Cards: Score 1993, GameDay 1992, Action Packed 1991, Action Packed 1992
Acquired: 2012, Akron Acquisition. 2017, TTM C/o Home
Sent: 9/28   Received: 10/07  (9 days)
See Also: Marv Cook

After his NFL career concluded in 1996, Marv has become a well respected coach at the high school level in Iowa City, IA winning numerous state titles. He has some great cards and after getting the Score 1993 in 2012 C/o the Akron Acquisition, I thought I’d go ahead and get a few more since he’s a great signer through the mail.

The Score 1993 card is a really conservative design, anchored well on the left and bottom- but among the pantheon of card designs this was a pretty boring look. A few nitpicks- They typeface used is too narrow making the team and position difficult to read. Maybe it’s just because of the color scheme, but this looks like it belongs on a Domino’s Pizza box.

Marv’s Action Packed entries are typical of this set. Good sports photography supported by the embossed gimmick. The minimal works here, because of the punchy mid-range photography, although in the 1992 entry the nameplate is lost in the photo.  On the 1992 entries it was a nice touch with the red stripe used for AFC teams while the blue stripe used for NFC.

I always had a weak spot for the GameDay cards. GameDay was interesting because it was the only Long Tom set on the market. I loved this set specifically for that look alone which not only separated itself from the competition on the market, but resembled a ticket, standing out from the crowd at an event. This card of Marv, I think the photo was from the game in which he caught a TD in an epic upset over the Houston Oilers at Foxboro Stadium.