Tag Archives: Iowa Barnstormers

Arena, CFL, NFL, NFLE, XFL

Puleri, Charles

Cards: Topps XFL 2001 Promo, Topps XFL 2001
Acquired: TTM 2019, C/o Home
Sent: 8/6 Received: 8/16 (10 days)

Charles Puleri played ball at New Mexico State and saw action in both 1991 and 1992. Playing in 17 contests Puleri completed 257 of 456 passes for 3634 yards, and 21 touchdowns to 17 interceptions as a traditional dropback passer.

He joined the CFL in 1993 and played briefly for the Sacramento Gold Miners- attempting 2 passes, and then riding the bench for the Shreveport Pirates in 94. In 1995 Puleri joined Arena Football League. He played for the Miami Hooters that year and then the Texas Terror in 1996 throwing 3 TDs. Charles then went overseas and played in the NFLE for the London Monarchs. Seeing more mop up duty he threw for 488 yards and 2 TDs. Afterwards he again tried his hand at Arena football playing for the Iowa Barnstormers in 98. He saw his best season as a pro throwing 11 TDs on 67 attempts that season. In 1999 he played sparingly as a backup for the New Jersey Red Dogs, and then was in the camp of the Dallas Cowboys in 2000 but did not make the squad.

Charles is perhaps best known for his time in the XFL in 2001. Selected by the New York/ New Jersey Hitmen, Puleri was the starter for the squad entering the season, but was benched in favor of Wally Richardson during week 2. The league was… different than the NFL. They scripted some of their events including a fake controversy between Puleri and Richardson.

After the end of the XFL, Charlie returned to the Arena Football League, playing two more seasons for the Detroit Fury (2002) and the Buffalo Destroyers (2003).

Since football, Puleri has worked his way into mortgage finance. He signed these two cards for me, wrote me a nice note and included a few business cards.

WLAFATTCOMPYDSPCTTDINTRAT
944248844.724
ARENAATTCOMPYDSPCTTDINTRAT
257128160449.82014
CFLATTCOMPYDSPCTTDINTRAT
200-.-00-.-
XFLATTCOMPYDSPCTTDINTRAT
642941145.322-.-

Arena

Schonbrunner, Jeremy

tntafl14 schonbrunnerCard: TNT AFL Talons 2014
Acquired: TTM 2014, C/o Home
Sent:  8/16    Received: 9/6   (20 days)

With time running out on the Talons franchise to find an owner and the last few weeks of the season on the horizon, I was still cranking out cards for the team even through their final hours. I kept going to the games and cheering on the team, but they finished winless at home with some games ending in heartbreak, while others the team just got completely blown out of. The Talons had been completely decimated by injury, and by being only given the green light to play only a month or two before the season, the talent pool had been drained.

When promising prospect Colton Jones went down during the early part of the season, the Talons made a trade with the Iowa Barnstormers to grab Jeremy Schonbrunner. Since joining the AFL in 2012, Jeremy had spent time on the rosters of the Soul (2012), Talons (2013), and Barnstormers (2014). He’d also prove himself in the IFL with the Lehigh Valley Teelhawks gaining valuable experience and playing time. In college at Temple, Jeremy played in 38 contests along the line, and on special teams, with 9 starts coming at Center.

As I was getting the autograph of Shane Boyd for the umpteenth time after the game, Jeremy commented on my cards and said, “If you make one of me, I’ll pay you for it!”, so I set out to make it happen.  In person, with both legs in protective knee braces, Jeremy looks like a stout machine, but there were very few photos of him in action, so I really had to work hard to find something. Unfortunately I was not able to make the final game due to illness, so I contacted him directly and sent the cards to Jeremy via the mail. He signed this card and had it back to me in no time flat. After the Talons ‘suspended’ operations following the 2014 season, Jeremy was signed by the Tampa Bay Storm.

Arena, CFL, NFL

Beavers, Larry Jr.

tntafl14 beaversCard: TNT AFL 2014
Acquired: TTM 2014, C/o Home
Sent: 8/16    Received: 9/13     (27 days)

Larry Beavers is an outstanding talent in the Arena Football League. He attended a small Division III school, Wesley College in Delaware. There Beavers set the NCAA record for career kick return touchdows with a whopping 10.  He also demonstrated a knack for the ball, finishing second in school history with 2,366 yards.

He went undrafted in 2009 but was signed by the Carolina Panthers. Unfortunately Beavers was among the final cuts that preseason by the squad. The following year Larry was signed by the New Orleans Saints, but again was cut in the offseason. In 2011, he signed with the Iowa Barnstormers of the Arena Football League, but quickly decided to take his talents to the CFL, landing on the roster of the Edmonton Eskimos.  Beavers returned to the Arena leagues the following year and was an offseason addition to the Pittsburgh Power.

It was in 2013 that Larry joined the New Orleans Voodoo, and that’s where he’s made an impressive impact. He’d earn second team All-Arena Team Honors in 2014 as a kick returner cracking the 1,000 yard barrier both as a receiver and as a kick returner. Larry was assigned to the expansion Las Vegas Outlaws for 2015, but ended up rubberbanding back to the Voodoo before the season was out, scoring 2 more TDs on kick returns.  The Voodoo (and the Outlaws) were taken over by the league before the conclusion of the season.

I had gotten a few customs I had made autographed by players in the league over Twitter. Impressed with Beaver’s play in the finale against San Antonio I created this custom of him and asked him if he’d like one, to which he gleefully signed this one for me in about 2 weeks.