Category Archives: Super Bowl MVP

NFL, Pro Football HoF, Super Bowl MVP

Manning, Peyton (2)

CARD: Panini Rookies & Stars 2010
ACQUIRED: TTM C/o Charity, 2020*
SENT: 6/29 RECEIVED: 7/27 (28 Days)
* Donation Enclosed

CAREER SNAPSHOT:

NOTES:

Well after a few years, I decided to try Peyton again. I got extremely lucky to get him a second time, on this card. Although I had two other cards I had preferred to get him on more (Score 2010, Donruss Rookies & Stars 2009) I could not locate them in time and rushed this one out the door with a donation to his foundation for $20.00.

Since then he’s pretty much gone cold. He’s signed a few photos produced by his charity TTM, but that’s about it. He’s had his due receiving numerous accolades in retirement, inducted into the Pro Football HoF in 2021, and also the Broncos and Colts Rings of Honor. While rumored to be in line to work for the Colts organization over the past few years in some capacity, Peyton remains focused on his endeavors, especially with his brother Eli working on the Manningcast .

NFL, Super Bowl MVP

Rypien, Mark (3)

CARD: Pro Set 1990 Super Bowl MVP Hack
ACQUIRED: TTM 2022, C/o Home
SENT: 9/14 RECEIVED: 9/24 (10 days)

CAREER SNAPSHOT:

NOTES:

I am just beside myself with my greatest trading card accomplishment. It is fitting that the first player that I got an autograph of on my Pro Set 1990 Super Bowl Hack card would be the first player who didn’t receive the Merv Corning treatment, Super Bowl XXVI MVP Mark Rypien.

Since I was a kid, I loved these cards and consider them one of the best subsets ever in the trading card industry. It disappointed me immensely that Pro Set didn’t continue making Merv Corning MVP works after Ottis Anderson (Super Bowl XXV) so I thought, if I ever had the chance, I’d do it myself. I was inspired.

Frankly it took me a long time to get to this point. A lot of personal pain, the humiliation and burn out from a previous design job, leaving the art field again, only to take this challenge upon myself finally to see this through- all over the last year.

The OJ Anderson MVP card was the final Merv Corning art card from this set (L), The Rypien and Aikman cards seamlessly transition to the additional set.

I painstakingly made sure that the design was as close as possible to the original. The typography, both front and back, the colors, matching the alignment, ensuring fidelity to the originals, and that’s without even doing the artwork and tinkering with the printer.

Eventually I posted them to the Facebook autograph group I am an admin of, and then started printing them out in early September of that year. I hadn’t been this excited in a while to get a return like this- except for the fact that Mark signed it on the back.

College Football HoF, NFL, Pro Football HoF, Super Bowl MVP

Aikman, Troy (2)

Skybox Impact 1992, #232 Action Packed Rookies & Stars 1992, #72

CARDS: Action Packed Rookies & Stars 1992, Skybox 1992
ACQUIRED: In Person, 2022

CAREER SNAPSHOT:

NOTES:

It’s been a long 30 years plus since I got Troy Aikman on a card so to get him on not one- but two cards, left me quite elated. I had seen that he was in town promoting his new beer line, Eight, and was kicking myself that I missed out on a previous event that he was involved in. Serendipitous timing led Aikman back to the area again, and I pounced when I saw that he was appearing literally 5-10 miles from my house at a local strip of bars.

It was a great event, as I caught up with my cohorts Jeff and Mark. I hadn’t seen Jeff since before the pandemic, and this was his first in person event since then. We sat around and tried out Eight beer. It was actually pretty good!

Soon thereafter Troy appeared behind the bar and began tossing out beers and handing out pints. I narrowly missed catching one of them, and then he started signing memorabilia in earnest. After I pushed Jeff into the crowd, he signed a mini for Jeff and then my Action Packed card- a dire set need. We bit our nails until Mark got his- the very last person on the first bar he visited.

We decided to take a shot at the second bar for another autograph. and after the same set up, came away with the same results. I was scratching my head between 3 different cards, but in the end decided to go with the Impact card. As he was signing the card, he smiled and stared directly into my eyes. I took it as quite genuine, but also as a warning to not try to press for three.