Tag Archives: score 2009

NFL

Hawk, AJ

sco09 ajhawk ad10 ajhawk

Cards: Score 2009, Adrenalyn 2009
Acquired: TTM 2015, C/o Home
Sent: 10/13        Received: 10/29     (16 days)

AJ Hawk was a member of the 2006 NFL draft which had some storied players in it. Expectations were high for the class and comparisons were drawn between this draft and the 1989 and 1985 classes respectively.  The first surprise of the day was dropped by the Texans who did not draft either Reggie Bush or home town favorite Vince Young, but DE Mario Williams.  After D’Brickshaw Ferguson was taken off the board by the New York Jets, the defensive needy Packers drafted AJ Hawk out of Ohio State with the 5th pick.

AJ played in 51 games at Ohio State collecting 394 tackles (196 solo), 41 stops for a loss, 15½ sacks, seven INTs,  and three forced fumbles.
The colorful Hawk became an instant fan favorite in Green Bay for not only his aggressive style of play but his colorful personality and creative haircuts. His rookie season was outstanding as Hawk finished 3rd in voting for defensive rookie of the year honors after recording 119 tackles, 3.5 sacks, and 2 interceptions.  He’d play for the Packers for the next 8 additional seasons- logging 4 additional 100+ tackle seasons.  In 2015 AJ was released from the Packers under amicable terms.  At the time of his departure, Hawk was the franchise’s all-time leading tackler with 1,030 combined tackles. He signed with the Bengals and played in 11 games,  making 16 tackles and a sack.

AJ is a passionate podcaster and web enthusiast. You can visit his website at thehawkcast.com

NFL

McFadden, Darren

sco09 dmcfadden FCard: Score 2009 Franchise RedZone (#32/100)
Acquired: TTM 2015, C/o The Dallas Cowboys
Sent: 9/28   Received: 10/24  (25 days)

Killer catch here in the name of Darren McFadden- a player at Arkansas who frequently drew comparisons to Adrian Peterson and Ricky Williams. The first Sophomore to win the Doak Walker award (2006), McFadden did so in stellar fashion running for 1647 yards and 14 TDs .  He then became the first 2 time winner rushing for            1830 yards and 16TDs  in 2007. In both years he was a Heisman Trophy Runner Up. McFadden’s draft measurables were equally sizzling and buzz surrounded his unofficially timed 4.27 40.

The Raiders selected McFadden with the 4th pick of the 2008 draft, and although he played sparingly his rookie year he drew high praise from coaches in teammates alike. It has always seemed that Darren’s best games have come at the expense of the Denver Broncos during his time with the Raiders, including a 16 carry 165 yard performance with 3 TDs in 2010.  2010 was considered McFadden’s banner year. He ran 223 times for 1157 yards and 7 TDs to go along with 47 receptions for 507 yards and 3 TDs. Over his career in Oakland, McFadden had not been able to clear a full 16 game slate. After the 2014 campaign he was allowed to walk.

Darren signed with the Dallas Cowboys where he has slowly moved into the role as the bellcow back replacing departed starter DeMarco Murray. Facing a crowded backfield and dealing with nagging training camp injuries, Darren has put together 5 solid 100 yard rushing efforts against the Giants (152 yards), Eagles (117 yards), Dolphins (129 yards), Packers (119) and Jets (100) in 2015, and in the last game of the season crossed the 1,000 yard rushing plateau for the first time since 2010.

NFL, University of Texas

Young, Vince (2) “VY”

dor&s10 young patchCdor&s10 young altCard: Donruss Rookies & Stars 2010 Gold, Donruss Rookies & Stars 2010 Foil, Donruss Rookies & Stars 2010 Patch, Photo Memorabilia, Poster.
Acquired: IP 4/16/2015, Sam’s Wholesale Lakeline Grand Opening
See Also: Vince Young

dor&s10 young Goldmem vyoung pho2Well Vince was the apple of my eye for the Sam’s Grand Opening Event. I had planned weeks in advance to nab the increasingly elusive quarterback on as many cards as I could. To help my cause, I created this poster of Vince. It took roughly 15 hours to complete and the additional costs included printing the poster and mounting a copy for him.  While I had hoped Young would sign everything in my possession after seeing the poster, I was ultimately disappointed in his response.  I don’t think me asking for a stack of autographs was going to be greedy. The time and effort required to complete what I had done would have been equitable.

vy posterFor a time there I was worried Vince wasn’t going to show up for the event, in which he was paired up with his former lineman Kasey Studdard.  The line was rampant with discontent from the other attendees, including an incorrigible woman I recognized from a previous signing with Earl Campbell. Things eventually worked out though. The gatekeeper was pretty intimidating, and blocked me from being able to gather a larger number of autographs. Instead when I proposed a trade with Vince – Young seemed confused, and deferred to his gatekeeper to answer the question.  Still- three cards, a photo and a signed copy of my own poster wasn’t too bad.  I had been wanting to get these Donruss cards signed even if the encounter wasn’t memorable anyway. Vince now works for the University of Texas and can be frequently spotted at his steakhouse.