Al Davis

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Allen "Al" Davis (born July 4, 1929 in Brockton , Massachusetts , † October 8, 2011 in Piedmont , California ) was an American manager in American football who was the main owner of the Oakland Raiders in the National Football League (NFL) . He was also commissioner of the American Football League (AFL) and trainer of the Raiders.

Career

Davis was born in Massachusetts, but grew up in Brooklyn . He studied at Wittenberg University and Syracuse University and has a degree in English. He then began his career as a football coach at Adelphi College . He then moved to the US Army football team in Fort Belvoir , Virginia as head coach and then to The Citadel . His last college coaching position was at the University of Southern California (USC). In 1960 he first coached a professional football team, he became offensive end coach of the Los Angeles Chargers . In 1963 he became Head Coach and General Manager of the Oakland Raiders in the AFL . Davis remained coach of the Oakland Raiders for three years and achieved a record of 23-16-3.

Commissioner in the AFL

Davis became commissioner of the AFL from April 1966 and positioned the league aggressively against the established NFL - players from the other league were also attracted to teams of the AFL. When it became known in July 1966 that the two leagues were to merge, Davis resigned - he spoke out against the union. Davis returned to the Raiders as a co-owner. He considered the merger of the leagues to be disadvantageous for teams in the AFL, as he considered them to be better and refused pending compensation payments to NFL teams.

Back in Oakland

After that, Davis increased his power in organizing the Raiders. In 1966 he acquired a ten percent stake in the Raiders. He has been considered the owner since the 1970s, although he only acquired the majority of the Raiders in 2005. At the time of his death, he held about two-thirds of the shares in the club. Davis was also the general manager of the Raiders. Davis was one of the most colorful and argumentative figures in the National Football League, with multiple lawsuits and disputes. He also temporarily moved the team from Oakland to Los Angeles . The Oakland Raiders became a successful franchise under Davis, winning Super Bowls XI , XV and XVIII . The last Super Bowl season in 2002 ended in a loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers .

Awards

Al Davis was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1992. He is also a member of the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame . In 2007 he was quoted as saying that he would not quit as Owner and General Manager until he won another two Super Bowls or died. Al Davis was known for his slogans, the most famous being "Just win, baby."

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Profiles of NFL's 32 team owners ( Memento from October 25, 2013 in the Internet Archive )
  2. ↑ Al Davis: two Super Bowls or bust (I'm betting on bust) - Morning Buzz - San Jose Mercury News Sports blog ( Memento of November 9, 2007 on the Internet Archive )
  3. ↑ Interview - Just win, baby
personal data
SURNAME Davis, Al
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Davis, Allen
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American National Football League franchise owner
DATE OF BIRTH 4th July 1929
PLACE OF BIRTH Brockton , Massachusetts
DATE OF DEATH October 8, 2011
Place of death Piedmont , California