Tag Archives: cleveland browns

NFL

Dixon, Hanford “Top Dawg”

pset89 hdixonCard: ProSet 1989
Acquired: 2014, Trade

Hanford Dixon was a dominating defensive back who played his entire 9 season career with the Cleveland Browns from 1981-1989.  A 3 time Pro Bowl pick, Hanford slid in at right cornerback and was later paired with Frank Minnefield after the USFL folded. One of the greatest physical man to man players of his generation, Dixon and Minnefield gave the Oilers wide receivers fits -barking all the way. Hanford was the originator of the ‘Dawg Pound’ name given to the Browns rowdy end zone fans. He thought that the Browns defenders were like dogs and the opposing offenses were cats they were chasing all day.

Teams were aware of the ballhawking Dixon and threw the other direction. He intercepted 26 passes over his career with the Browns. In 1990, the Browns left Dixon unprotected via Plan B and signed respectable Patriot Raymond Clayborn to replace him. With the writing on the wall Hanford signed with the San Fransisco 49ers in 1990, but tore a quadriceps muscle during the preseason. He opted to retire.

Dixon is immortalized as a member of the Browns in Nintendo’s Tecmo Bowl, where they shoved the star corner in at safety.  They did get Hanford right however and made him one of the most dominant players in the game. Hanford continues to live in the Cleveland area where he’s a fan favorite.  He did some coaching for the LFL Cleveland Crush,  and also color and analyst work for gridiron and Arena football games in Ohio.

Last year I took a few extra autographs I had sitting around and sent them out as gifts to friends who had helped me along the way TTM. Among them was Deadhorse, who located a few players I had been looking for. He quit sportscollectors.net cold and from what I could tell was out of the business. He went to an IP signing earlier this year in Ohio and got this extra card signed for me, sending it out of the blue.

G/Gs 131/128         Tac   n/a       Sac  2.0      Fum 2
Int 26       Yds  225         Avg 8.6         Td  0         Lg  37

NFL

Brennan, Brian

pset89 brennanCards: Topps 1990,
Acquired: TTM 2015, C/o Home
Sent: 2/9      Received: 2/22  (11 days)
Failure: TTM 2011, C/o Home

Brian Brennan was a consistently unheralded receiver in the Browns receiving corps from back in the 80s. Reliable, with good hands and route running, Brennan was a player who made it despite the naysayers by sheer grit and determination- almost like a prehistoric Kevin Walter.

to90 brennanBrian was an All-American wide receiver and established Boston College records for career receptions (115) and single season receptions (66). A teammate of Heisman Trophy Winner Doug Flutie, Brennan’s 2,180 career yards and 1,149 single-season yardage totals also set BC records. A 4th round pick of the Browns in 1984, Brian had to contribute any way he could and spent his first two years as the primary punt returner, even nabbing a TD in 1985. Never a starter in the wide receiver corps, somehow Brian managed to make big plays when they counted. His best season came in 1986 with 55 receptions for 838 yards and 5 touchdowns.  Surrounded by guys like Bernie Kosar, Ice Cube McNeil, Kevin Mack, Webster Slaughter, Ozzie Newsome, Earnest Byner, and Reggie Langhorne, Brennan always had to fight for scraps.

ap91 brennanBrian played through the 1991 season and then joined the cross state rival Bengals for a few weeks, before closing it out with the San Diego Chargers.

Since retiring Brian has worked as a broadcaster for the Browns and was inducted into the Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame in 2009. I had tried previously in the past to get Brian, since he has some surprisingly nice cards but was unsuccessful. I decided to give it another shot and got these 3 back in the mail in a short amount of time.

Rec 334     Yds 4336       Avg  13.0       Td  20      Lg   57
Pr 56     Yds 438      Avg 7.8       Td  1       Lg   37t

CFL, NFL, WLAF

Brown, Marlon ‘Spacedog’

psetwlaf91 mbrownCards: ProSet WLAF 1991, ProSet WLAF 1991 World Bowl, Ultimate WLAF 1992.
Acquired: TTM 2015, C/o Home
Sent: 5/15    Received: 6/8  (24 days)

Marlon Brown is a member of the deep 1989 NFL class. He was a 12th round pick of the Cleveland Browns after setting the Memphis school record with 19 sacks. His career highlights include a 4 sack performance against Louisville, which garnered him Associated Press Defensive Player of the Week Honors in 1987.   Brown joined the British Columbia Lions of the CFL in 1990 as a defensive end, recording 3 sacks and 7 tackles.

pset91 mbrown WBWith the unveiling of the WLAF in 1991, the London Monarchs selected Brown with the 4th overall pick among linebackers in the inaugural positional draft.  A key component to the Monarchs’ WLAF title run in 1991 and top rated defense, Marlon Brown finished on the All-World League Second Team.  Spacedog had 42 tackles and 7.5 sacks. His 5.5 sacks in a 22-7 win over North American rival New York-New Jersey stand as a single game league record, and he was named player of the week.  In World Bowl I, Marlon also contributed a sack in the Monarchs 21-0 shutout of the Dragons.

Marlon was traded after the season concluded. His fortunes basically went from first to worst, as he’d join the Ohio Glory. He finished his career in the WLAF as a member of the New York-New Jersey Knights.

ultwlaf92 mbrownFrom time to time I network with other collectors about the hobby. I’ve always admired Mark’s Signing Bonus. As a respected collector, I think he is a wonderful resource who cares about TTM and autographs as much as I do. I finally worked around to asking him about a few player successes he had, chief among them- Marlon. (I had emailed a lead  before, but it turned out to be a case of mistaken identity.)  Mark kindly helped me out and before I knew it, Spacedog had responded and included a nice note asking for a copy of his WLAF Ultimate 1992 card.

Marlon barely has even noticed that almost 25 years have passed. He’s still in pretty good physical shape and runs his own trucking business out of Memphis that keeps him on the road a good portion of his time.

CFL   G  5     Tac  7      Sac   3.0    Fum N/a
Int  0     Yds 0     Avg -.-      Td 0     Lg -.-

WLAF         Tac  42     Sac 7.5      Fum  N/a
Int  0      Yds 0    Avg -.-       Td 0      Lg -.-