Former Raider Clem Daniels dies at 83; if you only know about his football prowess, you’re missing out
Clem Daniels, an Oakland Raiders stalwart during the team’s formative years in the early 1960s, has died at 83. His passing was announced by a statement from the team.
“The Raider Family mourns the loss of Clem Daniels, an integral part of the Raider organization for six decades,” the statement read. “Clem was the premier all-purpose running back in the American Football League, setting the league’s all-time rushing record, and was one of the original stars of the Silver and Black.”
Daniels, a native Texan, played for the Dallas Texans during the inaugural season of the AFL, rushing once for a two-yard loss. His trade to Oakland jump-started his legend, and the Raiders’. Used mostly as a kick returner in 1961, Daniels became the team’s starting halfback in 1962. In 1963 he became the first Raider to rush for 1,000 yards, gaining a league-leading 1,099. He was named the league’s co-MVP along with two San Diego Chargers — quarterback Tobin Rote and receiver Lance Alworth.
In 1966, he scored the first touchdown in the Oakland Coliseum on a pass from quarterback Cotton Davidson. Daniels’ 1967 season, his last productive year, was cut short by injury, thus he was not able to join his Raiders teammates in the second Super Bowl against the Green Bay Packers.
“I broke my leg the ninth game of the season,” he told Raiders.com in 2017, “but we had an excellent offense, a great defense, it was just an outstanding experience. We had leadership on that team that was unbelievable, and the cohesiveness of that team was very exceptional.”
He left the Raiders after that season as the franchise’s and the AFL’s career leading rusher, with 5,103 yards. He remains third on the team’s career list behind Marcus Allen and Mark Van Eeghen.
Daniels signed with the 49ers in 1968, logging just 12 carries for 37 yards. Then it was on to bigger and better things.
Per the Raiders statement: “Throughout his adult life, Clem was a pillar of the East Bay community, not only as a successful business leader but also a highly visible advocate for social justice.”
Daniels helped organize a boycott of the 1965 AFL All-Star game in New Orleans when African-American athletes were refused service by taxi drivers as well as restaurants and clubs. Closer to home, he actively and routinely advocated for social justice in Oakland.