Raiders Rule in Early Frenzy

Only a few weeks ago, they wined and dined in Spain inside a palace that Al Davis, the count of El Segundo, rented for the evening. For the remainder of the summer, Art Shell put them through a 50-days-of-hell training camp that left them too pooped to party, preparing the Raiders for what could be their season of seasons, one that begins Monday in the San Francisco moonlight.

Togetherness through hard days and easy ones could take the Raiders a long way this season. Take it from running back Harvey Williams, who, black cap turned backward, hoop earring dangling, already says: “This team is so different from Kansas City, it’s almost funny. Kansas City had all these I-I-I guys who mostly cared about themselves. The Raiders are a real team.”

And Harvey just got here.

As the season begins, they have many things going for them, the Raiders do, including a home stadium that has been jackhammered and patched back together with everything but Krazy Glue, a rugged new fullback courtesy of the 49ers themselves, a defense that looks younger and stronger and an Air Raider aerospace attack that includes a Jett, a Rocket and a Wright brother.

They also have Shell, the coach who looks and sounds as mellow as we have ever seen or heard him. No longer new on the job, and free of the personal ailments that aggravated him last spring, Shell is in shape and so is his team. After working his men into a froth, he eased them like stallions through a five-game road workout that resulted in four victories, important or not. No one got seriously hurt, and the competition was so good that Shell found himself saying farewell to receivers who had just made spectacular catches.

Shell himself has been a definite factor in the Raiders’ progress. Even the newest of Raiders notice that.

“The man is in command,” Williams says, emphatically. “This is by far the best football camp I’ve ever been around, and he’s the reason. There are guys on this team who would lay down and die for Art Shell.”

Wasn’t it that way in Kansas City?

“Ha! Not hardly,” Williams says.

It sure does help to have a coach who has the support and faith of the players, same as it does having such a quarterback. While the arrival of Jeff Hostetler last season was not exactly a godsend, let’s simply say that the New York Giants should feel free to put the big pointy dunce hats on their heads and go stand in the corner.

Hostetler is a strong leader and a wild joker who throws straight passes and avoids straight answers. He can kid his way through practically anything, as when someone asked whether he had sought out newcomer Tom Rathman for advice on how to attack the 49ers next week, considering the fullback’s obvious working knowledge of that fine organization.

“Oh,” Hostetler replies, “Tommy doesn’t know anything about football.”

He and Shell almost pride themselves on ducking and dodging nimbly around any prying question, as though the answer might reveal something important to some San Francisco spy.

The coach is asked, “Did you ask Rathman about the 49ers?”

Shell smiles a sly Garfield-the-cat kind of smile and responds, “Well, assuming that we did, why should we tell you ?”

Hey, it ain’t like we intend to leak to the 49ers that traitor Rathman has been telling the Raiders all about their top-secret triple-reverse Statue of Liberty play in which Jerry Rice secretly hides the football under his jersey.

Shell says, “Well, we haven’t sat anybody down and asked him about San Francisco, if that’s what you mean. It’s more like, ‘If there’s something we should know, let us know. We’re not going to interrogate you. Volunteer!’ ”

Opening at night at Candlestick Park is no day at the beach, so it is entirely conceivable that the Raiders will start this season 0-1, despite their considerable talent. Then again, this is “Monday Night Football,” and the record shows that the Raiders don’t take the blows on Mondays, they deliver them. It should be a hell of a game, and there are those who even see it as a Super Bowl preview.

“Who’s ‘those?’ ” inquires Hostetler.

“ ‘Those,’ ” we explain. “Same as ‘some.’ ”

“Super Bowl, huh?” says Hoss, who has been there. “Hey, that would be nice.”

He could take them there. Before this season is over, Hostetler might even need his new Audiblizer helmet eventually to be heard over the noise. Repairs to the Coliseum are nearly complete, and we trust the grass will be cut smooth and low so that Hostetler can send Air Raiders Tim Brown, James Jett, Rocket Ismail, Alexander Wright and Daryl Hobbs flying downfield with the old reliable “Run Like Hell” play. You know, Carl Lewis could play for the Raiders if he wasn’t so slow.

The defense? Not many teams could sacrifice Greg Townsend and lose Howie Long and yet rarely mention their names in training camp. The Raiders are natural-born hitters. Chester McGlockton’s busted leg is strong again, so look out for this guy. He is about ready to bust out and become a big star in this league.

But you never know what can happen until it happens. We like to think Kansas City made a big mistake letting Williams and Albert Lewis go, and we like to think Scott Davis is back bigger and better than ever, and we like to think that Kevin Gogan won’t look back longingly in his rear-view mirror toward Dallas even once. We like to think the Raiders will start fast and finish faster.

Shell says, “We’d like to come out of the chute flying.”

Turn ‘em loose.