Tag Archives: score 1990

NFL

Smith, Doug

Cards: Pro Set 1990 PB, Score 1990, Topps 1989
Acquired: Canton Acquisition 2012

Doug Smith played for the Los Angeles Rams from 1978 through the 1991 season. Originally a free agent signee from Bowling Green University, Smith was signed as an afterthought as the Rams already had veteran Rich Saul and 3rd round pick Leon White in camp, but as they say, “The rest is history”. After a major knee injury while he was playing guard in 1979 almost ended his career, Doug rebounded, after he had a spiritual awakening, and returned to take the starting center job in 1980.  A quiet, ‘in the trenches’ technician with a great motor, Smith was one of the most unheralded and underrated centers in the game. Doug had great quickness and explosiveness off the line for his size (6’3″, 260), and was a formidable pass blocker with great range across the pocket.  He along with Jackie Slater and Kent Hill anchored down some impressive lines for the Rams, and blocked for the team through the Eric Dickerson era and on into the Jim Everett era.  With the consistency and excellence the Rams had at the position, this allowed them to transition offensively from a run oriented system to a more vertical attack seamlessly, and compete against their foes in the playoffs. Doug also was an offensive captain and called OL plays at the line of scrimmage for the Rams. Over his career Smith played every position along the line for the team, with the exception of left tackle. Smith went to 6 consecutive Pro Bowls over his career for the Rams, from 1984-1989. He’d also be inducted into Bowling Green’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 1986. In 2001, his fellow teammate Jackie Slater was inducted into the Hall of Fame where in his induction speech Jackie attributed much of his success to Doug’s unwavering faith and commitment to Jesus Christ to do your best each and every day.

G/Gs 187/160

NFL

Staurovsky, Jason

Card: Score 1990
Acquired: Canton Acquisition 2012

Jason Staurovsky lived a cinderella story at Tulsa, working his way up from team manager and walk on, to kicker after an injury befell the team’s starter. Jason set school single season records for field goals and holds the school record for total career points. He went undrafted during the 1987 draft, but as the strike came about, Jason got valuable playing time with the St. Louis Cardinals going 6 of 6 on extra points and kicking a field goal. He’d sign with the New England Patriots in 1988 and win the job in camp, staying with the team through 1991. Staurovsky played one final season in 1992 with the Jets as an injury replacement for Pat Leahy and retire.  Jason has gone into coaching kicking for kids and Tulsa has named their special teams award in his honor.

 

 

G/Gs  46     XPA 71     XPM  69       FGA  80   FGM  54     PCT   67.5     LG n/a

 

NFL

Kelso, Mark “The Great Gazoo”

Cards: ProSet 1989, Score 1990, Upper Deck 1993
Acquired: Canton Acquisition 2012

Mark Kelso always looked like a little kid out there playing football. As the first player to wear a ‘ProCap’ helmet, he was actually over 20 years ahead of the game and its current state in regards to concussions. Mark began wearing the helmet after his first concussion in 1989, when he was diagnosed with migrane syndrome and although it looked quite ridiculous, the helmet with its extra level of padding probably helped Kelso sustain his playing career another 5 years (primarily) for the Bills.  The helmet earned him the nickname ‘The Great Gazoo’, (after the alien from the “Flintstones” TV series, who wore a helmet similar in shape,) and constantly was pointed out and circled by TV commentators- only endearing him to Bills fans further.

Mark Kelso was a safety drafted in the 10th round by the Philadelphia Eagles in 1985 out of William & Mary. The Eagles were stacked at the position, so the smaller Kelso standing at 5’11”, 177 found himself in a numbers game and unable to crack the squad. The Bills picked Mark up and he soon became a fixture at free safety for the Bills by the 1987 season. A ball hawk, Kelso always happened to be at the right place, at the right time in the Bills defensive scheme. In 1987 he recorded 6 picks, and recorded 2 fumbles- one of which he returned for a touchdown. He quickly followed the season up in 1988, recording a career high 7 interceptions, for a league leading 180 yards and a touchdown. Mark wasn’t done as he bookended the two season in 1989 with another 6 picks and 2 fumble recoveries. Teams began to throw away from Mark by 1990, respecting his abilities. Over those next two years he’d have back to back 2 pick seasons, before returning to form one more season in 1992 with 7 more interceptions. Mark was truly unsung over his career with the Bills, and while he did post stellar numbers at Free Safety, he received no Pro Bowl nominations or attention for his numbers outside of the AFC East, outside of winning the Byron “Whizzer” White NFL Man of the Year award in 1993 for community development.  Sadly, the ProCap retired with Kelso. It did not catch on because either the perception it was unattractive and/or the helmet makers told players that it would void the warranty of the regular helmet since the ProCap was a ‘stick on’.

Mark has continued to be involved in serious discussions and development of helmet wear to reduce the risk of injuries in pro football and has made his home in Buffalo. He has also done radio color commentary  for Bills games, and is involved with coaching and management of youth sports teams. Oddly, this is the first autograph in the collection where a player inscribed “God Bless” on the card, as opposed to a bible verse.

Part of the ‘Canton Acquisition’, a small collection of autographed cards I acquired from a friend of mine who had fallen on hard times, I found it hard not to justify the purchase. A few of the cards were from players I already had, and after verifying the autographs, I went ahead and made a deal to preserve them from falling into the hands of somebody who might just resell them again. It is a tricky slope, because I am not fond of people who sell or buy autographs, but I felt in this extra ordinary case, the situation was justified. I was disappointed that when I asked the seller about these autographs, he didn’t have any fond memories of the players or why he wrote them- other than the fact that had been doing this in the hope of passing it down to his son.

G/Gs 99/95     Tac  N/a   Fum 8  Sac 0  Int 30    Yds 327    Avg 10.9     Td 1    Lg  78t