Playing for tiny Central College (OH) Eddie Britton finished with 58 receptions for 1,081 yards and 13 TDs. Known for his liquid speed, Eddie had been clocked at an unheard of 4.26 40. He’d be signed by the Indianapolis Colts and allocated to the World League Enhancement Program for the 1992 season.
Eddie joined the Fire, where he caught 18 passes for 277 yards and a 56 yard TD, and rushed 9 times for 53 yards. He also returned kicks as well, posting a gaudy 23 returns for 558 yards (24.3 average). His 908 total yards from scrimmage quietly led the team. After the season, Eddie took his toolsets North to the CFL.
Eddie spent the next 4 years in the league from 1993-1996 playing for Calgary, Baltimore, Birmingham, the Ottawa Rough Riders and finally the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. His best season came in 1995 for the Barracudas, when he caught 49 passes for 681 yards and 4 TDs.
As of late I have found my passion for finding former World League players reignited by the failure of the Alliance. I was able to scrap together Eddie’s personal information through various sources and look him up through advancedbackgroundchecks.com. Within a month he signed his card and included a nice note wishing me well.
Jamie Morris is one of the smallest players to play runningback in the NFL. At a mere 5’7″, 188 he towered over opponents toting the rock for the Michigan Wolverines. He had 3 straight 1,000 yard seasons for Ann Arbor, culminating in his Senior campaign in 1987 when he had 282 carries for 1703 yards and 14 TDs. He finished his college career as the school’s all-time leading rusher with 806 carries for 4392 yards, 25 TDs and 99 receptions (also a school record) for 756 yards and 3 TDs. Jamie was selected in the 4th round of the 1988 NFL Draft by the Washington Redskins.
Jamie made it onto the regular season roster of the Redskins, where he was designated primarily as a kick returner. Still over the course of the 16 game schedule, Morris managed to put together 126 carries for 437 yards and 2 TDs. He also returned 21 kicks for 413 yards. Jamie is perhaps best remembered by Redskins faithful as the back who set the NFL record with 45 carries (152 yards) in a 20-17 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals in 1988. It should be noted that over his short but notable NFL career, Jamie posted a 38 carry game and a 26 carry game in 1989 as well.
Morris signed with the New England Patriots in 1990 where he served primarily as a kick returner. He finished with 11 returns for 202 yards and 2 carries for 4 yards. Afterwards Jamie joined the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the CFL in 1991. He had a career high 591 yards rushing, 263 yards receiving, and 435 kick return yards.
Jamie lives in Michigan and is involved deeply with his Alma Mater. I tried writing him a few years ago care of Michigan when he was working for the Athletic Department as a development manager but had no luck. Recently some successes popped up of him through the radio station where he hosts a show talking all things Wolverines- so I decided to give him another shot on these two awesome cards. Although I was happy to finally knock this retry reply off my list, I was pained to see he knew enough about Action Packed that he should sign the card in the autograph slot on the back of the card. It is truly a beautiful card however.
Action Packed did sort of a test run in 1989 with the big two titans (ProSet and Score), but got lost in the mix. The only difference between the lesser known 89 and 90 releases is that the marquee was colored on the front of the card. The 1990 set even reused some of the photos from the previous year.
Don Maynard is considered the best receiver in Jets history, one of the best receivers in AFL history, and one of the best receivers in NFL history. At the time of Maynard’s retirement he held the NFL record for career receptions and yards. He was the first player to crack the 10k barrier in receiving yards. An amazing feat considering it was still during an era where the passing game had not fully developed yet. Don epitomized consistency and longevity. (Oddly enough he never led the league in catches at any time but his sheer numbers made up for it en force.)
Maynard was originally drafted by the New York Giants in 1957, but only played one lone season for them before bolting North to play for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the CFL. He’d return shortly thereafter to the fledgling AFL in 1960- becoming the first signee of the then New York Titans (later Jets). Over the next 10 seasons in the AFL he’d be named to the All-AFL team 4 times. In the final season before the AFL NFL merger, he’d help the Jets win Super Bowl III and notably graced the cover of the big game’s program guide as well.
Don joined the Rams in 73, but ultimately ended up on the St. Louis Cardinals for a lone season, retiring after a bout with the WFL playing for the Shreveport Steamer/ Houston Texans.
Maynard played college ball for Rice, and later Texas Western (UTEP). He was a proven runningback and defensive back, but was unpolished gold at receiver. His number has been retired by the Jets, got his gold jacket along the way, and has been a Grand Marshall for UTEP at one of their parades. He lives outside of the El Paso area, in relative anonymity.
I had been wanting Don for sometime but I thought he was out of reach. I really liked these cards of his and always wanted to get them signed so I went ahead and took a shot with a small donation. In the end I also had a Pro Set Super Bowl III card that I opted to send to Matt Snell instead (because he should’ve been MVP). Still the Topps 1970 is iconic, while the Upper Deck Legends 1997 hits all the marks for perfection.
G
REC
YDS
AVG
TD
LG
186
633
11834
18.7
88
87t
UPDATE:
1/10/22- Don Maynard died Monday at the age of 87.
Celebrating the game, the players, the cards, and the autographs for over 25 years.
