E Maryland 125 New York Titans Jerry Steffen HB Colorado 126 Dallas Texans Aaron Thomas TE Oregon State 127 Houston Oilers Larry Wood HB Northwestern 128 San Diego Chargers Bud Whitehead S Florida State Round 17 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 129 Denver Broncos Chuck Weiss FB Colorado 130 Boston Patriots Ray Ratkowski HB Notre Dame 131 Oakland Raiders Joe Novsek DE Tulsa 132 Buffalo Bills Wayne Wolff G Wake Forest 133 Dallas Texans Jarrell Williams HB Arkansas 134 New York Titans Mike Pyle OT Yale 135 San Diego Chargers Reggie Carolan TE Idaho 136 Houston Oilers Sam Fewell OT South Carolina Round 18 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 137 Denver Broncos Chick Graning HB Georgia Tech 138 Oakland Raiders Joe Krakoski S Illinois 139 Boston Patriots Tom Rodgers HB Kentucky 140 Buffalo Bills John Bodkin G South Carolina 141 New York Titans Alfred Bentley E Arkansas State 142 Dallas Texans Ron Hartline FB Oklahoma 143 Houston Oilers Ike Grimsley HB Michigan State 144 San Diego Chargers Ed Dyas FB Auburn Round 19 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 145 Denver Broncos John Hobbs G Maryland State 146 Boston Patriots Joe Bellino HB Navy 147 Oakland Raiders Charley Fuller HB San Francisco State 148 Buffalo Bills Charley Barnes E Northeast Louisiana State 149 Dallas Texans Frank Jackson FL SMU 150 New York Titans Jim Kerr S Penn State 151 San Diego Chargers Jack Espenship HB Florida 152 Houston Oilers Myron Pearson HB Colorado State Round 20 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 153 Denver Broncos Buck McLeod OT Baylor 154 Oakland Raiders Preston Powell FB Grambling 155 Boston Patriots Clarence Childs CB Florida A&M 156 Buffalo Bills Everett Cloud HB Maryland 157 New York Titans Neil Plumley OT Oregon State 158 Dallas Texans Bobby Lane LB Baylor 159 Houston Oilers Lewis Johnson HB Florida A&M 160 San Diego Chargers Mike Lucci C Tennessee Round 21 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 161 Denver Broncos Jim Morgan HB Iowa State 162 Boston Patriots Don Oakes OT VPI 163 Oakland Raiders Mike Jones QB San José State 164 Buffalo Bills Larry Vargo S Detroit 165 Dallas Texans Dick Thornton QB Northwestern 166 New York Titans Bob Brooks FB Ohio 167 San Diego Chargers Gene Gaines HB UCLA 168 Houston Oilers Ron Miller QB Wisconsin Round 22 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 169 Denver Broncos Tom Hackler E Tennessee Tech 170 Oakland Raiders Blayne Jones G Idaho State 171 Boston Patriots Bob Johnson E Michigan 172 Buffalo Bills Charlie Baker OT Tennessee 173 New York Titans Wayne Fontes DB Michigan State 174 Dallas Texans Ed Sharockman CB Pittsburgh 175 Houston Oilers Bob Kelly OT New Mexico State 176 San Diego Chargers John Brown OT Syracuse Round 23 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 177 Denver Broncos Tom Jewel OT Idaho State 178 Boston Patriots Darrel DeDecker C Illinois 179 Oakland Raiders Roger Fisher C Utah State 180 Buffalo Bills Red Mack TE Notre Dame 181 Dallas Texans Lou Zivkovich OT New Mexico State 182 New York Titans Mickey Walker G Michigan State 183 San Diego Chargers Glenn Bass SE East Carolina 184 Houston Oilers Jim Anderson FB Ole Miss Round 24 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 185 Denver Broncos E. A. Sims E New Mexico State 186 Oakland Raiders Jack Novak G Miami (FL) 187 Boston Patriots Don Webb CB Iowa State 188 Buffalo Bills Frank Jackunas C Detroit 189 New York Titans Howard Dyer QB VMI 190 Dallas Texans Pat Dye G Georgia 191 Houston Oilers Ken Gregory E Whittier 192 San Diego Chargers Ben Balme G Yale Round 25 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 193 Denver Broncos Pete Samms OT Central State (OK) 194 Boston Patriots Bob Minihane OT Boston University 195 Oakland Raiders Paul Yanke E Northwestern 196 Buffalo Bills Jack Harbaugh HB Bowling Green 197 Dallas Texans Ray Ramsey QB Adams State 198 New York Titans Andy Griffith HB American International 199 San Diego Chargers Donald Coffey WR Memphis State 200 Houston Oilers Jack Kreider HB Tulsa Round 26 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 201 Denver Broncos Sam Smith HB Florence State 202 Oakland Raiders Dean Hinshaw OT Stanford 203 Boston Patriots Charley Granger OT Southern 204 Buffalo Bills Lorenzo Stanford OT North Carolina A&T 205 New York Titans Bobby Smith S UCLA 206 Dallas Texans Danny House HB Davidson 207 Houston Oilers Don Fuell QB Mississippi Southern 208 San Diego Chargers Bill Kinnune G Washington Round 27 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 209 Denver Broncos Don Olson HB Nebraska 210 Boston Patriots Terry Huxhold OT Wisconsin 211 Oakland Raiders Clair Appledoorn E San José State 212 Buffalo Bills Bob Allen E Wake Forest 213 Dallas Texans Bob Schloredt QB Washington 214 New York Titans Moses Gray OT Indiana 215 San Diego Chargers Luther Hayes E USC 216 Houston Oilers Boyd King C Rice Round 28 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 217 Denver Broncos Wayne Lee G Colorado State 218 Oakland Raiders Dave Grosz QB Oregon 219 Boston Patriots Bryant Harvard QB Auburn 220 Buffalo Bills Jason Harness E Michigan State 221 New York Titans Fred Cox HB / K Pittsburgh 222 Dallas Texans Bill Stine G Michigan 223 Houston Oilers John Frongillo C Baylor 224 San Diego Chargers Chuck Allen LB Washington Round 29 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 225 Denver Broncos Archie Cobb OT Nebraska 226 Boston Patriots Ernie McMillan OT Illinois 227 Oakland Raiders Ed Morris OT Indiana 228 Buffalo Bills Mike Stock HB Northwestern 229 Dallas Texans Lonnie Caddell FB Rice 230 San Diego Chargers Dan Ficca G USC 231 Houston Oilers Tom Lewis E Lake Forest 232 Houston Oilers Errol Linden OT Houston Round 30 Pick # AFL team Player Position College 233 Denver Broncos Dave Mills HB Northeast Missouri State 234 Oakland Raiders Bill Face HB Stanford 235 Boston Patriots George Hultz DT Mississippi Southern 236 Buffalo Bills Billy Martin HB Minnesota 237 New York Titans Bill Minnerly HB Connecticut 238 Dallas Texans Cedric Price E Kansas State 239 Houston Oilers Jim Stroud OT Rice 240 San Diego Chargers Mike McKeever G USC Notable undrafted players † = AFL All-Star yes 200pt 1961 yes Dallas Texans Dave Grayson Cornerback 1960 University of Oregon Oregon Ducks Oregon yes yes 1961 yes Denver Broncos Donnie Stone Running back 1960 University of Arkansas Arkansas Razorbacks Arkansas yes yes 1961 yes Denver Broncos Jerry Sturm Center 1960 University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign Illinois Fighting Illini Illinois yes yes 1961 yes New York Titans Dainard Paulson Safety 1960 Oregon State University Oregon State Beavers Oregon State yes yes 1961 yes San Diego Chargers Bo Roberson Wide receiver 1960 Cornell University Cornell Big Red Cornell yes yes See also List of American Football League players American Football League draft List of professional American football drafts References 2 External links 1961 AFL Draft Listing at Pro Football Reference 1961 Draft American Football League draft American Football League draft