Tag Archives: proset 1989

NFL

Sikahema, Vai

pset89 sikahemaCards: ProSet 1989, ProSet 1990, Action Packed 1990
Acquired:  Paid Signing, 2015

Vai Sikahema does not sign through the mail. Although his jobs in public service arenas and the media would lead one to believe so, he boasts a 0% success rate through many websites. Many of his cards, especially when the big football card explosion of the late 80’s appeared, were very slick action shots. I had him on a shortlist for quite sometime, but due to his inaccessibility, I went ahead and did a paid signing for Sikahema.

pset90 sikahemaVai Sikahema was part of the early 80s pipeline of Tonga football players. In fact he was the first Tongan drafted to the NFL, taken in the 10th round by the St. Louis Cardinals in 1986.   He played his college ball at BYU. There he was an electrifying kick returner, setting the college punt return record with 153 career returns.

Sikahema played at a time when the league afforded the additional luxury of roster spots for dedicated return men, thus he rarely saw the field beyond kick and punt returning.  In his first two years in the NFL, he was named to the Pro Bowl, and in 1987 was named All-Pro. He led the league in yards both seasons cracking the 500 yard barrier in both seasons, and in TDs in 1986 (2), and returns in 1987 (44). Over his 8 seasons in the NFL, Sikahema never failed to return less than 26 punts a season.

ap90 sikahemaAfter 5 seasons playing for the Cardinals, Sikahema signed with Green Bay via Plan B.  He played one season for the franchise before he joined the Philadelphia Eagles, enjoying a brief renaissance to his career. During the 1992 season,  Vai became a part of history when he blew past the New York Giants punt coverage crew. He’d score a TD and then infamously box the Giants’ padded goal post, and make highlight films everywhere for years to come.  Sikahema retired after the 1993 season deciding to shift gears in his life towards sports journalism.

At the time of his retirement, Vai was less than 150 yards from the NFL career punt return yardage record held by White Shoes Johnson, and held the career record for most punt returns in a career.  He is also immortalized in Tecmo Super Bowl where he makes a great jack of all trades back.

NFL G/Gs 118/1    Rush 59     Yds 217    Avg 3.7    Td 0     Lg 27
Rec  53     Yds 537     Avg  10.7      Td 1      Lg 37
Kr  235     Yds 4933      Avg 21.0    Td 0    Lg 52
Pr 292      Yds 3169    Avg 10.9      Td  4     Lg 87t

NFL

Dixon, Hanford “Top Dawg”

pset89 hdixonCard: ProSet 1989
Acquired: 2014, Trade

Hanford Dixon was a dominating defensive back who played his entire 9 season career with the Cleveland Browns from 1981-1989.  A 3 time Pro Bowl pick, Hanford slid in at right cornerback and was later paired with Frank Minnefield after the USFL folded. One of the greatest physical man to man players of his generation, Dixon and Minnefield gave the Oilers wide receivers fits -barking all the way. Hanford was the originator of the ‘Dawg Pound’ name given to the Browns rowdy end zone fans. He thought that the Browns defenders were like dogs and the opposing offenses were cats they were chasing all day.

Teams were aware of the ballhawking Dixon and threw the other direction. He intercepted 26 passes over his career with the Browns. In 1990, the Browns left Dixon unprotected via Plan B and signed respectable Patriot Raymond Clayborn to replace him. With the writing on the wall Hanford signed with the San Fransisco 49ers in 1990, but tore a quadriceps muscle during the preseason. He opted to retire.

Dixon is immortalized as a member of the Browns in Nintendo’s Tecmo Bowl, where they shoved the star corner in at safety.  They did get Hanford right however and made him one of the most dominant players in the game. Hanford continues to live in the Cleveland area where he’s a fan favorite.  He did some coaching for the LFL Cleveland Crush,  and also color and analyst work for gridiron and Arena football games in Ohio.

Last year I took a few extra autographs I had sitting around and sent them out as gifts to friends who had helped me along the way TTM. Among them was Deadhorse, who located a few players I had been looking for. He quit sportscollectors.net cold and from what I could tell was out of the business. He went to an IP signing earlier this year in Ohio and got this extra card signed for me, sending it out of the blue.

G/Gs 131/128         Tac   n/a       Sac  2.0      Fum 2
Int 26       Yds  225         Avg 8.6         Td  0         Lg  37

NFL

Brennan, Brian

pset89 brennanCards: Topps 1990,
Acquired: TTM 2015, C/o Home
Sent: 2/9      Received: 2/22  (11 days)
Failure: TTM 2011, C/o Home

Brian Brennan was a consistently unheralded receiver in the Browns receiving corps from back in the 80s. Reliable, with good hands and route running, Brennan was a player who made it despite the naysayers by sheer grit and determination- almost like a prehistoric Kevin Walter.

to90 brennanBrian was an All-American wide receiver and established Boston College records for career receptions (115) and single season receptions (66). A teammate of Heisman Trophy Winner Doug Flutie, Brennan’s 2,180 career yards and 1,149 single-season yardage totals also set BC records. A 4th round pick of the Browns in 1984, Brian had to contribute any way he could and spent his first two years as the primary punt returner, even nabbing a TD in 1985. Never a starter in the wide receiver corps, somehow Brian managed to make big plays when they counted. His best season came in 1986 with 55 receptions for 838 yards and 5 touchdowns.  Surrounded by guys like Bernie Kosar, Ice Cube McNeil, Kevin Mack, Webster Slaughter, Ozzie Newsome, Earnest Byner, and Reggie Langhorne, Brennan always had to fight for scraps.

ap91 brennanBrian played through the 1991 season and then joined the cross state rival Bengals for a few weeks, before closing it out with the San Diego Chargers.

Since retiring Brian has worked as a broadcaster for the Browns and was inducted into the Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame in 2009. I had tried previously in the past to get Brian, since he has some surprisingly nice cards but was unsuccessful. I decided to give it another shot and got these 3 back in the mail in a short amount of time.

Rec 334     Yds 4336       Avg  13.0       Td  20      Lg   57
Pr 56     Yds 438      Avg 7.8       Td  1       Lg   37t