Card: Wild Card World League 1992 Acquired: TTM 2020, C/o Home Sent: 9/4 Received: 9/15 (11 days)
A true ironman at East Carolina, Stefon Adams displayed athletic ability playing runningback, wide receiver, and defensive back over his time for the Pirates, from 1981 to 1984. He concluded his career at ECU with 47 receptions for 676 yards, 31 rushes for 123 yards and 3 TDs, and an interception for 20 yards.
Stefon was drafted by the Los Angeles Raiders in the 3rd round of the 1985 draft. Stefon played in 53 games for the Silver and Black. He was used primarily as a return man, with 30 punt returns for 240 yards and 60 kickoffs for 1,191 yards. Adams also recorded 2 interceptions for 40 yards and 6 fumble recoveries. He’d spend the 1990 season with the Browns and Dolphins.
In 1992, he played in the World League with the Sacramento Surge– winning World Bowl II with the team. He caught a giant pass from David Archer to sustain a drive on 3rd down, deep in their own territory against the San Antonio Riders in the Win or Go Home contest. Stefon went on to play in the Arena football league in 1994 and 1995 for the Charlotte Rage and then the Connecticut Coyotes, catching 26 passes for 391 yards and 6 TDs on offense, and 22 total tackles, 2 pass breakups, and 2 forced fumbles on defense. Adams concluded 1995 by playing for the Hamilton Tiger-cats in the CFL.
Card: Ultimate World League 1991 Acquired: TTM 2020, C/o Home Sent: 10/21 Received: 11/2 (12 days) Failure: TTM 2020, C/o Home
Mel was selected by the Denver Broncos during the 9th round of the 1988 draft, after playing for UCLA. During his senior season, Mel rushed 33 times for 145 yards and a TD. He also caught 12 passes for 122 yards and a TD. After a brief stop with the Broncos, he signed with the Rams in 1989. Mel joined the World League in 1991, drafted with the 6th pick of the 5th round by the Sacramento Surge. He’d catch 23 passes for 309 yards and a TD, while rushing for 10 more. His 23 receptions and 309 yards ranked second on the team.
This card technically lists Mel as a FB, but I’ve also seen him listed as a RB and a TE, so perhaps he was a novelty as an H-Back, or this is just a flat out uncorrected error card.
I had previously failed on an address I dug up for Mel, but thanks to my friend Bryan who has collaborated with me a lot recently, he had the address handy from talking to Mel on Facebook.
Mel Farr Jr signed this card beautifully in just 12 days from Georgia, and included a nice note saying that, the request made him feel good because he thought at first the autograph was for his father (who had passed away in 2015). Mel Jr. had just two cards produced of him over his time playing football (Ultimate 1992, American Airlines) but 2 are better than none as his autograph graces the canvas beautifully.
John Nies was a punter for the Arizona Wildcats in 1989. He had a unique one step approach to punts that allowed him to down 15 of them inside the 20 to lead the nation. He only logged one season as a starter for Arizona, but had 58 punts for 2406 yards and a 41.6 yard average. In 1987 and 1988, he saw action primarily on the kickoff team, booming 88 kicks, of which only 29 were returned by opposing teams. He was selected in the 6th round of the 1990 NFL Draft by the Buffalo Bills, and punted 5 times for 174 yards in 4 games.
In 1991, Nies would be the 4th special teams player off the board in the World League of American Football positional draft, selected by the Sacramento Surge. He then saw time at both kicker and punter, splitting time with Kendall John Trainor. John finished 11 of 12 on extra points and 4 of 7 on field goals. He punted 23 times for 902 yards including a 53 yard long.
He’d return to the franchise for the 1992 season, and although he’d see an uptick in his kicking stats, Nies was relied upon much more as a punter again as Cary Blanchard quickly established himself as the much more consistent kicker.
Since retiring from football, Nies has been a fitness ambassador with Lululemon, a fashion model, actor, and ESPN host. Currently he teaches East meets West health and wellness philosophies at his group fitness and wellness center, The Power Center, in Red Bank, NJ.
WLAF
XPA
XPM
FGA
FGM
PTS
LG
28
25
13
6
43
N/A
PUNTS
YDS
AVG
LG
64
2515
39.3
59
NFL PUNTS
YDS
AVG
LG
5
174
34.8
39
Celebrating the game, the players, the cards, and the autographs for over 25 years.
