Tag Archives: buffalo bills

NFL, WLAF

Rasul, Amir

Cards: Ultimate WLAF 1992, Wild Card WLAF 1992
Acquired: TTM 2011, C/o Home
Sent: 7/27   Received: 8/29  (34 days)

An excellent rusher and receiver out of the backfield during college, Amir Rasul finished with 2072 yards rushing, 600 yards receiving and a total of 23 touchdowns during his career at Florida A&M.  The Buffalo Bills would draft him in the 7th round of the 1991 draft to fit the mold of a Thurman Thomas back in their offense. He would not make the roster of the team.

The WLAF would come calling and the expansion Ohio Glory would select Amir in the 6th round of the 1992 draft. Although playing for the abhorrent Glory, (which finished at an abysmal 1-9,) Rasul was always a threat out of the backfield, racking up 572 yards rushing and 4 touchdowns for the team. In the season opener against Orlando, not only did he score the franchise’s first TD, Rasul also set league records rushing 24 times for 152 yards and a TD.  He also earned Offensive Player of the Week Honors. His rushing yards would be good enough to rank 2nd in the league behind Ivory Lee Brown (SA) in the end. He would not earn All-World honors however for his efforts. That would be it for the WLAF though, as it would reorganize after the 1992 season.

Since that time Amir has lived in relative anonymity and went into construction where he is the owner of Diamond Construction Group, out of the Fort Lauderdale area. I was able to track him down utilizing Spokeo, as his unique name made him an easy find. I didn’t expect to get a reply, so to get his response on these 2 cards was quite nice in a bit over 30 days.

Below are his WLAF statistcs:

G 10   Rush 136     Yds  572    Avg  4.2   Td  4    Lg  36  |
Rec 20    Yds 117    Avg  5.8      Td 0   Lg 22

NFL

Jeffcoat, Jim

Card: ProSet 1990
Acquired: In Person 1991, Dallas Cowboys Training Camp

Jim Jeffcoat played 15 seasons in the NFL after being drafted in the first round by the Dallas Cowboys out of Arizona State in 1983. He’d immediately replace Harvey Martin in the lineup and Jeffcoat would pick up where Martin left off, -harassing opposing ball carriers and quarterbacks of the NFC East opposite “Too Tall” Jones. Over 12 seasons with the Cowboys, Jeffcoat became recognized as one of the best finess rushers in the league recording 5 seasons of 10 or more sacks and 5 seasons of 70+ tackles. As time wore on, and with the eventual arrival of Charles Haley, Jim would share time at left defensive end with Tony Tolbert. He’d oddly sign with the Buffalo Bills in 1995, playing 3 more seasons with them before his eventual retirement, after 15 seasons.

Jim’s 102.5 sacks rank him in the career top 25 for the NFL, and while he was nominated in 2008, Jeffcoat has not made the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Considered one of the finest defensive linemen to come out of Arizona State, he was inducted into their hall of fame in 1994. Since retirement Jeffcoat has worked for the Dallas Cowboys and Houston Cougars as a defensive line coach and at the time of this post he was working for the San Jose State Spartans in that same capacity.

G/Gs 227/129    Tac  709       Sac   102.5      Fum   18     Int  2     Yds  91   Avg 45.5  Td 2   Lg 65

 

NFL

Awalt, Robert

Card: ProSet 1990
Acquired: In Person 1991, Dallas Cowboys Training Camp

Okay, I could never understand the Cardinals organization’s logic when it came to their tight ends. Here you have a proven veteran in Jay Novacek. You watch him leave Plan B to the Dallas Cowboys where he goes on to burn defenses across the league. In the meantime, the Cardinals groom promising Robert Awalt who actually starts and front of Novacek,(named NFC offensive rookie of the year in 1987,) but then roughly two years later, traded Awalt away to that same Dallas Cowboys organization. Just makes me scratch my head. (In Rob’s first few weeks for the organization, Robert would wear 46 as pictured on the card until 89 became available for him to wear.) Awalt would play behind Jay in two injury plagued seasons for the Cowboys primarily as a blocking tight end and occasional receiver. In 1992 Rob joined the Buffalo Bills, making 2 SuperBowl appearances there before retiring at the age of 29, after being placed on injured reserve to repair a torn rotator cuff in 1993.

I got Robert’s autograph on his ProSet 1990 at Cowboys Training camp, at the infamous autograph alley back in 1991- I think from what I remember at the final fence line before the players walk onto the playing field. I was a regular as background fodder on the local sportscasts and also had my picture once in the Dallas Morning News getting crushed in the alleyway by fans leaning me into the fence trying to get autographs. Those were good times despite the heat, and I never failed at getting an autograph everyday I was there.

G/Gs  95/44   Rec 138   Yds  1583   Avg  11.5   Td  10   lg 52