Tag Archives: San Diego Chargers

NFL

Seale, Sam

Gameday 1992, #209

CARDS: Skybox 1992, GameDay 1992
ACQUIRED: TTM 2021, C/o Work
SENT: 12/13/21 RECEIVED: 2/13/22 (63 days)

CAREER SNAPSHOT:

  • Western Colorado’s very own Sam Seale was a dangerous speed burner who ran track and played RB in college leading the team in both rushing and receiving.
  • The Raiders and Al Davis who always had a love affair with speed, selected Seale in the 8th round of the 1984 NFL draft.
  • The Raiders kicked the tires on him at WR and return man, before converted him to DB.
  • Intercepted first pass for a 38 yard TD against the Patriots in 1985.
  • Officially transitioned to RCB the following season and had a career high 4 interceptions.
  • In ’87 returned a fumble return for a TD.
  • Signed as a Free Agent by the San Diego Chargers in 1988, and matched career high with 4 interceptions that year.
  • Returned to the Raiders ’92 as a Plan B free agent seeing action in 5 contests.
  • Played one final year across town with the Rams, seeing action in one contest, retiring after the ’93 season.
  • In 1995, joined the Green Bay Packers front office where he’s earned quite a reputation as a scout.
Skybox 1992, #260

ACCOLADES:

  • Western Colorado HoF 2002
  • Fritz Pollard Award 2017

NOTES:

Getting Sam was somewhat of a coup. An exceeding rare signer, I took a shot at getting him on these two set needs through the Packers.

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CFL, NFL, XFL

Mueller, Ryan

Topps XFL 2020, #4

CARD: XFL 2020
ACQUIRED: IP 2023, XFL Championship Game

CAREER SNAPSHOT:

  • Ryan Mueller played college ball at LB for the Kansas State Wildcats.
  • He played in 39 games, posting 116 total tackles, 16.5 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles.
  • Undrafted in 2015, Mueller spent the offseason with the Chargers (’15) and Eagles (’16).
  • 2017 saw Ryan on and off the roster of the CFL Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
  • After missing out on the AAF, Ryan was selected by the New York Guardians of the XFL in late 2019 as a Phase 5 selection.
  • Recorded a pick 6 in a home victory over the Dallas Renegades.
  • Returned to the XFL in 2022, selected by the Arlington Renegades.
  • He be cut, but later resigned by the Renegades, who then traded Mueller to the Vegas Vipers for QB Luis Perez.
  • The Vipers then soon thereafter cut Mueller, who ended up resigning with the Renegades.

NOTES:

I was waiting outside near the team busses. They didn’t have them set up the same way they had previously and had them scattered about the parking lot after the Championship. I got really lucky and overheard someone refer to a player who came over as Ryan. I keyed in on him immediately and he had no problem signing my card.

He loved the XFL 2020 card, and told me that he lamented the XFL 2020s collapse due to COVID. He said that the Guardians had unfinished business and had just started to surge.

I then said that he had the best character arc of all though. He was traded to the Vipers for Perez. The Vipers cut him soon afterwards and he resigned with the Renegades. And now he’s an XFL Champion!

He then joked at me that he’s like 1/2 the XFL Championship MVP for it.

Arena, CFL, NFL, WLAF

Walker, Wayne ‘Bug’ (2)

Wild Card World League 1992, #28

CARD: Wild Card World League 1992
ACQUIRED: TTM 2021, C/o Home
SENT: 2/1 RECEIVED: 4/13 (71 days)
FAILURE: TTM C/o Home, 2010, 2017, 2018

CAREER SNAPSHOT:

NOTES:

Well as you see here, 4th time’s the charm with Wayne. I knew I had a pretty decent lead on him. Meiselman pegged him down in Waco, but he moved and then I tracked him down on Facebook with no response. There I discovered he was doing work for the city. I then hit up two more addresses, and one of them it just sat in his mailbox until it was returned. The third time it took 2 months to be returned as a bad address. Staying persistent is the key, and finally I was able to get Bug on this last card of his after using a white pages crawler.

So many years have passed. As I drive back on the highway from San Antonio, it is without fail I pass through San Marcos, where the Riders played in 1992. Despite all the growth, all the construction, all the change, the memories still remain.

My dad would take me to and from those games. And after each game, we’d stop at a little convenience store (Ballard’s) just a bit out of the way going north back to town.

We’d stop in late in the evening after the game, walk in and I’d grab an ice cream sandwich and a drink to tide me over. When I’d get back to the car, I’d get in- and regardless of how dark it was- I’d take the time to thumb through my booty one more time, thinking about those autographs, the game, and the players I met.