Tag Archives: tampa bay buccaneers

NFL

Highsmith, Alonzo

Cards: ProSet 1989, Action Packed Rookies 1990
Acquired: TTM 2012, C/o Home
Sent: 4/5   Received: 6/22  (77 days)
See Also: Official Autograph Souvenir

Alonzo joins the Hall finally. I’ve missed out a few times on Highsmith. While I got his autograph on an official Houston Oilers Souvenir page back in 1988, it did not strike me at the time to get him on cards. Then when he was traded to the Cowboys, he was not at Cowboys training camp for me to get his autograph on. Finally I was still in California when he was at Fan Fest II in Houston last year. Had been working my way around to him since I got started, and for the longest time didn’t see any replies out of the former Houston Oiler, but recently he lit up sportscollectors.net, so I shot him out a request as soon as possible. I noticed that the response times were erratic, so I was happy to get a return in a bit under 80 days.

Alonzo Highsmith was a strong downhill runningback from the University of Miami where he played for Jimmy Johnson. He was the third overall pick of the 1987 draft by the Houston Oilers, and after an acrimonious holdout, he started 3 games at running back and ran for 106 yards. Jerry Glanville moved him to fullback to best utilize his skills, after a logger jam developed at runningback between Mike Rozier, Allen Pinkett, and recent draftee Lorenzo White.  His best season as a pro came in 1989 when he ran for 531 yards and 4 TDs, and caught another 18 balls for 201 yards and 2 TDs.  Frequent knee issues were taking their toll on Highsmith though.

aprks90 highsmithIn 1990, the Oilers had new head coach Jack Pardee and with a conversion to the Run ‘N Shoot full-time, the Oilers had even less room for runningback, little less a fullback.  Houston traded Highsmith to Dallas where he was reunited with former Hurricanes coach Jimmy Johnson. He’d start 6 games mid year for the resurgent Cowboys that season, and then sign with the Buccaneers where he finished 1991 and 1992, before retiring.

Alonzo followed the route of some other players after their playing days are over, becoming a professional heavyweight boxer. He’d go 27-1-2 with 23 KOs before returning to football as a scout for the Packers organization. Recently he moved up in the organization, and will be moving to Green Bay with his family to live fulltime in the Summer of 2012.

G/Gs 65/42    Rush 283   Yds  1195    Avg 4.2     Td  7   Lg 42    |
Rec 42     Yds  428    Avg  10.2  Td 3   Lg  33

CFL, NFL, WLAF

Bell, Kerwin (2)

Cards: WildCard WLAF 1992, Ultimate WLAF 1992
Acquired: TTM 2012, C/o Jacksonville University
Sent: 1/10        Received:  2/17  (38 days)
Previous Post: Kerwin Bell
Failure: TTM 2010, C/o Jacksonville University

I had tried previously in 2010 to get the former Florida and WLAF Orlando Thunder signal caller on a few additional cards, but didn’t have any luck there. Recently there have been a few signings by Bell passed through SportsCollectors.net so I decided to take another chance C/o Jacksonville University again. With these two cards being signed, I can officially close the book on Kerwin Bell, unless I was to stumble upon a Jogo card or two of him in his CFL gear.

A Florida Gators quarterback from the 80’s, Bell finished his Senior season with 2687 yards and 21 TDs. After bouncing around the NFL for a few seasons, the WLAF would call his number in the first round of their positional draft in 1991. He’d be on fire the first two weeks of the season and rake in Offensive Player of the Week honors both weeks for the Orlando Thunder. Kerwin set the league season game records for most completions (29), most TDs passing (5), most attempts (43), and most attempts without an interception (44).

Inexplicably, the Thunder turned around in 1992 and picked up Scott Mitchell from the Dolphins and gave him the keys to the car. Bell would ride the bench, but would go onto greater glory after the season, playing in the CFL for the Sacramento Goldminers, Edmonton Eskimos, Argos, and Blue Bombers. He’d also have a brief stop with the Colts during this period, completing 5 of 5 passes for a TD, retiring in 2001. Unofficially it is the highest QB rating among non-qualifying quarterbacks in NFL history.

Bell was inducted into the Gator HoF as a Gator Great in 1997.

 

CFL, NFL, University of Texas

Babers, Rod “Kool Aid” (2)

Cards: Topps Total 2005, UD UT 2011 CC
Acquired: In Person 2012, 1300 The Zone’s Houston Texans Playoff Viewing Party 1/7/12
Previous Post: Babers, Rod “Kool Aid”, Rod Babers (3)

At the University of Texas release party for the Upper Deck University of Texas cards last year, I met Rod who is a host of 1300 The Zone’s “The Afternoon Buffet”. He lamented to the people at UD about them not producing a card of him over the radio, – so I took it upon myself to produce a card for Rod. Off the cuff I had made a front, but had not produced a back due to time and printing constraints, and completely ripped off the UD design, just so that Rod could say he was part of the set.

When I met up with him at the Houston Texans’ Viewing Playoff Party at the Alamo Drafthouse, I asked for his autograph on a few more cards, which he had no problem doing. When I presented him with the custom fake I had made, he beamed and gave me a giant hug. Rod loved the shot from him versus Oklahoma, especially the fact that he was ‘Tebowing’ before it was cool.  Graciously, Rod told me the card truly made his afternoon even if the Texans didn’t win, and I told him that next time we’d meet up I hoped to have his trading card completed with a front and back for him to keep, which he told me I didn’t have to do.

After the Texans’ victory I talked to him a bit more, ribbing him for a few minutes and telling him that defensive lineman JJ Watt‘s interception for a touchdown, was already 1/4th Rod’s total number of picks at UT.  He laughed and stated that Watt was already one up on him in the pros, but he wouldn’t hold it against me since I gave him the custom.

Rod in his playboy way, also jokingly intimated that the card was so nice he was going to carry it around in his wallet, and use it to pick up women, to which I quipped to him, “That I was sure he had no problem with that!”