Fred Besana
Oakland Invaders
Besana played for the University of California, backing up starter Joe
Roth. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the 5th round of the 1977
NFL draft. He signed with the New York Giants in 1978. Besana was
typical of many of the Oakland Invaders’ signees in their first season.
He was a former NFL player who was given a second chance. And, he
excelled, leading the Invaders to a playoff birth in 1983, while
throwing for 3980 yards and 21 touchdowns. Besana played every game in
the first two years of the Oakland franchise’s existence. In 1985, the
Invaders were merged with the Michigan Panthers and Besana played
back-up to Bobby Hebert.
