Category Archives: NFL

NFL

Wattelet, Frank

Card: Top Notch School of the Legends 2011-12
Acquired: TTM 2011, C/o Home
Sent: 12/14  Received: 12/24 (10 days)

Frank is a really cool player that I met through School of the Legends. After talking with him for a bit, it hit me to send him a card of his. I thought,  “Maybe he had a Topps card floating around somehwere,” but surprisingly Frank did not,(-outside of a McDonald’s oversize Happy Meal card from 1985,) so I set out to make one for him.

Embracing the SotL brand look, I gave the card a nice background featuring the city and added a vignette of a shield for his action shot to be composed in. After receiving multiple photos from him to work with, I had Frank’s helmet pop from the top of the shield to give the card more depth. I also used various color adjustment layers and other Photoshop and Illustrator techniques to bring it all together and complete out the card.  Frank got his card from me and was stoked, since he had never had a card before. He asked me for my address and popped a few in the mail for me. They came in right before the new year which made it all the more nice.

A headhunting Safety out of Kansas who played alongside speedster Leroy Irvin, Frank Wattelet was not drafted coming out of the 1981 draft, signing with the New Orleans Saints, who had just hired former Houston Oiler Bum Phillips as head coach.  Wattelet stepped into the lineup in 1981 and started 3 games, but played primarily on special teams. Still he’d manage to rake in 3 picks. In 1982 his true home would be found at Free Safety starting beside Dave Waymer in 9 games and making a fumble recovery.  In 1984 he’d return a pick and a fumble in consecutive weeks for touchdowns- A team mark for the Saints. As the upback in the Saints special teams set, he’d also occasionally see a few fakes come his way completing 1 pass for 14 yards against the Colts in 1986, and 42 yards in 1985 on 2 scampers.  Considered one of the Saints best free agent finds, Wattelet would play for the Saints from 1981-1987 starting 78 contests.  Frank was reunited with Leroy Irvin (from his days on the Jayhawks) on the Rams in 1987, and retired following the 1988 season.  Still an avid football fan, Frank lives with his family in Joplin, Mo where he cheers on the Jayhawks- win or lose each week, beside the Saints.

G/Gs 98/78      Tac  N/a      Sac  1.0     Fum 10   Int 12   Yds 135     Avg 11.3    Td  1     Lg 35

 

NFL

Daniels, Owen (2)


Card: Prestige 2010, Score 2010
Acquired: In Person 12/6/2011, Go Texans Store
See also: Daniels, Owen

While I was in Houston getting Mario Williams and JJ Watt at the Community Player of the Month event, I figured if I might be able to square away another name while I was down there. It came down to Owen Daniels and Jacoby Jones, but with me having frozen to death outside for JJ and Mario, I opted for Owen knowing that the line would be queued inside the store.  Following another fan to the Go Texans store in Reliant Stadium during rush hour I got to the store a few minutes after the event began and surprisingly was able to get him twice.

The first time I came around I was a bit too starstruck and just honestly didn’t know what to say to Owen. The event was definitely more intimate than the cattle call of the Whataburger event and it was just an awkward exchange. I told him I’d come around again, and when I finally did  I told him that I was happy the team was able to lock him up for a few years, and that I consider him bionic because of his 3 knee surgeries. Daniels was very gracious and looked me in the eye after knocking on wood (about the knee surgeries), and thanked me for driving from Austin to visit him that day.

Looking at these cards, I liked where Score was going with their look from 2009 to 2010, but they totally lost it in ’11. Still the thing I can appreciate most about this set is its level of coverage of players as there seems to be a nice balance of offense and defense. I wasn’t too enthusiastic about the lineup of Prestige cards. The Texans’ logo looks like it’s about to attack Owen’s shoulder and the metal look has been done and over done along with that annoying fade. I do however like this card in particular as it seems well suited for the set, especially Owen’s pose silhouetted against the design and certainly the autograph took well enough.

Daniels in 2011 is off to his best season since 2008 when he recorded 70 receptions. After a slow week 1, Owen has recorded at least 3 receptions in each contest through week 13 of 2011.  He’d have season highs in week 5 against the Raiders with 7 receptions for 89 yards.  An integral weapon to the Texans play action system, Daniels also serves as the team’s emergency quarterback.

NFL, University of Texas

Erxleben, Russell


 

Card: UT Upper Deck 2011, UT Upper Deck 2011 AA
Acquired: TTM 2011, C/o Home
Sent: 11/30   Received: 12/10  (10 days)

Russell Erxleben was an amazing kicker and punter in college for the University of Texas kicking an NCAA record 67 yard field goal in 1977.  He’d be named All American 1976-1978 and also set a Texas single season record, averaging 46.6 yards a punt.  After graduating from UT, the New Orleans Saints made Russell their #1 pick in 1979 where he’d play double duty again as a punter and kicker. Oddly the team utilized him sparingly as a kicker over his career but he averaged a bit over 40 yards a punt in his 5 seasons with the Saints punting 279 times, including a club record 89 in 1980. In 1982 Erxleben had a career high 43.0 yard average on 46 punts. He’d be cut in 1983, and play as a scab in 1987 on the Lions for one contest, but subsequently retire after the season.

Unfortunately Russell’s name has never been able to shake his lofty draft status, since he was the second highest drafted kicker in NFL history. Erxleben was also convicted of securities fraud in 1999, and but was released in 2005. He currently is retired and living near Dripping Springs, Texas, and enjoys watching his son follow in his footsteps as a kicking specialist with- Texas Tech.

Somebody was cutting corners on these cards with that weak blur in the background of Erxleben’s set card. Didn’t you guys learn how to make proper masks in Photoshop? As far as autographs go, Russell has a fairly pedestrian one, as it lacks the boldness of an autograph but belies the subtlety of a signature. I rubbed the film significantly on the surface of the card so that it could take the autograph better, and it appears for the most part that it worked as there is only a little ink loss from the bubbling. Erxleben makes the first TTM success from the UT Upper Deck 2011 set, signing these 2 cards in 10 days. I look forward to many more in the future and this is a great way to get fans interested and aligned with particular college interests.