Tag Archives: ttm football autograph

CFL, NFL, XFL

Butler, James (RB)

Topps XFL 2020, #108

CARD: Topps XFL 2020
ACQUIRED: TTM 2022, C/o Home
SENT: 12/11 RECEIVED: 12/27 (16 days)

CAREER SNAPSHOT:

  • James Butler played RB for 3 years at Nevada from 2014-16.
  • He ran for over 1300 yards and 10 TDs in both 2015 and 2016.
  • Transferred to Iowa for Senior year in 2017.
  • Undrafted in 2018, but was a member of the Raiders practice squad.
  • Signed with the Saskatchewan Roughriders in 2019 but was cut at the end of camp.
  • Returned to Raiders practice squad for the 2019 season but was not resigned.
  • Joined the XFL Houston Roughnecks Run N Shoot attack for the 2020 season.
  • Was a spark at RB for the Roughnecks, both on the ground and as a receiving threat.
  • Carried the ball 46 times for 221 yards (4 TDs) to go along with 11 catches for 42 yards and a TD
  • After scoring a TD in a home game against the St Louis Battlehawks, jumped into crowd creating a celebration dubbed, “The Houston Hop”.
  • COVID ended the XFL 2020, but James rejoined the CFL- with the BC Lions.
  • Rushed for 497 yards on 101 carries (2 TDs) and caught 39 passes for 243 yards and a TD in 2021.
  • Had first 1,000 yard effort in 2022 rushing for 1060 yards on 210 carries while also catching 53 passes for 384 yards for the Lions.

NOTES:

Well I had season tickets to the Roughnecks and of 3 games that they were able to play I was able to attend 2 of them before COVID knocked the league out. I went with my friend Kevin to the game, and with our endzone seats, I was able to engineer a guest star on James Butler’s Houston Hop, as I muscled my way in at the end of the highlight film. Look at that Legends jersey! Long live the AAF!

NFL

Hill, Tyreek

Panini Luminance 2018, #14

CARDS: Panini Luminance 2018, Panini Luminance 2018 Flash, Panini Chronicles 2020
ACQUIRED: TTM 2022, C/o Charity*
SENT: 4/13 RECEIVED: 4/22 (9 days)
* Donation Enclosed

CAREER SNAPSHOT:

  • Tyreek Hill faced an up and down college career starting as a track man at Gardena Jr College in 2012.
  • He’d become a hot prospect and eventually end up at Oklahoma State in 2014.
  • Dismissed from the Cowboys late in the year, he enrolled at West Alabama in 2015.
  • A versatile athlete, as a return man, receiver, and runningback, Hill displays a unique combination of skills, hands, and speed that made him an intriguing prospect.
  • He was selected in the 5th round of the 2016 NFL Draft as a WR by the Kansas City Chiefs, due to his dismissal from the OKC football team.
  • In Tyreek’s rookie year, he saw extensive time on special teams, where he led the league in punt return yards (592), average (15.2) and TDs (2).
  • He also had 14 kick returns for 384 yards and an 86 yard TD.
  • With the emergence of QB Pat Mahomes in KC, Hill became his go to bomb catcher in 2017.
  • Tyreek spent the next 5 years in KC raking in roughly 6,100 yards receiving and 49 TDs.
  • In 2022, Hill was traded in the middle of the night to the Miami Dolphins.
  • Despite detractors and naysayers, saying Hill was dependent on Mahomes for his numbers, Tyreek went on to have the best season of his career with 1710 yards receiving on 119 catches for Miami.
  • In 6 seasons, Hill has over 10k All-purpose yards, with 3 of those years over 1750 yards.
Panini Chronicles 2020, #48
Panini Luminance 2018, #30

ACCOLADES:

  • Pro Bowl 2016-’22
  • All-Pro 2016, ’18, ’20, ’22

NOTES:

Tyreek Hill suffers from the ‘too good to be true syndrome’. Knowing these could be ghost signed I went ahead and sent these three out to get autographed. Just couldn’t miss out on getting him since he’s such a good player- with great cards to boot. After I got these back I got a ton of mail asking me if I thought these were legit or to enjoy my ‘fake’ autographs.

This is not the first time this has happened to me. On a previous occasion I got spammed by people who were upset because I got Joe Montana back TTM. They too thought it was too good to be true and that it was fake. It turns out that it’s now his standard autograph. No one calls them autopens or ghost signed anymore.

The same goes for Tyreek. While the cards I have are a departure from his original autograph, if you look at his more recent *certified* autographs, these are now the standard.

Panini Luminance has become a ‘late’ favorite of mine, even though it is from 2018. A bit disappointed that the insert card didn’t pick up his autograph better, and also that the cut out action pose is from the base card I also have autographed, but still glad to add them to the collection. Tyreek was a class act enough to toss in a Panini Chronicles as well, and all for the sweet, sweet donation of 20 bucks.

NFL

Francis, Russ ‘All-World Tight End’ (1953-2023)

Upper Deck Legends 1997, #104

CARD: Upper Deck Legends 1997
ACQUIRED: TTM 2022, C/o Home
SENT: 1/3 RECEIVED: 3/23 (59 days)

CAREER SNAPSHOT:

  • Russ Francis was a three year starter at TE for the Oregon Ducks.
  • It was really in his Junior year in 1974 he put up some outstanding numbers, catching 31 passes for 495 yards and 4 TDs.
  • A monster prospect, clocking in at 6’6″, 245, Russ not only had the hands, he had the size as well.
  • Russ was a slam dunk first round pick of the New England Patriots in 1975, taken 16th overall.
  • Russ chewed up the scenery his rookie year with the Pats, with 35 catches for 636 yards and 4 TDs.
  • In 1980, Russ had a career high 664 yards and 8 TDs on 41 receptions.
  • After the Patriots refused to give Russ a bonus for his Pro Bowl appearance, combined with how the team treated teammate Daryl Stingley after his paralization, Francis opted to retire.
  • Russ became a broadcaster briefly with ABC Sports, but after having a conversation with 49ers Bill Walsh, decided to come out of retirement in ’82.
  • Russ joined the ‘9ers, through a trade, just in time to help them build their dynasty, and helping the team win Super Bowl XIX in 1984.
  • He’d post a career high 44 receptions in 1985.
  • Russ played 7 games with the ‘9ers in 1987, before returning back to the Patriots.
  • He played one more year with New England in ’88, spending the entire ’89 campaign on IR, retiring soon thereafter.
  • Russ has had a robust life since retirement, participating in Wrestlemania II, dabbling in politics, hosting radio, and outdoor shows.

ACCOLADES:

  • Pro Bowl 1976-’78
  • Polynesian Sports Hall of Fame (Contributor)
  • NWA Hawaii Tag Team Championship (1978)
  • Wrestlemania II

NOTES:

I really, really wanted Russ to be my first response of 2022, but he ended up responding a few months later. Still, a great response from Russ, who put a lot of inscriptions on the card. He also wrote a nice note saying that he, “Had a great time in Wrestlemania II!”

Russ has two nicknames. He was dubbed ‘All-Universe’ because he could do it all when he came into the NFL. His second, ‘All-World Tight End’ was given to him by Howard Cosell during a MNF contest.

I think Russ deserved this card as a legend, and a lot more credit than he gets. A prolific receiver during the dead ball era, if not for an injury and retiring suddenly, he easily could’ve topped out over 6k yards. Nothing to sneeze at when 5 seasons were during the infamous dead ball era.

Russ appears on the original Tecmo Super Bowl as a member of the San Fransisco 49ers. He is notable as he is the receiver for a play that can not be defended against that if you time the pass right, catches the ball on every throw, even under heavy blitz.

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EPITAPH:

10/1/23- Russ had recently completed the purchase of the Lake Placid Airways Scenic Tours Business. He was on in a single engine Cessna 177 Cardinal with the SVP of the Pilot’s Association, when the plane started experiencing engine trouble after take off. The plane was unable to return to the runway. -Francis was just 70 years old.