Tag Archives: tony dorsett

College Football HoF, Heisman Trophy Winner, NFL, Pro Football HoF

Dorsett, Tony ‘TD’ (3)

Upper Deck College Legends 2011, #76

CARDS: Upper Deck College Legends 2011, Panini Contenders 2017, Topps Fire 2015
ACQUIRED: TTM 2020, 2021, C/o Home
SENT: 4/23/20 RECEIVED: 4/27/20 (4 days)
SENT: 4/16/21 RECEIVED: 4/26/21 (10 days)
Donation Enclosed

CAREER SNAPSHOT:

Topps Fire 2015, #18 Panini Contenders Draft Picks, #96

NOTES:

After he smudged one of the cards I wanted him to sign that I had previously sent to him, I waited a year and gave him another shot on two more cards. He did however return that Upper Deck College Legends in almost record time in just 4 days flat.

Topps really had come a long way over the years, and their Fire branded entry was really high end stuff. When I got this card, I knew I wanted to eventually get it signed. Tony appears in most of the Panini stuff, and I still need to possibly go back and get him on one last card or two, but who knows if he will still be signing by then as CTE has really taken its toll on the former stalwart back.

College Football HoF, Heisman Trophy Winner, NFL, Pro Football HoF

Dorsett, Tony ‘TD’ (2)

pset89_tdorsettCard: ProSet 1989
Acquired: 2016, 34 Wine & Spirits Bottle Signing
See Also: Tony Dorsett

Tony Dorsett made an appearance in Austin at a local 34 Wine & Spirits to promote a vodka brand. Since Ricky Williams owns the 34 Wine & Spirits he was also in attendance and signing as well.  Ricky, as usual was pretty conversation, but somewhere along the way the handlers didn’t get the memo. As me and Ricky started chatting, his handler tried to shoo me off, but Ricky in his usual nonchalant manner explained to the handler, that I was cool and I was with him.

When Tony appeared it was more of the same. I bought two bottles of the vodka so I could get his autograph on 2 cards, but the handlers announced that he’d only sign the bottles. After a few minutes of negotiation, the handlers then announced that he’d sign only one outside item. Regardless, Tony was in good spirits when I saw him. He signed the bottles and a card for me which worked out okay.

There are so many players that switched teams during the twilight of their careers who look out of place in their new team uniforms, but this 89 ProSet of Tony looks solid. His autograph still holds up, and he was kind enough to put an inscription on it as well.

College Football HoF, Heisman Trophy Winner, NFL, Pro Football HoF

Dorsett, Tony ‘TD’

udldg97 dorsettCard: Upper Deck Legends 1997
Acquired: IP, 11/22/14 Star Power Signing, Dallas,Tx

So Josh and I went to Dallas to nab Tony Dorsett. We thought that by leaving a few hours early, it’d get us a decent place in line. We got lucky. Encountering 2 hour delay due to an overturned semi on I-35, we arrived with only an hour and 15 minutes before the event. Still we hopped in line and took our place 3 quarters of the way around the building.

Two observations about the actual event:

I have never been to a ‘Star Power’ location. I probably would never go there again. Glitz, glamour, and a lot of the usage of the word ‘affluent’ to put off anybody who would ask, “How much is this?” It screamed of excess and the place flat out embraced it. To them, most of us who showed up were just a working class sideshow at the event.

In my time collecting, I have never been as incensed by the amount of flagrant double-dipping going on. There is no need for you to get your children to go and get the same item signed. 3 Tony Dorsett helmets, with one for each kid who didn’t care about football or who they were meeting.  It was just so obvious that there was a lot of people getting paid for this and that there was going to be an Ebay flood of items later that day.

Tony Dorsett was a one man dynamo for Pitt from 1973-1976, leading the school to a National Championship, Heisman accolades, and was the all-time leading rusher in college history with 6,082 yards.  A first round choice of the Cowboys (#2 overall) in 1977, he won NFL Rookie of the Year Honors  with 1,007 yards and 12 TDs. Over the course of his 11 year career in Dallas, Dorsett was named All Pro 4 times and won a Super Bowl title. He also holds the NFL record for longest TD run with a 99 yard gallop against the Minnesota Vikings in 1983. As injuries began to take their toll on the venerable back and the arrival of fresh legs in the form of Herschel Walker in 1987, Dorsett was traded to the Denver Broncos in 1988 playing one season before he retired.  At the time of his retirement, Dorsett was the second All-Time leading rusher in NFL history, and of a less distinguished note, was top 5 in fumbles with 90. He is the only player in NFL history to win the Heisman, and then win the Super Bowl and NFL Rookie of the Year the following season. To top it all off, Tony was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the College Football Hall of Fame in 1994, and had his number retired at Pitt.

Dorsett is one of the major names that has come out in regards to concussion litigation against the NFL. Tony in particular has suffered so many concussions he lost track. He suffers from memory loss, depression, and dementia due to CTE.  He was not in in great shape when I saw him, but Tony very graciously stayed over his appointed time to get everybody knocked out who was in line. He signed this one card for me, and tried to interact with every fan he met.

G/Gs 173/152      Rush 2936     Yds  12,739   Avg  4.3    Td 77     Lg 99t
Rec  398      Yds 3,554    Avg 8.9     Td 13    Lg 91