NFL

Doss, Lorenzo

sage15 dossCard: Sage 2015
Acquired: 2015, Box Breaker

Converted wide receiver Lorenzo Doss played collegiality at Tulane. A three year starter for the Green Wave at corner, Doss earned All-Conference honors in 2012 and 2013. A strong competitor with a desire to make the big play, Lorenzo had 33 pass breakups and 15 interceptions- 2 of which he returned for touchdowns. His 271 interception return yards were a school record. Displaying quick feet, and 40 speed (4.47), Doss’ size (5’10”, 190) and penchant to gamble did not sit well with scouts. They graded him as a 5th or 6th round pick.

Selected by the Denver Broncos with the 164th pick of the 2015 NFL draft, Doss’ made the squad but was a healthy scratch for all 16 games. He is expected to clean up his tackling and join the squad as a slot corner man and special teams player.  In 2016 he posted 4 tackles and 2 passes defensed.

CFL, NFL, WLAF

Phillips, Darrell

Card: ProSet WLAF 1991
Acquired: TTM 2015, C/o Home
Sent: 12/9   Received:  12/29   (20 days)

Darrell Phillips was a stud in the middle of LSU’s defense during his time playing for the Tigers during the mid-late 80s. In his Junior year, he had 100 tackles, 4 sacks, and 5 TFL. A versatile player, he also blocked 3 kicks on special teams and was named the team’s most valuable defensive player. In 1988 he was a First-Team All-SEC selection with 76 tackles and 3 sacks.

He wasn’t drafted but saw time in the camps of both the New Orleans Saints (1989) and British Columbia Lions (1990) before being selected in the first round of the WLAF positional draft by the Birmingham Fire in 1991. Phillips helped pace the stingy Birmingham Fire defense with 38 tackles and 2 sacks, which earned him second team All-World League Honors.  He returned to the team for the 1992 season and again notched another 2 sacks.

Darrell was one of the few members of the Birmingham Fire that escaped me when I was trying to get autographs back in 1992 during that humid night game against the Riders.  After some sleuthing, I was able to track him down on Facebook, where he was displaying his LSU pride.  He kindly responded to my message and agreed to sign this card for a few extras that he could keep.  Phillips has split his time between the US and Canada for the past few years.

His favorite memory from the league was: “Coach Chan Gailey and the defense. He was a great coach who treated you like a man and the players… all of them were a great inspiration one way or the other…”

WLAF     Tac N/a    Sac 4.0    Fum 0   Int 0   Yds 0   Avg -.-   TD 0   Lg -.-

NFL, University of Texas

Whittaker, Fozzy (3)

sp12 fwhittakerpaut15_fwhittakerCards: SP 2012 #399/750, Upper Deck Star Rookies 2012, TNT UT, Photo Memorabilia, Upper Deck Star Pics 2012, SP 2012 Authentics, Panini UT 2015
Acquired: IP 2016, Mighty Fine Burgers Battle of the Beast, Coop UT Celebration.
See Also: Fozzy Whittaker, Fozzy Whittaker (2)

Fozzy’s NFL career has required a lot of grit and a good agent. He’s clawed his way into the lineup tntcol fwhittakerwith Carolina where he serves primarily as a 3rd down scat back for the Panthers offense, after brief stops in Arizona, Cleveland, and San Diego. During the last 2 seasons, Fozzy has played in 25 games, starting 2.  He’s rushed 57 times for 253 yards and 2 TDs, while catching 17 passes for 124 yards and a TD. He’s also spent a bit of time on special teams returning 20 kicks for 471 yards.
During his relatively brief NFL career, Fozzy has demonstrated a knack for being a dangerous receiver out of the backfield. He has had a few highlights, such as transforming a 26 yard screen pass to a diving TD against the Saints, and a swing pass 39 yards across the middle for a TD against the Cardinals in the Wild card game of the 2014  playoffs.

A great fan favorite, Fozzy signs at
all events, and volunteers regularly for team events to meet fans. At the Mighty Fine Burgers
Battle of the Beast event, Whittaker was in rare form. As the maitre ‘d of the event he was in charge of motivating local high school players to eat as much as they could. Surrounded by a large and raucous crowd Fozzy was in his element, with a beaming smile, having a great time. Whittaker has no shortage amazingly of great photos, whether it is him jumping over a would be tackler, galloping across the grass, or getting a kiss from a baluga whale, I did honestly
ask for a lot.
I’m not really a photo memorabilia kind of guy, but with such a plethora of great shots of Fozzy, I compromised and decided to get some things signed on high quality 4×6 photo stock- which could eventually become a thing for me as I run out of stuff for guys who appear regularly. Still Fozzy kindly and patiently signed everything, while discussing how his career has progressed along.  We talked also briefly about how some of those photos need to make their way onto Carolina Panthers cards of him, and how I thought his efforts in their Super Bowl loss provided the team a much needed spark.

Fozzy was also a guest star on the Comedy Central show Key and Peele which routinely made fun of NFL players and their outrageous names. Instead of lampooning Whittaker, they just had him appear on the skit and say his name. When I asked him about this event, he told me that it wasn’t like they flew him out to LA for the taping- they just shot the video in front of a green screen. After getting one of the Comedy Central photos signed, I gave him the extra one on me, which he really liked and showed his wife.

The fun times didn’t end there as I had two more cards to get Fozzy on at the Coop event in May. He signed his Panini UT card and this really nice SP Authentics canvas card.

Whittaker continues to blossom as a pro. In 2016 he posted career highs across the board with 57 carries for 265 yards and 25 receptions for 226 yards. He also chipped in 12 kick returns for 275 yards- a 22.9 yard average.

Celebrating the game, the players, the cards, and the autographs for over 25 years.