Tag Archives: cincinnati bengals

Arena, CFL, NFL, WLAF

Parker, Carl


Cards:  ProSet WLAF 1991, Wild Card WLAF 1992, Ultimate WLAF 1992.
Acquired: TTM 2012, C/o home.
Sent: 6/11   Received: 6/26   (15 days)
Failure: TTM 2010, C/o Home RTS

Carl Parker was a standout receiver for Vanderbilt. The problem is Vandy is a doormat for many of the major football programs. Still over his three years with the Commodores, Parker totaled 118 catches and 1712 yards, including 42 passes for a 19.2 YPC and 12 touchdowns as a Senior. Carl signed with the Bengals in 1988 and was with them through 1989, before briefly catching on with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the CFL in 1990. The Sacramento Surge of the WLAF drafted him in the 4th round of the 1991 positional draft in the 6th slot.

Quarterback Mike Elkins bonded with Carl quickly, and of the 13 touchdowns Elkins threw, Carl caught eight of them- good for second in the league. In fact, Carl caught touchdown passes in the last 7 contests, highlighted by his 2TD performance in the team’s upset of Frankfurt during the season finale. Parker received All-WLAF Second team honors, as the league’s 3rd leading receiver in both catches (52) and in yards receiving (801).  He also had 3 100+ yard receiving games, including 136 in a loss to London, and caught at least 1 ball in every game of the season.  Parker also did double duty on punt returns, ranking 4th in the league with an 8.5 yard average on 15 returns.

Carl returned for the 1992 season to Sacramento. It was a new team and a new attitude on offense, infused by journeyman David Archer at quarterback and future CFL All Stars, Eddie Brown and Mike Pringle on offense.  Carl had another good season with numbers worthy of being a number one on many teams, finishing 1992 with 42 receptions, for 657 yards, and 6 touchdowns. While the numbers weren’t as good as ’91, Parker helped the Surge raise the World Bowl trophy over their heads at the end of the season with their victory over the Orlando Thunder. The league though sought to restructure after the season, and the CFL admitted in the rival Surge and Riders. The Surge were rechristened the Gold Miners and Carl picked up a final season with them in the CFL. Carl played last for the first incarnation of the Albany Firebirds of the Arena Football League before finally hanging up his cleats.

WLAF Rec 94    Yds 1458   Avg  15.5   Td 14   Lg 48
Pr  15    Yds 127   Avg 8.5   Td 0   Lg 15

NFL, WLAF

Garrett, John

Card: Ultimate WLAF 1992
Acquired: TTM 2012, C/o The Dallas Cowboys
Sent: 4/26  Received: 5/2  (7 days)
Failure: TTM 2010, C/o The Dallas Cowboys

The Garrett family has a long history in the NFL starting with their father, Jim, who had served in the league as a scout for almost 40 years. The boys, Jason, Judd, and John have all experienced a measure of NFL success, and all of them spent time playing in the WLAF during the early 1990s making their legacy quite unique.

John finished his career at Princeton leading all the receivers his senior season with 45 receptions for 617 yards and 2 touchdowns. He quickly signed with the Cowboys in 1988, eventually landing on the practice squad of the Cincinnati Bengals the next season where he made 2 receptions for 29 yards. John would later spend time in the off-season, with Buffalo Bills as well in 1991.

That year, all 3 brothers decided to play in the inaugural season of the World League of American Football.  John ended up being drafted by the San Antonio Riders in the second round of the WR positional draft, to catch passes from his brother, Jason.  (Judd was drafted by the Monarchs.) The Riders however had a rocky season, and injuries and inconsistencies eventually saw Jason split time with Mike Johnson at quarterback.  John finished the season though tied for 3rd on the Riders with 23 receptions. He’d also catch the last TD of Riders season from his brother Jason, during the final game  in a loss to the Knights. It is at this point that I am unsure if he was injured or cut before the 1992 season was underway. I do know he was at training camp for the Riders, and played in their scrimmage versus the Ohio Glory,  (as evidenced in the card pictured above,) who were the replacement franchise for the Skyhawks from the 1991 season.

He then returned to the NFL spending the next 12 seasons, with the Bucs, Bengals, and Cardinals in a variety of coaching postions. 2004 saw Garrett jump into the college ranks working for Virginia Cavaliers under Al Groh.  After a successful time with the Cavs John was reunited with his brothers Jason and Judd on the Dallas Cowboys in 2007.

I had sent to all three brothers in the past thinking that perhaps I could get them all in one envelope back in 2010. Unfortunately I didn’t have any success and I assume that it is lost.  I rarely send out to more than one player in one envelope anymore. It just increases the chance that you won’t get anything back at all.  John had only one card, but turned this around care of the Cowboys in roughly one week signing it with a bible inscription from Colossians 3:23-  “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human.”  It’s a great card, and although a heavy percentage of Ultimate cards suffered from cutting issues, overall I really liked the design and style of what they were doing at the time.

Rec  23    Yds  386     Avg  16.8     Td  3     Lg  48

NFL, ufl

Krumrie, Tim


Cards: Score 1990, Fleer 1990, Pinnacle 1992
Acquired: TTM 2012, C/o Home
Sent: 3/25  Received: 4/4   (9 days)

Tim Krumrie was the man in the middle at nose tackle for the Cincinnati Bengals from 1983-1994, and the team’s last Super Bowl appearance in 1988.  His stabilizing force on the line allowed the Bengals to make multiple appearances in the playoffs under head coach Sam Wyche. At nose tackle, Krumrie made an astounding 1017 tackles and 34.5 sacks over his career.  It is also of note that he held at one point the most career tackles at his college, (Wisconsin,) with 444. Tim probably would’ve had even more of an impact at the pro level, if not for a broken lower leg he sustained during Super Bowl XXIII, -considered one of the most gruesome injuries caught on television. Still the hard-charging Krumrie returned from injury by 1990, and continued to play for the franchise until his retirement a few seasons later.

Tim continued to be involved in football and jumped pretty much into coaching after retirement, joining the defensive staff of the Bengals in 1995. In 2003, Krumrie punched his ticket to Buffalo for a few years, joining the Chiefs in 2006. It was with the Chiefs, he would be lionized in the TV show “Hard Knocks” on HBO, before his dismissal in 2010. The timing couldn’t have been worse, as the lockout left him knocking on doors. The UFL’s Hartford Colonials led by Jerry Glanville offered him the defensive line job for the 2011 season, and Krumrie jumped at the opportunity, putting in a playbook and planning to look at potential players, but the league suspended operations of the franchise leaving him in limbo.  In the meantime, he’s embraced a lifestyle as a fitness nut, dabbling in high school football, and lives with his wife in Colorado.

G/GS  188/161    Tac  1017       Sac  34.5   Fum 13
Int  0   Yds 0    Avg -.-     Td  0     lg  -.-