This Week in Billsology...5/12/03

by The Historian

1964-Coach Saban puts the finishing touches on his championship team. He trades Billy Atkins and Marv Matuszak to the Broncos for center Walt Cudzik, trades Ken Rice to Oakland, and sends popular Mack Yoho to the Patriots for a draft pick.

1967-At the annual AFL meetings in New York City, player representative Jack Kemp announces that he feels "The Bills will be the AFL's next Super Bowl participant."

1969-Exhausted by long, drawn out contract negotiations, OJ Simpson threatens to sit out the 1969 season.

1971-Tom Day is hired by Coach Rauch to coach the defensive line, making him the very first black assistant coach in the Bills eleven year history.

1976-Wide Receiver Ahmad Rashad signs a contract with the expansion Seahawks, leaving the Bills with nothing as compensation. Seattle then traded Rashad to Minnesota.

1984-Wide receiver Frank Lewis announces his retirement. He left the team ranked second in career passing yardage with 4638 yards, and held the Bills single season records for receptions, (70) and yardage (1244).

1985-Jim Kelly's Gambler season ends with a knee injury, which ruled him out of playing for the Bills in 1985.

1995-The Bills announced that after the new field house was completed, that it would not only serve as the Bills practice facility, but would double on game days, as a recreational gathering place, similar to the NFL experience.

1996-Ed Abramowski, the team's original athletic trainer, steps down after a career that spanned thirty-six seasons.

This Week in Fishology...

1967-The fish set a new single season record for season tickets sold with 758. That beat the previous record of 556 set in their inaugural year of 1966. Of the ticket holders polled, 79% of them were over the age of 86.

1970-The grass at the Orange Bowl is replaced by "poly turf," which was then replaced in 1972 by "Astroturf," only to be ripped out in 1976 in favor of "Prescription Athletic Turf." Either way, the field was usually under water from tropical storms.

1992-The fish trade one loser running back for another. They send Sammie Smith, (1989s savior) to Denver for Bobby Humphrey. Humphrey's role as savior lasted only eight months, as he was cut after the fish got embarrassed by the Bills in the AFC Championship game at home, 29-10.

1995-Dan Marino asks for a trade to his native Pittsburgh, but fish management turns him down, as they realize that he is the only gate attraction on an extremely dull and talentless team.

Memorable Games...

Buffalo Vs Oakland, 10/23/60. The Bills notched their first ever victory at home, with a rout of the Oakland Raiders, before 8876 at War Memorial Stadium. Bills quarterback Johnny Green threw for 243 yards and four touchdowns, with three going to running back Wray Carlton. On a field that more resembled an Asian rice paddy, Carlton opened the scoring on a 38 yard pass on the game's second play. It was all Bills from there. The next time they had the ball, they drove 70 yards for a TD, again, with Carlton catching the winning score, a 23 yarder. The Bills ran the score up to 28-7 at the half, and in the second, added another ten meaningless points, as they rolled the Raiders 38-9.

Billsology Facts...

Trey Teague's real first name....is Fred. He was Peyton Manning's roommate at the University of Tennessee.