Tag Archives: Miami Dolphins

AFL, College Football HoF, NFL, Pro Football HoF

Griese, Bob

Card: Pro Set 1990
Acquired: TTM 2012, C/o Home
Sent: 2/22     Received: 12/8   (290 days)

At 290 days, -a wait well worth it I’d say, as another HoF headliner joins the club, in the name of Bob Griese.  I had given up on Bob, and when I got the envelope back I must admit that I was surprised and pleased with his response. Bob had an impressive career at Purdue for the Boilermakers playing football, basketball, and baseball. He’d play quarterback for the Boilermakers from 1963-1966. It wasn’t until his Sophomore season in 1964 that Bob took the reins and start as the team’s quarterback, punter, and kicker.  In 1965 he led Purdue to a 25-21 upset of #1 ranked Notre Dame. As a starter he’d post a 22-7-1 record. In his senior season, Griese led the team to a Rose Bowl victory over USC 14-13 in what is considered the school’s signature victory. Bob was a smart QB and what he couldn’t do with his arm, he’d frequently do with his legs. His final numbers set precedence for the school’s modern era quarterbacks such as Jim Everett and Drew Brees to break.

Griese was drafted in the first round of the 1967 AFL draft by the Miami Dolphins.  He’d have 15 TDs passing,  2005 yards, and 157 yards rushing his rookie season- good enough to earn All-Star Honors, despite starting the season originally on the bench, and for an expansion franchise. He’d grab All-Star honors the next season as well with 21 TD passes. Still, the team continued to struggle with winning, and Griese was becoming known as a good quarterback on a bad team. Don Shula was brought in to coach the team in 1970, and Griese guided the team to a 10-4 record. At the conclusion of the season, Bob was named MVP of the league, but the team fell in Super Bowl VI against the Dallas Cowboys. The Dolphins came back with a vengeance the next season, and steamrolled opponents in 1972, going 14-0. While Earl Morral came in to replace Griese during the season due to injury, the team returned to Bob in the playoffs to help them win the Super Bowl. Griese capped off Super Bowl VIII as well with a victory over the Minnesota Vikings.  By 1977 Bob began wearing those iconic black rimmed glasses on the field, but new powers began to rise in the AFC in the Central division, with the indomitable Steel Curtain in Pittsburgh and the Houston Oilers ground game led by Earl Campbell. While Griese continued to post good numbers and the Dolphins posted solid records, they wouldn’t return to the Super Bowl again.  After the 1980 season, Griese retired. The Dolphins had David Woodley waiting in the wings, and he’d guide the team to another Super Bowl loss, before Dan Marino took the reins in 1983 and rewrote all the record books for the franchise.

Griese kept close to the game and did color commentary for many years at the college level. He also handled color for the Dolphins’ preseason games as well. He’s enjoying now full retirement, in Florida and was inducted into the Pro Football HoF in 1990, the College Football HoF in 1984, the Dolphins Honor Roll, and had his number retired by the franchise as well.

G/Gs 161/151     Att 3429     Comp 1926         Yds 25092      Pct 56.2%      
Td  192   Int 172    Rat 77.3  |

Rush 261   Yds 994    Avg  3.8     Td 7     Lg 35

Heisman Trophy Winner, NFL, University of Texas

Williams, Ricky “Little Earl” (2)

Cards: Donruss Rookies & Stars 09, UT Upper Deck 2011 MM x2
Acquired: In person, Ricky Williams Tailgate 9/8/2012.
See Also: Ricky Williams, Ricky Williams (3), Ricky Williams (4)

Late in August, I got an email in the evening from the Ricky Williams Foundation.  When I opened it up I couldn’t believe my eyes. The Foundation was holding Ricky’s First Tailgating event, for only a small donation of $25.00. Included in the price was BBQ, beer, games, meeting Ricky, and getting a few autographs.  It was a no brainer for me, and I bought two tickets immediately, so that I could drag Josh along this time. We arrived a bit after twelve, and parking was a hassle because of the pregame stuff going on for New Mexico. After a lot of blind wandering, we located his event that was being treated very low key. The BBQ was great, and eventually we got Ricky’s autograph on a few items. I was really pleased to get him on these 3 cards this time.

Ricky was very friendly with fans and many of them he was happy to speak to or allow to pet his Heisman. He allowed everybody to take photos and grab autographs.  I got to share Ricky’s Heisman with him which is a bit unwieldy. I’d guess the trophy was about 20 pounds or so, and there was some nicks and tears to the foundation of the base. Still it was very kind of him to let me do it, since I have been getting into doing poses with players other than the normal conventional, ‘stand there and smile pose’. Overall I think it was a great PR move by him and his team, and since I had a great time volunteering at a Christian Okoye Foundation event, I volunteered to help Ricky Williams Foundation at other events, if they needed assistance.

A bit about these cards. I really like the treatment that the Rookies & Stars went through for 2009. It still remains one of my favorite modern day sets and this card is exceptional. I got an idea after witnessing a Texans fan at a Mario Williams signing last year toting around jersey card, that I should consider getting a few of them signed. The red cards, are jersey cards and they are absolutely beautiful with it placed right below the player’s image on the card. It’s a very well integrated design, even if they use the type font ‘Birth of a Hero’.

With the UT Upper Deck Monumental Moments cards, we have two cards that frame Williams’ contributions to the history of Texas football.  First
up is the card in which he broke Tony Dorsett’s career rushing record against A&M. It’s not a bad card at all.  The action is framed well and you get the point of the card in its summation of his achievement. The second card, which highlights his school record 350 yard stomping of Iowa State,(which broke the record previously held by Roosevelt Leaks) is an equally nice card with the same warts. It really showcases how hard Ricky as to take down as 4 defenders are frantically in frame trying to catch him. I did have to use the baby powder on both cards to remove the sheen, but it worked like a charm so there was no marker loss there.  I did not like how
they used the ‘fat T’ logo on the right hand side of the card. It feels too University of Tennessee. (Any well minded UT fan would’ve used the combined UT logo to differentiate from the Volunteers.) In the meantime, I had a great time and look forward to going to and or working other events and getting a few more cards signed by Ricky in the future.

College Football HoF, NFL

Jackson, Keith “Boomer Sooner”

Cards: ProSet 1990, Action Packed Rookies Update 1992, GameDay 1992, Action Packed All Madden Team 1990.
Acquired: TTM 2012, C/o P.A.R.K.*
Sent: 8/28        Received: 9/10  (12 days)
*Autograph Fee $5 per card.

Keith Jackson was the highest rated tight end off the board in 1988 after a prolific career for the University of Oklahoma. A complete package at the position, Jackson had soft hands, and just about the right size, speed, and blocking ability to handle just about every duty assigned to him. Over his career at Oklahoma he racked up 1407 yards on 62 receptions- a whopping 23.7 yards per catch. He’d earn the appropriate nickname ‘Boomer Sooner’ from his teammates for his penchant to show up in big games, making big plays, leading the Oklahoma Sooners to a National Championship in 1986. During the National Championship game against Penn State, Keith caught a spectacular 71 yard touchdown pass.

He was selected in the first round of the 1988 NFL draft by the Philadelphia Eagles. Buddy Ryan, who was head coach of the time eschewed receivers, but loved the all around ability of Jackson and quickly put him to work.


It didn’t take long for Keith to become a fan favorite of the Eagles and Randall Cunningham, as he set the team mark for yards by a rookie with 869, to go along with 80 catches, and 6 touchdowns earning Keith his first Pro Bowl and AP nods. In a final accolade that season he won NFC Rookie of the Year Honors. 1988 was his best season statistically, but by no means did it represent the end of his career, as both in 89 and 90, he’d also be named AP and to the Pro Bowl for his solid seasons with 63 and 50 receptions respectively. After catching 49 balls his final season with the Eagles in 1991, Keith signed with the Miami Dolphins in 1992.

With the dawn of Free Agency and the Dolphins looking to add new weapons for Dan Marino, Keith quickly stepped right into the starting lineup for Miami, staying there for 3 seasons. Along the way Jackson scored 18 touchdowns on 146 receptions. Another ProBowl was in store for him in 1992, with 594 yards and 5 touchdowns. Keith moved on to the Green Bay Packers and became a nice redzone target for quarterback Brett Favre. Although his 1995 season was marred by injury, Keith recovered in time for 1996 scoring 10 touchdowns on 40 receptions. This earned Keith his final Pro Bowl nomination and culminated in the team’s victory over the New England Patriots in SuperBowl XXXI. He’d retire after the season.

Keith is a player who really hasn’t gotten his due, as he has never been considered for the Hall of Fame. Although the passing game has mutated into what it is today with tight ends that behave like wide receivers, Keith was an anomaly out of time. One surely wonders what sort of damage he would have done if he was playing during the current pass happy era of the NFL. Surely he would have posted some gaudy stats if things were different. Still when you look at the final count, in 9 seasons he was a 6 time Pro Bowler on 3 different teams, and a 3 time All Pro from his 3 seasons in Philadelphia. I had been long interested in adding Keith to my collection- as far back as 2009, but kept kicking the can down the road on this one. Wish I had sent out for this one sooner as it was a lighting fast reply c/o his charity P.A.R.K. He does color commentary on the radio currently for the Razorbacks, and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2001.

I really liked all these cards. Pro Set actually liked the 1990 card they produced so much that they used it frequently for promotion. I can see why with the way the light perfectly hits Keith’s pads, lighting up the green in contrast to the black background. It provides quite a silhouette. I was never really a fan of the ‘All Madden Team’ Action Packed cards that were produced, although this shot in particular is a good one. The GameDay 1992 cards were superior and unique cards, and along with the Action Packed, made great cards to get autographed due to their look.
G/Gs 129/105     Rec 441    Yds 5283    Avg 12.0    Td 49    Lg 73t