Tag Archives: ottawa redblacks

AAF, CFL, NFL

Hunt, Akeem

Cards: Topps AAF 2019 Certified
Acquired: EBay, 2019

A quick and shifty runningback, Akeem Hunt played college ball for the Boilermakers of Purdue from 2011 to 2014. In both his Freshman and Sophomore years Akeem averaged over a gaudy 8 yards per carry, while being utilized on kick returns. His playing time grew over his Junior and Senior campaigns, and in 2014 he finished with 1242 yards from scrimmage and 8 TDs.

A free agent signee of the Houston Texans after not latching on with either the Giants or Ravens, I was very impressed by Akeem. He started one contest his rookie year in 2015 and ran for 96 yards on 17 carries over the course of the season. He spent 2016 there as well before being signed by the Chiefs in 2017. The Chiefs used Akeem primarily as a kick returner. He had 611 yards on 25 kicks but did score his first professional rushing touchdown.

After being released with an injury settlement by the Chiefs, Akeem was in training camp with the Titans but didn’t make the squad. He then joined the Alliance of American Football for 2019. I felt the signing was a quality one- being familiar with his work on the Texans. he immediately became my favorite Orlando Apollo, and I pined for his autograph on his cards.

Hunt bolted out of the gate for the Apollos and led the league in rushing after the first week with 73 yards on 10 carries.

Being a part of a team that loves to win as you can see and just being a part of a team that has a great coaching staff that loves to put points on the board and just to drive up the enthusiasm of all our players and the motivation that goes in that people don’t see or the fans don’t see through our practice or whatnot—all the people coming together just to build this league, it speaks volumes for everybody that’s on the playing field that has so much passion for the game.

-Akeem Hunt on his early success in the AAF

On the season, Akeem finished with 37 carries for 185 yards and a TD., to go along with 5 catches for 49 yards in 7 games (2 starts).

During the hotly contested San Antonio Commanders versus the Orlando Apollos matchup, fans around me erroneously identified Akeem Hunt as Kareem Hunt- (the former Chiefs player who was suspended from the NFL for beating his girlfriend). Thankfully before anything could happen, I updated the fans on the difference between the two.

In early December of 2019, Akeem signed with the Ottawa Redblacks of the CFL- but the league suspended operations early in 2020 due to COVID issues.

NFL

Brown, Garry

Card: Sage 2017
Acquired:  2017, Box Breaker

Garry Brown is an intriguing prospect out of little known football school University of California, Pennsylvania.  Garry brings a lot of intangibles to the table. He’s a competitive student of the game, with a lot of potential, willingness to learn, and special teams experience.

While playing for the Vulcans, Garry paced wide receivers at all NCAA levels in scoring, averaging 13 points per contest, and averaging 4th in the nation with 184.9 all-purpose yards.  His 2106 stats were truly astounding as he piled up 91 receptions for 1,475 yards and 22 TDs.  At the conclusion of the year, he earned was the Harlon Hill Trophy- the D2 equivalent of the Heisman Trophy.

While he posted some truly outstanding numbers, he faced stiff competition from a very competitive WR field in 2017.  Considered a 7th round pick or a high priority free agent, he signed after the draft with the Oakland Raiders. After he was cut he joined the Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ practice squad, and then in 2018 signed with the Ottawa Redblacks. Currently he’s a free agent.

Arena, CFL, NFL

Smith, Brett

Card: Sage 2014 (#178/250)
Acquired: 2016, Box Breaker

Okay, let’s forget about the shirt that Brett is wearing. It’s a one of a kind on a card though as I’ve never seen a curse word sneak through. Sage’s entry is not a pretty one here, but rarely are their photos ever exciting. It’s a pretty basic entry and not very risky. Kudos though for showcasing what matters: the certified autograph.  I didn’t really like the cards out of this set, but for what it matters, you can still find hobby boxes of this set at an extremely reasonable price (2017), fattening up your collection by 7-10 autographs in each box.

Brett Smith played for Wyoming from 2010-2013. Despite setting numerous records for the Cowboys including career offensive yards (10,390), passing TDs (76), career TDs (97), and most total yards passing in a game (640), he was not selected in the 2014 NFL Draft. He’d sign as a free agent with the Tampa Bay Bucs and later join the CFL as a member of the Toronto Argonauts, and then the Arena Football League with the San Jose SabreCats.

In 2015 Brett rejoined the CFL, signing with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. He’d win the 3rd string job, but end up starting a fair amount of the season, after injuries hit the quarterback position. Smith finished with a respectable 15 TDs to 9 interceptions on the season. After the season he spent time on the rosters of the Redblacks (2016) and Eskimos (2017).  Currently he is a free agent.