Tag Archives: omaha nighthawks

Arena, NFL, NFLE, ufl

Daft, Kevin

Topps 2000, #347

Cards: Topps 2000, Bowman NFLE 2000 Chrome
Acquired: TTM 2021, C/o Work
Sent: 8/3 Received: 10/16 (74 days)

CAREER SNAPSHOT:

  • Set 5 NCAA collegiate passing records while quarterbacking for UC Davis while throwing for 7601 yards and 68 TDs in college career.
  • Finalist for Harlon Hill Trophy in 1999.
  • 1999 5th round pick of the Tennessee Titans.
  • Joined NFLE in 2000, playing for the Scottish Claymores leading the franchise to the World Bowl.
  • Set NFLE mark with a 107.3 QB rating.
  • Returned to the NFL but was on and off the rosters of the Titans, Chargers, Falcons, and 49ers through 2001.
  • Resigned with the Titans in 02, and was allocated to the NFLE.
  • Played 2002 with the Amsterdam Admirals.
  • Set NFLE record with 30 career TD passes.
  • Signed with the AFL, playing with the San Jose Sabrecats in 2003, and the Albany Firebirds in 2004.
  • Has seen extensive stints at the college level, enjoying a season in the UFL as the WRs coach of the Omaha Nighthawks in 2011.
  • As of 2022, is head coach of Dartmouth.
Bowman 2000 Chrome, #157

NOTES:

Kevin didn’t have a shortage of cards, but I really wanted to get his NFLE entries autographed. Unfortunately the only ones he had in the league were Claymores cards. Still nice grab C/o Dartmouth.

NFLE

ATTCOMPYDSPCTTDINTLGRAT
486289321259.5341265T92.2
RUSHYDSAVGTDLG
491994.119


ARENA

ATTCOMPYDSPCTTDINTLGRAT
221413563.63120N/A
NFL, The Spring League, ufl

Devine, Noel

Card: Upper Deck College Legends 2011
Acquired: 2019, Box Breaker

Shifty and speedy, Noel Devine posted solid numbers while he played college ball at West Virginia. He finished his college career with 4317 yards on 729 carries, scoring 29 TDs. Noel also had 98 receptions for 710 yards for 2 TDs. His personal best was in 2009 when he posted 241 carries for 1465 yards and 13 TDs on the ground. Due to his size (5’7, 160), an ankle injury, and a poor combine showing- Noel was not drafted during the 2011 draft.

He was signed by the Philadelphia Eagles, but after 4 days he left the team for undisclosed reasons. Unable to find an NFL squad, Noel joined the UFL Omaha Nighthawks (2011) for a season rushing 5 times for 14 yards and a TD, while catching 2 passes for 20 yards. The following year he’d join the Montreal Alouettes of the CFL playing there for two seasons (2012-2013). After a short off-season with the Edmonton Eskimos, he returned to WVU to finish his law degree in 2015.

During 2017 he resurrected his football career joining The Spring League, and in early 2019 signed with the Wheeling Roughriders of the American Arena League. He was among the players available for the XFL 2020 pool, but was not selected.

I pulled this autograph from a box of Upper Deck College Legends I bought in 2019. It’s rarer and rarer to see on card autographs, but overall I was pretty impressed with the look of this shot.

UFL RUSHYDSAVGTDLGRECYDSAVGTDLG
5142.811022010.0011
CFL RUSHYDSAVGTDLGRECYDSAVGTDLG
22904.10211313110.1310
CFL, NFL, ufl

Hairston, Carl ‘Big Daddy’

Cards: ProSet 1991 Legends, Score Supplemental 1989
Acquired: TTM 2018, C/o Home
Sent: 10/20   Received: 10/27   (7 days)

During the Jurassic Period of football, there were some absolute beasts of defenders that took the league by storm in the 70s. One of them was Carl Hairston, a little known defensive lineman prospect out of UMES or (University of Maryland Eastern Shore). He played on some terrible teams during college, which allowed him to really hone his game. Hairston was named to the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference team 3 times. In his final year with the team, he posted 147 tackles and 15 sacks, good enough to get noticed by the Philadelphia Eagles, who selected Carl in the 7th round of the 1976 draft. 

He’d make the squad and in fact lead the NFL in sacks in 1979 (unofficially) with 15. Then in 1980, he’d help champion the defense that got the Eagles to Super Bowl XV.  Injuries began to slow Hairston down in 1983, and soon thereafter he’d be traded to the Cleveland Browns, where he’d be a mainstay on the line until 1989. He’d finish his career in Phoenix the following season. 

Carl has an extensive coaching resume at the Pro level, and has seen stops in the NFL (Phoenix, KC, St Louis, and Green Bay), UFL (Florida, Omaha), and CFL (British Columbia). He earned a Super Bowl ring as the defensive line coach for the St. Louis Rams (Super Bowl XXXIV). 

Carl is another one of these players who should probably be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. A dominant lineman during his time, unofficially he has 1,141 tackles and 94 sacks to his name in 184 starts. 

Both of these are really nice cards of Carl. I almost feel like they are nods to him out of respect- like these card companies knew he was long in the tooth but they still wanted to pay him respects with their brand of card. The ProSet Legends 1991 card is an absolute gem. Merv Corning can make a player standing on the sideline look exciting, and this highly detailed image is no different with its nicks and bumps. It’s a fine card with excellent minimal design- which screams classy. The Score Supplemental 1989 had always been floating around my doubles box, so I had been kicking around the idea of getting it autographed for sometime. It’s unique because it’s obviously a special teams shot, but he’s just sort of popping up in a sea of helmets.

G/GSTACSACFUMINTYDSAVGTDLG
224/184114194.0N/A14040.0040