Mobile Site You Are Here > Home > Teams > Houston Oilers > 1973 Starters, Roster, & Players
News: Features: Similarity Scores »post
1973 Houston Oilers
Franchise Index: Previous Season / Next Season
Record: 1-13-0, Finished 4th in AFC Central Division
NFL Season Summary
Scored 199 points (14.2/g), 23rd of 26 in the NFL.
Allowed 447 points (31.9/g), 26th.
Differential of -248 points (-17.7/g), 26th.
Expected W-L: 1.8-12.2.
Takeaway/Giveaway Differential -25 (-1.8/g), 26th.
Simple Rating System: Total -16.9, Offense: -4.4, Defense: -12.4, SoS: 0.8, versus averages of 0.0.
Coached by
Bill Peterson (0-5-0) and Sid Gillman (1-8-0)
Training Camp: Schreiner Institute (Kerrville, Texas)
Sponsor this page for $20 and help Pro-Football-Reference.com provide this service. Your message will replace this ad.
Starters
ProBowl(*), 1st-team All-Pro(+),Hide Non-primary Starters
| Pos | Age | Yrs | GS | Summary of Player Stats | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offensive Starters | ||||||
| QB | Dan Pastorini | 24 | 2 | 10 | 154 for 290, 1,482 yards, 5 td, 17 int, & 31 rushes for 102 yards and 0 td | Houston Oilers / 1st / 3rd pick / 1971 |
| RB | Bob Gresham | 25 | 2 | 0 | 104 rushes for 400 yards, 2 td, & 28 catches for 244 yards and 1 td | New Orleans Saints / 8th / 201st pick / 1971 |
| FB | Fred Willis | 26 | 2 | 0 | 171 rushes for 579 yards, 4 td, & 57 catches for 371 yards and 1 td | Cincinnati Bengals / 4th / 93rd pick / 1971 |
| WR | Ken Burrough | 25 | 3 | 0 | 43 catches for 577 yards, 2 td, & 5 rushes for 38 yards and 1 td | New Orleans Saints / 1st / 10th pick / 1970 |
| WR | Billy Parks | 25 | 2 | 0 | 43 catches for 581 yards, 1 td | San Diego Chargers / 6th / 146th pick / 1970 |
| TE | Mack Alston | 26 | 3 | 0 | 19 catches for 195 yards, 4 td, & 1 rush for 13 yards and 0 td | Washington Redskins / 11th / 277th pick / 1970 |
| LT | Tom Funchess | 29 | 5 | 0 | Boston Patriots / 2nd / 32nd pick / 1968 | |
| LG | Solomon Freelon | 22 | 1 | 0 | 1 fumble recovered | Houston Oilers / 3rd / 75th pick / 1972 |
| C | Sam Gruneisen | 32 | 11 | 0 | San Diego Chargers / 25th / 200th pick / 1962 | |
| RG | Al Jenkins | 27 | 4 | 0 | 1 fumble recovered | Cleveland Browns / 3rd / 55th pick / 1969 |
| RT | Elbert Drungo | 30 | 4 | 0 | 3 fumbles recovered | Houston Oilers / 3rd / 65th pick / 1969 |
| RT | Levert Carr | 29 | 4 | 0 | 1 fumble recovered | |
| Defensive Starters | ||||||
| LDE | Tody Smith | 25 | 2 | 0 | 0 interceptions, 2 fumbles recovered | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 25th pick / 1971 |
| LDT | Al Cowlings | 26 | 3 | 0 | Buffalo Bills / 1st / 5th pick / 1970 | |
| RDT | John Matuszak | 23 | Rook | 0 | Houston Oilers / 1st / 1st pick / 1973 | |
| RDE | Elvin Bethea* | 27 | 5 | 14 | 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Houston Oilers / 3rd / 77th pick / 1968 |
| LLB | Floyd Rice | 24 | 2 | 0 | 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Houston Oilers / 9th / 212th pick / 1971 |
| LLB | Ralph Cindrich | 24 | 1 | 0 | Atlanta Falcons / 5th / 119th pick / 1972 | |
| MLB | Gregg Bingham | 22 | Rook | 14 | 2 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | Houston Oilers / 4th / 79th pick / 1973 |
| RLB | Guy Roberts | 23 | 1 | 0 | 4 interceptions, 2 fumbles recovered | Houston Oilers / 8th / 187th pick / 1972 |
| LCB | Zeke Moore | 30 | 6 | 0 | 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Houston Oilers / 5th / 127th pick / 1967 |
| RCB | Willie Alexander | 24 | 2 | 0 | 3 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | Houston Oilers / 6th / 134th pick / 1971 |
| SS | Jeff Severson | 24 | 1 | 0 | 4 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Washington Redskins / 12th / 297th pick / 1971 |
| FS | Bob Atkins | 27 | 5 | 0 | St. Louis Cardinals / 2nd / 42nd pick / 1968 | |
| FS | Joe Blahak | 23 | Rook | 0 | 2 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Houston Oilers / 8th / 183rd pick / 1973 |
| Special Teams Starters | ||||||
| K | Skip Butler | 26 | 2 | 0 | 15 of 24 field goals & 21 of 21 extra points | Green Bay Packers / 4th / 96th pick / 1970 |
| P | Skip Butler | 26 | 2 | 0 | 36 punts for a 37.3 average, 0 blocked | Green Bay Packers / 4th / 96th pick / 1970 |
| PR | Jeff Severson | 24 | 1 | 0 | 16 punt returns for a 7.9 average and 0 td | Washington Redskins / 12th / 297th pick / 1971 |
| KR | Alvin Haymond | 31 | 9 | 0 | 28 kick returns for a 25.1 average and 0 td | Baltimore Colts / 18th / 246th pick / 1964 |
| No. | Age | Pos | G | GS | Wt | Ht | College/Univ | BirthDate | Yrs | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 | Willie Alexander | 24 | DB | 11 | 0 | 194 | 6-2 | Alcorn St. | 9/21/1949 | 2 | Houston Oilers / 6th / 134th pick / 1971 |
| 82 | Mack Alston | 26 | TE | 14 | 0 | 230 | 6-2 | Md-Eastern Shore | 4/27/1947 | 3 | Washington Redskins / 11th / 277th pick / 1970 |
| 12 | George Amundson | 22 | RB | 9 | 0 | 215 | 6-3 | Iowa St. | 3/31/1951 | Rook | Houston Oilers / 1st / 14th pick / 1973 |
| 48 | Bob Atkins | 27 | DB | 5 | 0 | 215 | 6-3 | Grambling St. | 4/2/1946 | 5 | St. Louis Cardinals / 2nd / 42nd pick / 1968 |
| 81 | Jim Beirne | 27 | WR-TE | 1 | 0 | 206 | 6-2 | Purdue | 10/15/1946 | 5 | Houston Oilers / 4th / 105th pick / 1968 |
| 65 | Elvin Bethea* | 27 | DE | 14 | 14 | 260 | 6-2 | North Carolina A&T | 3/1/1946 | 5 | Houston Oilers / 3rd / 77th pick / 1968 |
| 54 | Gregg Bingham | 22 | LB | 14 | 14 | 227 | 6-1 | Purdue | 3/13/1951 | Rook | Houston Oilers / 4th / 79th pick / 1973 |
| 27 | Joe Blahak | 23 | DB | 12 | 0 | 187 | 5-9 | Nebraska | 8/29/1950 | Rook | Houston Oilers / 8th / 183rd pick / 1973 |
| 00 | Ken Burrough | 25 | WR | 14 | 0 | 215 | 6-3 | Texas Southern | 7/14/1948 | 3 | New Orleans Saints / 1st / 10th pick / 1970 |
| 2 | Skip Butler | 26 | K | 14 | 0 | 201 | 6-1 | Texas-Arlington | 10/21/1947 | 2 | Green Bay Packers / 4th / 96th pick / 1970 |
| 63 | Levert Carr | 29 | T-G-DT | 13 | 0 | 273 | 6-2 | North Central | 6/30/1944 | 4 | |
| 25 | John Charles | 29 | DB | 4 | 0 | 205 | 6-0 | Purdue | 5/9/1944 | 6 | Boston Patriots / 1st / 21st pick / 1967 |
| 55 | Ralph Cindrich | 24 | LB | 13 | 0 | 228 | 6-1 | Pittsburgh | 10/29/1949 | 1 | Atlanta Falcons / 5th / 119th pick / 1972 |
| 76 | Al Cowlings | 26 | DE-DT-LB | 14 | 0 | 255 | 6-5 | USC | 6/16/1947 | 3 | Buffalo Bills / 1st / 5th pick / 1970 |
| 59 | Phil Croyle | 26 | LB | 1 | 0 | 223 | 6-3 | California | 10/30/1947 | 2 | Houston Oilers / 7th / 159th pick / 1971 |
| 49 | Dick Cunningham | 29 | T-LB | 1 | 0 | 245 | 6-3 | Arkansas | 10/12/1944 | 6 | Detroit Lions / 9th / 136th pick / 1966 |
| 50 | Bill Curry | 31 | C-LB | 4 | 0 | 235 | 6-3 | Georgia Tech | 10/21/1942 | 8 | Oakland Raiders / 23rd / 183rd pick / 1964 Green Bay Packers / 20th / 279th pick / 1964 |
| 10 | Lynn Dickey | 24 | QB | 12 | 4 | 214 | 6-3 | Kansas St. | 10/19/1949 | 2 | Houston Oilers / 3rd / 56th pick / 1971 |
| 75 | Elbert Drungo | 30 | T-G | 14 | 0 | 265 | 6-5 | Tennessee St. | 4/30/1943 | 4 | Houston Oilers / 3rd / 65th pick / 1969 |
| 26 | Larry Eaglin | 25 | DB | 11 | 0 | 195 | 6-3 | S.F. Austin | 8/27/1948 | Rook | Houston Oilers / 11th / 261st pick / 1973 |
| 67 | Mike Fanucci | 24 | DE | 13 | 0 | 235 | 6-4 | Arizona St. | 9/25/1949 | 1 | Washington Redskins / 9th / 219th pick / 1971 |
| 69 | Solomon Freelon | 22 | G | 11 | 0 | 250 | 6-2 | Grambling St. | 2/19/1951 | 1 | Houston Oilers / 3rd / 75th pick / 1972 |
| 66 | Tom Funchess | 29 | T | 14 | 0 | 265 | 6-5 | Jackson St. | 9/12/1944 | 5 | Boston Patriots / 2nd / 32nd pick / 1968 |
| 68 | Brian Goodman | 24 | G | 3 | 0 | 250 | 6-2 | UCLA | 12/7/1949 | Rook | |
| 71 | Wes Grant | 27 | DE-DT | 3 | 0 | 245 | 6-3 | UCLA | 9/24/1946 | 2 | New York Giants / 4th / 97th pick / 1970 |
| 11 | Dave Green | 24 | P | 4 | 0 | 206 | 5-11 | Ohio | 9/21/1949 | Rook | Cincinnati Bengals / 17th / 418th pick / 1972 |
| 36 | Bob Gresham | 25 | RB | 13 | 0 | 195 | 5-11 | West Virginia | 7/9/1948 | 2 | New Orleans Saints / 8th / 201st pick / 1971 |
| 57 | Sam Gruneisen | 32 | C-G-LB | 10 | 0 | 242 | 6-1 | Villanova | 1/16/1941 | 11 | San Diego Chargers / 25th / 200th pick / 1962 |
| 58 | Paul Guidry | 29 | LB | 14 | 0 | 227 | 6-3 | LSU,McNeese St. | 1/14/1944 | 7 | Buffalo Bills / 8th / 73rd pick / 1966 |
| 14 | Edd Hargett | 26 | QB | 5 | 0 | 185 | 5-11 | Texas A&M | 6/26/1947 | 4 | New Orleans Saints / 16th / 397th pick / 1969 |
| 13 | Alvin Haymond | 31 | DB | 6 | 0 | 194 | 6-0 | Southern | 8/31/1942 | 9 | Baltimore Colts / 18th / 246th pick / 1964 |
| 87 | Eddie Hinton | 26 | WR | 11 | 0 | 200 | 6-0 | Oklahoma | 6/26/1947 | 4 | Baltimore Colts / 1st / 25th pick / 1969 |
| 52 | Calvin Hunt | 26 | C | 4 | 0 | 245 | 6-3 | Baylor | 12/31/1947 | 3 | Pittsburgh Steelers / 11th / 261st pick / 1970 |
| 72 | Kevin Hunt | 25 | T-G | 4 | 0 | 260 | 6-5 | Doane | 11/29/1948 | 1 | Green Bay Packers / 10th / 246th pick / 1971 |
| 60 | Al Jenkins | 27 | G-T-DE-DT | 13 | 0 | 245 | 6-2 | Southern Illinois,Tulsa | 7/15/1946 | 4 | Cleveland Browns / 3rd / 55th pick / 1969 |
| 15 | Al Johnson | 23 | DB-RB | 5 | 0 | 200 | 6-0 | Cincinnati | 6/17/1950 | 1 | |
| 33 | Benny Johnson | 25 | DB | 13 | 0 | 178 | 5-11 | Johnson C. Smith | 6/29/1948 | 3 | Houston Oilers / 6th / 144th pick / 1970 |
| 40 | Lewis Jolley | 24 | RB | 10 | 0 | 210 | 5-11 | North Carolina | 11/15/1949 | 1 | Houston Oilers / 3rd / 56th pick / 1972 |
| 61 | Harris Jones | 28 | G | 5 | 0 | 255 | 6-5 | Johnson C. Smith | 10/3/1945 | 2 | |
| 51 | Ron Lou | 22 | C | 9 | 0 | 240 | 6-2 | Arizona St. | 7/24/1951 | Rook | Houston Oilers / 14th / 339th pick / 1973 |
| 78 | John Matuszak | 23 | DE-DT | 14 | 0 | 272 | 6-8 | Missouri,Tampa | 10/25/1950 | Rook | Houston Oilers / 1st / 1st pick / 1973 |
| 80 | Ron Mayo | 23 | TE | 13 | 0 | 222 | 6-2 | Morgan St. | 10/11/1950 | Rook | Houston Oilers / 6th / 131st pick / 1973 |
| 59 | Brian McConnell | 23 | LB | 7 | 0 | 220 | 6-4 | Michigan St. | 1/21/1950 | Rook | Buffalo Bills / 7th / 162nd pick / 1973 |
| 86 | Clifton McNeil | 33 | WR-FL-SE | 3 | 0 | 187 | 6-2 | Grambling St. | 5/25/1940 | 9 | Cleveland Browns / 11th / 151st pick / 1962 |
| 62 | Ralph Miller | 25 | G | 1 | 0 | 260 | 6-3 | California Lutheran,Alabama St. | 8/13/1948 | 1 | |
| 22 | Zeke Moore | 30 | DB | 13 | 0 | 198 | 6-3 | Lincoln (MO) | 12/2/1943 | 6 | Houston Oilers / 5th / 127th pick / 1967 |
| 20 | Billy Parks | 25 | WR | 14 | 0 | 185 | 6-1 | Long Beach St. | 1/1/1948 | 2 | San Diego Chargers / 6th / 146th pick / 1970 |
| 83 | Dave Parks | 32 | SE-TE-WR | 5 | 0 | 220 | 6-2 | Texas Tech | 12/25/1941 | 9 | San Francisco 49ers / 1st / 1st pick / 1964 San Diego Chargers / 4th / 32nd pick / 1964 |
| 7 | Dan Pastorini | 24 | QB | 14 | 10 | 208 | 6-2 | Santa Clara | 5/26/1949 | 2 | Houston Oilers / 1st / 3rd pick / 1971 |
| 85 | Floyd Rice | 24 | LB-TE | 5 | 0 | 223 | 6-3 | Alcorn St. | 8/31/1949 | 2 | Houston Oilers / 9th / 212th pick / 1971 |
| 56 | Guy Roberts | 23 | LB | 14 | 0 | 217 | 6-1 | Maryland | 6/12/1950 | 1 | Houston Oilers / 8th / 187th pick / 1972 |
| 18 | Paul Robinson | 29 | RB | 11 | 0 | 198 | 6-0 | Arizona | 12/19/1944 | 5 | Cincinnati Bengals / 3rd / 82nd pick / 1968 |
| 73 | Greg Sampson | 23 | T-DT-DE | 13 | 0 | 265 | 6-6 | Stanford | 10/25/1950 | 1 | Houston Oilers / 1st / 6th pick / 1972 |
| 64 | Ron Saul | 25 | G | 3 | 0 | 255 | 6-2 | Michigan St. | 2/5/1948 | 3 | Houston Oilers / 5th / 110th pick / 1970 |
| 37 | Jeff Severson | 24 | DB | 14 | 0 | 183 | 6-1 | Long Beach St. | 9/16/1949 | 1 | Washington Redskins / 12th / 297th pick / 1971 |
| 70 | Tody Smith | 25 | DE | 14 | 0 | 250 | 6-5 | Michigan St.,USC | 12/24/1948 | 2 | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 25th pick / 1971 |
| 28 | Bill Thomas | 24 | RB | 6 | 0 | 225 | 6-2 | Boston Col. | 8/7/1949 | 1 | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 26th pick / 1972 |
| 73 | Vern Vanoy | 27 | DT | 1 | 0 | 275 | 6-8 | Kansas | 12/31/1946 | 2 | New York Giants / 3rd / 60th pick / 1969 |
| 53 | Ted Washington | 25 | LB | 1 | 0 | 244 | 6-1 | Miss. Valley St. | 2/16/1948 | Rook | Kansas City Chiefs / 17th / 439th pick / 1972 |
| 44 | Fred Willis | 26 | RB | 14 | 0 | 212 | 6-0 | Boston Col. | 12/9/1947 | 2 | Cincinnati Bengals / 4th / 93rd pick / 1971 |
| 41 | Alvin Wyatt | 26 | DB | 4 | 0 | 184 | 5-10 | Bethune-Cookman | 12/13/1947 | 3 | Oakland Raiders / 6th / 154th pick / 1970 |
| Team Total | 25.9 | 14 | 224.9 | 6-2.1 | 2.9 |