PETE BANASZAK DIES AFTER 13 SEASONS WITH RAIDERS

The Raiders announced on Saturday that former running back Pete Banaszak had died. He played 13 seasons for the team in Oakland from 1966 to 1978. Banaszak scored two touchdowns in the Raiders’ Super Bowl XI victory over the Vikings, which gave the franchise its first title. “The Raiders Family mourns the passing of Pete Banaszak,” the team said in a statement.

The Raiders selected Banaszak from Miami (FL) in the fifth round of the 1966 AFL Draft. He played in 173 games and started 36 of them. In 1975, he rushed for a career-high 672 yards and scored a league-leading 16 rushing touchdowns. That touchdown total remains a Raiders single-season record, according to the team’s account. Banaszak, a Wisconsin native who took pride in his Polish heritage, entered the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame in 1990.

Banaszak also took part in the Raiders’ “Holy Roller” play against the Chargers in 1978. With the Raiders trailing 20-14 in the final seconds, Ken Stabler lost the ball near the Chargers’ end zone. Banaszak reached it and pushed it farther downfield before Dave Casper recovered it in the end zone. The Raiders won after the extra point, and NFL rules later changed to prevent offensive players from advancing a fumble in that way. The Raiders offered condolences to Banaszak’s wife Sue, daughters Rebecca and Amy, and grandsons Luke, Austin and Connor.