Due to the geography set up for the eight teams in the AFL, Houston was put in the Eastern Division with the Boston Patriots, the New York Titans, and the Buffalo Bills, while Los Angeles was paired with the Dallas Texans, Denver Broncos, and Oakland Raiders.
[8] Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Chargers were owned by Barron Hilton, who made his first big signing with Frank Leahy hired to be general manager of the team.
Not long after, Hilton went through a variety of considerations, such as Bob McBride, a Notre Dame assistant who changed his mind within hours of announcement, to Lou Rymkus, the offensive line coach of the Los Angeles Rams before he elected to go with Houston before Sid Gillman was hired in early 1960.
Paul Lowe had been working in the mailroom for the Carte Blanche Corporation, owned by the Hilton family before a successful tryout got him on the team as a running back.
Ultimately, the league opted to reverse its initial format, as such the Chargers (who repeated as Western champions) would host the next championship game in San Diego.
Ultimately, the AFL's initial fear of having to locally compete with an NFL title game host for an audience and gate revenue never realized, since although the New York Jets and Oakland Raiders later hosted AFL championship games during the league's ten-year run their local NFL rivals did not qualify for the postseason in any of those years.
[11][12][2] Oilers quarterback George Blanda threw three touchdown passes and kicked a field goal and three extra points to lead Houston to the AFL Championship by a score of 24–16.
[3] The Chargers led 6–0 in the first quarter on two field goals by Ben Agajanian, one of only two players (Hardy Brown) who played in the AAFC, the NFL and the AFL.