A legend reborn with the Oilers, not Al

George Blanda isn't just a dead Raider: His crazy numbers for Houston shouldn'tbe forgotten

But Blanda won an MVP (for the entire season) in Houston.
For all the Raider claims, George Blanda actually enjoyed his best seasons inHouston.
George Blanda had a legendary five-game stretch at age 43 with the Raiders.

George Blanda wasn't dead long before the Oakland Raiders rushed to claim him as one of the all-time iconic silver and black heroes. Raiders owner Al Davis may have little clue about what it takes to win in the NFL today, but he made sure that his PR department branded Blanda "a brave Raider" as fast as could be.

Which is all fine and good, arguably even honorable (in a self-promoting Raiders way), but it's obscuring just how important Houston was to the career of one of the NFL's all-time legends — and just how good Blanda was for the Houston Oilers in the AFL days.

The Oilers are the franchise that gave Blanda a chance to be a quarterback again after the Chicago Bears of the NFL tried to turn this punt, pass and kick multi-threat into strictly a kicker. And Blanda more than repaid the faith, making the Bears brass look sillier and sillier as he racked up passing numbers in Houston that wouldn't be seen again until the days of Dan Marino.

Blanda threw 36 touchdown passes for the Oilers in 1961, a ridiculous number in those days, even in the wild, wild AFL. It would take 23 years for someone to break that mark (Marino and his 48 touchdown tosses in 1984). While in Houston, Blanda enjoyed his finest seasons, winning AFL Player of the Year honors in '61, throwing for more than 3,000 yards three times in one four-season stretch, recasting himself as a championship-caliber QB (the Oilers won two AFL titles under Blanda and lost another championship game).

In his typical do-everything fashion, Blanda scored all of Houston's points in the 1961 title game — throwing a 25-yard touchdown pass to Billy Cannon, kicking the extra point on that score and hitting a 46-yard field goal (in the days when kicks from that distance were anything but close to expected makes).

When Blanda (who died at age 83 Monday) was interviewed later in life, he took great pride in those Oilers days.

"That first year, the Houston Oilers or Los Angeles Chargers (the team Blanda and the Oilers beat in the AFL title game) could have beaten the NFL champion (Philadelphia) in a Super Bowl," Blanda said. "I think the AFL was capable of beating the NFL in a Super Bowl game as far back as 1960 or '61. I just regret we didn't get the chance to prove it."

While the Monday Night Football crew calling the Bears-Packers game hours after his death and sportswriters and commentators around the country focused on Blanda's age-defying five-game run for the Raiders in 1970, the legend himself always recognized that Houston is where he actually played his best football.

Blanda was never the most accurate passer. This gambler threw a then-NFL-record 42 interceptions for Houston in 1962 and the Hall of Famer actually finished his career with more interceptions (277) than touchdowns (236), but he is also one of only four quarterbacks in history to have ever thrown seven touchdown passes in a single game. And it could have easily been more. Blanda left that game in the third quarter.

That moment also came in an Oilers uniform.

The Raiders and Al can claim Blanda all they want. Ron Jaworski can forget that as a quarterback, Blanda's real highlights came for Houston. The man himself knew the real score.

This is a Houston legend.

"George will always be remembered by me and our fans as the first quarterback of the organization,” then-Oilers and now Titans owner Bud Adams said in a statement. “In his time with us, he guided the Oilers to 45 wins and still remains the third most prolific passer in our team’s history.

"He was the perfect fit for the start of the AFL, joining our league and displaying the ability to lead a high-flying offense. His play garnered our league a lot of attention and fans."

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bowled over

Houston artist dishes on Food Bank fundraiser happening this weekend

Picture of several artists at a table with a bunch of handmade ceramic bowls.

Photo courtesy Paula Murphy

Ceramics professor Cori Cryer and her students from Lone Star College Kingwood and the bowls they donated to the 20th Empty Bowls fundraiser

On Saturday, May 16, shoppers have an opportunity to feed those in need by purchasing unique, handcrafted items. The 20th Empty Bowls event takes place at Silver Street Studios at Sawyer Yards from 10 am to 3 pm. A preview party takes place on Friday, May 15 from 6-8 pm (buy tickets here).

The fundraiser is a collaboration between Houston-area ceramists, woodturners, and artists working in all media and Silver Street Studios.

Shoppers can purchase one-of-a-kind bowls for $25 each (larger bowls are priced accordingly). A simple lunch from Salata, a sweet treat from Ben & Jerry’s, and iced coffee from Katz Coffee is served until it runs out. Every dollar of the purchases goes to the Houston Food Bank, which estimates that for every dollar donated, it’s able to provide three meals to Houstonians in need. Since its inception, Empty Bowls Houston has raised $1,208,959 for the Houston Food Bank, which equates to more than 3.6 million meals.

The event also includes live music and art demos. More than 2,000 bowls will be available for purchase, donated by area artists.

Empty Bowls began as a grassroots effort started many years ago at a high school in Michigan and is now held all over the world. Nearly everything for Empty Bowls events, from the food served to the venues hosting events and the bowls for sale are donated.

Cori Cryer, a professor of ceramics at Lone Star College Kingwood, is one of those who, along with her students, donated bowls for the fundraiser. She’s been involved with the effort for all of its 20 years in Houston, and before that in other cities.

“When I started donating, I didn't have a whole lot of money,” Cryer tells CultureMap. “I was a graduate student, and so this was a way for me to give back to the local community. And I think my students today kind of recognize that same feel. You know, they may not have money to send a check off to someone, [but this is] an easy way for them to be able to contribute to the community.”

Cryer teaches Ceramics I and Ceramics II to a variety of dual-credit high school students, college students, and continuing education students. Those in her Ceramics II classes are required to create five bowls to donate to Empty Bowls. But her students in her introductory class often end up donating as well. This year, she and her students provided approximately 150 bowls for the event.

Cryer said that the style of bowls for sale range from something as small as a condiment bowl to much larger serving bowls As each bowl is an individual work, they represent a variety of styles and themes. One of her students this year designed a glazed, ceramic leaf-shaped bowl with ceramic insects on it.

“There's a ladybug and a caterpillar and a spider,” she says, each created out of clay and positioned around the bowl.

Cryer loves seeing how the artists use their imaginations and abilities.

“Most of my students do throw their bowls on the pottery wheel, but that's not required,” she says. “They can hand-build them. It’s completely up to them what kind of construction technique they use.”

Cryer loves knowing that this event is a way for students to see that their artistic efforts can have lasting impact on the community around them. In addition to being able to support the Houston Food Bank, the bowls her class donates, she knows, take on special meaning for those who purchase them.

“I tell my students there is a pot for every person and a person for every pot,” she says.

In fact, one of her personal favorite bowls is one she purchased from an Empty Bowls sale.

“It's a very small bowl, maybe like three inches in diameter, and two inches tall, and it's a little pink pig that I think an elementary student made,” she said. “He has no tail, and he has no ears, but he has a snout, and it is definitely a pig. And I love that little bowl. I have it sitting on my desk at home.”

Cryer knows shoppers attending the Empty Bowls sale will find similar, soon-to-be-beloved items.

The Saturday event is free. Those wishing to attend the preview party on Friday, May 15 from 6-8 pm, which offers light bites, beer and wine, and the first chance to purchase bowls, can purchase a $50 ticket online. In addition, Archway Gallery is hosting an exhibition of 30 one-of-a-kind bowls that can be purchased as part of the Empty Bowls fundraiser. The exhibit runs through May 30.