A transfer from Cerritos, Jim Zorn played at Cal Poly-Ponoma, where he set multiple passing records for the school from 1973 to 1974 as a dual threat quarterback. He was not selected in the 1975 NFL Amateur Draft, but he signed a free agent contract with the Cowboys. Jim did not make the squad, but made enough of an impression that he was brought in by the brand new Seattle Seahawks franchise the following year (1976) to compete in camp.
Jim ended up winning the starting quarterback job outright, and was named rookie of the year in 1976, leading the league with 439 attempts- and interceptions with 27, while rushing for 4 TDs. In 1977 he started 10 games, but posted a gaudy league leading 16.2 yards per completion on 104 passes. By 1978 it was obvious that Zorn to Largent was becoming a household name, as the franchise posted back to back 9-7 records under his leadership. Jim’s penchant for scrambling was in full effect, as he carried the ball 59 times for 290 yards and 6 TDs. He’d have all career single season passing highs in the latter year (1979) throwing for 3661 yards (285/505) and 20 TDs to 18 interceptions. It seemed that Jim’s best games where when he was on the run and improvising. As his rushing stats decreased over the following seasons, so did his passing stats, and win/ loss record. In 1983 he’d be benched in favor of Dave Krieg. At that time, Jim, had been the only quarterback pretty much in the history of the franchise, and owned virtually all the franchise passing records.
Jim signed with the Green Bay Packers in 1985. He posted a 3-2 record for the team, passing for 794 yards and 4 TDs. In 1986, Jim traveled to Winnipeg where he backed up John Hufnagel and Tom Clements, on the Blue Bombers. After his lone season in the CFL, Zorn returned to the NFL in 1987 where he played one final swan song for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, beating the Minnesota Vikings 20-10, before retiring.
Jim has an extensive coaching resume. He started shortly after retiring from football in college, taking stops in as an assistant coach, offensive coordinator, and quarterbacks coach at Boise State (1988-1991), Utah State (1992-1994) and 1995-1996 at Minnesota. He quickly joined the NFL as an assistant with his former team- the Seahawks in 1997. Afterwards it was off to the Lions from 1998-2000, where he began to really develop a reputation as a great quarterback whisperer. He then returned to the Seahawks in 2001. He remained QB coach for the franchise until 2007, where he made the jump to head coach with the Washington Redskins.
Jim Zorn’s Washington Redskins tenure was shortlived. Embarrassing moments were not in short supply unfortunately. First the Redskins broke the hapless Lions 0-16 streak dating back through 2008. Then, during a game in 2009 against the Giants, Jim called a ‘swinging gate’ formation (which is reliant on the element of surprise to make mismatches)- so the Giants wisely called a timeout. The Redskins not only stuck to the play- it resulted in an interception, and caused the team to get booed off the field at half time. He lasted two seasons, as the Redskins failed to compete- posting a 12-20 record.
After coaching for the Redskins, Jim served one season as QB coach of the Ravens in 2010, and then as QB coach for the Kansas City Chiefs in 2011 and 2012. He joined the XFL as head coach of the Seattle Dragons, and as his offensive coordinator Mike Riley took a leave of absence from the team, Jim had to take a more hands on approach. He was able to navigate the team through a quarterback controversy and a win before the league was terminated after the 5th game of the season, due to COVID.
I was surprised that Jim was not a part of the XFL 2020 set released by Topps. Nonetheless I wanted to get his autograph on this Upper Deck 1997 Legends card I had of his. I love this card. The detail is stunning, even down to the cheerleaders and band in the background.
He signed this card in 6 days flat and inscribed it with an interesting passage:
Proverbs 26:1
Like snow in summer or rain in harvest, honor is not fitting for a fool.
Charles Sims played runningback from 2009-2012 for the Houston Cougars. He ran for 2370 yards on 384 carries scoring 29 TDs, and displayed soft hands, catching 158 passes for 1707 yards and 8 TDs. An academic redshirt in 2010, Charles opted to use his last year of eligibility in 2013 with the West Virginia Mountaineers. He had a solid Senior campaign, boosting his draft stock, rushing for 1095 yards (208 carries) and 11 TDs, while catching another 45 passes for 401 yards and 3 TDs.
Sims was a 3rd round pick in the 2014 NFL Draft by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He was supposed to be a compliment to incumbent runningback Doug Martin, but was used primarily as a passing down back. He played in 8 games his rookie year and ran for 185 yards and a TD, while catching 19 passes. A sneaky Fantasy Football pickup in 2015, Charles had his best year as a pro, with 529 yards on 107 carries, and 51 catches for 561 yards and 4 TDs.
Over the next two seasons, Charles was oft injured, but still managed to catch 59 passes for 439 yards and 2 TDs. He was released in 2018 with an injury settlement.
A great image of Charles on a tri-color patch, it was a no brainer to select this card as one of my Reward Points Redemptions.
I had built up a stack of points from Panini breaking open packs of College Contenders in 2018/2019. I just didn’t find anything I liked and I was looking for the right time. When the COVID pandemic hit, I decided to go ahead and spend my points. It seemed like a strong possibility that even mail could be infected by the virus- so I wanted to get it done. I found 3 cards I really liked the design of and felt that there was a nice value in and placed an order.
Unfortunately 2 days after I placed the order, the state essentially went into lockdown for over a month. Not to be a Karen- but Panini did absolutely no footwork on their end to notify anybody that they were going to be shut down. I had to contact them directly to get an update- while all the while the company continued to do give outs and promotions on their end.
I got an apology, but throughout the entire crisis, Panini never put any notification on their site- nor did the offer to compensate me for my trouble, such as refund me my shipping.
Cards: UT Upper Deck 2011, UT Upper Deck 2011 National Champs Acquired: TTM 2019, C/o Home Sent: 10/3/19 Received: 4/18/20 (196 days)
Alan Lowry played for the Longhorns from 1970 to 1972 as a quarterback, punter, and defensive back. Initially a defensive back and punter when he arrived, Lowry had 3 picks in 1970, and then followed it up in 1971 with 5 interceptions for 121 yards and 2 TDs (single season school record since tied) earning him All-SWC honors. As a punter in both years Alan had 53 punts for 2,032 yards (38.3) in 1970, and 49 punts for 1,878 yards (38.3)- respectively in 1970 and 1971. His 82 yard punt, still stands as a school record.
In 1972 Alan switched to quarterback, where at the time the Longhorns were using a modified version of the Houston Veer. He rushed for 661 yards on 168 yards scoring 11 times while passing for 766 yards and a TD on 46 completions (39.3 completion percentage). Again he’d be named to the All-SWC team- but at a second position, which is a rarity even in college football.
Alan was drafted in the 13th round of the 1973 NFL Draft by the New England Patriots, but before he even played a down, he was diagnosed with blood clots from a strained tendon in his arm. The injury was serious enough to end his pro football career before it even began.
Lowry went right into coaching at Texas, with the Longhorns as a graduate assistant and then later, Wyoming and West Virginia, and later returning to Texas with the Dallas Cowboys organization. He has embarked on a long and storied career as a positional and special teams coach throughout the NFL since the early 80s, with the Cowboys, Buccaneers, 49ers, Oilers, and Titans. He is perhaps most quietly known as the architect behind the ‘Music City Miracle’ play. Lowry was with the Titans organization through 2013, and still resides in Tennessee to this day.
Celebrating the game, the players, the cards, and the autographs for over 25 years.
