NFL

Smith, Darrin

Card: Classic 1993
Acquired: In Person 1993, Dallas Cowboys Training Camp

Originally a product from “The U”, who played alongside future NFL stars Micheal Barrow and Jessie Armstead, Darrin Smith was an undersized, yet speedy linebacker with good pursuit. (The Cowboys loved drafting linebackers during the 90s, but they didn’t really display any interest in keeping them. See Godfrey Myles, Dixon Edwards, and Ken Norton.) Smith would start almost immediately at weakside linebacker for the team after being drafted in the 3rd round, helping Dallas win SuperBowls XXVIII and XXX.  He’d be cast out of Dallas unceremoniously after not being able to sign a long term deal in 1997.

Darrin would move to the rival Philadelphia Eagles for one nondescript season before heading over to Seattle where Smith would play admirably for two seasons before becoming a salary cap casualty.  But like a fine wine, Darrin Smith’s best time was arguably in his final years playing for the New Orleans Saints from 2000-2004 where after he retired. Since retiring from football Darrin has operated a real estate company and is a devoted Christian.

Thankfully Classic got rid of the leopard print look and went with a more subtle, polished granite look for the border of its cards by 1993. The draft logo was a nice touch that nobody was utilizing, but Classic in general at the time suffered from probably too little information being displayed on their cards. The information on the back had what team they were taken by in the draft. Why not place this information on the front in some respect?  I also did not like Classic’s penchant for changing its logo completely nearly every year. That’s just not how you drive brand visibility. Nice photos though, front and back typically, and this Darrin Smith one is a great example of that. Classic was really hit or miss with their cards as far as prospects went and while they were usually first, I preferred Star Pics almost immediately because I could buy a whole set at once and not pay an incredible amount.

G/Gs 156/140       Tac  584      Sac 24.0    Fum  3    Int 11   Yds 155    Avg  14.0   Td 4   Lg 41t

NFL, WLAF

Vick, Roger

Cards: Proset 1989, Score 1990
Acquired: In Person 1992, San Antonio Riders v. Orlando Thunder
See Also: Roger Vick (2)

 

I knew that Roger (who had played collegiately locally at Texas A&M) had a really nice ProSet card in 1989, so when he signed with the Orlando Thunder of the WLAF, I dug the card out of my collection and stumbled upon the Score 1990 card as well. After the Thunder throttled the Riders in San Marcos I would get Vick’s autographs on these cards as he left the dressing room.

The offensive MVP of the Aggies for the 1987 Cotton Bowl, Roger Vick was a strong fullback with a nose for the end zone, who was selected in the first round of the 1987 draft by the New York Jets. The blocking back primarily for underrated Freeman McNeil, he’d play for them through 1989 scoring 12 touchdowns, and then briefly with the Eagles in 1990- before sitting out a year in 1991.

In 1992, he was drafted by the Orlando Thunder, which ran a spread offense- (so to me he was a head scratcher on their team,) but Vick came out firing on all cylinders, finishing second on the team in rushing behind teammate Darryl Clack on the league’s #2 rushing offense.

Unfortunately the league would fold North American operations after 1992.  Since retirement, the consensus is that Roger Vick is Texas A&M’s best fullback in the college’s storied history. 

NFL

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33312893.91039
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664697.1223

WL

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1164583.9430
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8486.0016
NFL, WLAF

Goebel, Brad

Cards: WildCard WLAF 1992, Pinnacle 1991
Acquired: TTM 2011, C/o Home
Sent: 3/12/10     Received: 4/25/11 (409 days)

Brad Goebel sets the new standard for the longest wait, clocking in a mere 409 days, hence why I hesitate to cross players off my list when I’ve waited a particularly long time.  (I’ve heard of collectors waiting almost 2 years for autographs in some cases.)

Brad Goebel was another great quarterback to come out of Baylor in Waco, Tx. (The other recent quarterback being Houston Oiler Cody Carlson). Brad’s strengths were that he had a quick release, a good arm, and a tremendous amount of focus. The Philadelphia Eagles, under coach Rich Kotite would note his performance at Baylor, where he’d finish first in attempts (790) and completions, (375) and second in school history in career total offense upon graduation in 1990.  The Eagles would sign Brad to a free agent contract where he’d compete in camp for a backup job. After a scintilating performance against the Pittsburgh Steelers in the preseason where Brad would lead the Eagles back engineering 2 game winning drives in the 4th quarter, he’d unseat Don McPherson for 3rd string on the Eagles roster. In fact, the buzz around Brad was so strong that fans were suggesting that he should start at quarterback for the Eagles over Randall Cunningham.  They wouldn’t have to wait that long as the quarterback of the future plucked from the ranks of free agency would be forced into the lineup in 1991.

A series of bizarre injuries would befall the Eagles quarterback rotation, as starter Randall Cunningham would go down for the season in week 1. Jim McMahon would step in and lead the team but he’d go down to injury too forcing the Eagles to go ahead with Pat Ryan, who forced Philadelphia’s hand with his poor play to start Brad in week 5. The team would narrowly lose against the Saints, and then the next week as well against Tampa Bay before McMahon would return to the lineup. Goebel throughout the remainder of the season would see a bit of garbage time, but would not throw a touchdown.

In 1992, the NFL agreed to allocate 4 players from each team as ‘future stars’ to the WLAF for the season. The Eagles requested to have Brad placed with San Antonio due to its proximity to his home in Cuero, Tx. With Jason Garrett no longer with the franchise,  Brad would compete against  incumbent  quarterback Mike Johnson. He would throw for a touchdown and 408 yards during the season, starting against the Machine, Fire, and Knights before Johnson would return to the starting lineup. At the conclusion of the 1992 WLAF season, Goebel returned to the Eagles.

Caught in a numbers game, the Eagles were not able to provide Brad enough reps in camp, so before the 1992 NFL season even really began, the Eagles quarterback of the future would be traded to the Cleveland Browns for a 7th round choice.  Brad would make the roster of the team playing sparingly over the next 3 seasons before retiring after the 1994 season.

Brad since retirement has become a successful real estate developer and rancher back in his hometown of Cuero. He also hosts a football camp in Horseshoe Bay, Tx.

This would be the only WLAF card printed of Brad, and the Pinnacle card was one that I found a few weeks after the 1992 season had concluded.  The Pinnacle card is quite a nice layout with copious amounts of space on it. Unfortunately the Wild Card just looks ugly. The large ‘stamp’ and numbers on the side just don’t complement this otherwise very nice looking photo of Brad that well. The back is even more repugnant. Regardless I was glad to get these two signed. Below are his statistics from the WLAF.

G/Gs  N/a     Att  66     Comp  40    Yds 404   Pct 60.6    Td 1      Int 2       Rat  64.5 |
Rush 6    Yds 18      Avg  3.0      Td  2     Lg 7

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

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