It hasn't been an easy few years being a USC Trojan fan. Between coaching changes, legal issues, unfair sanctions and unfulfilled expectations there seems to be new disappointments almost every week. I went to the USC vs. UW game about 10 days ago and poor play mixed with some very questionable coaching led to an unexpected loss and apparently led our Head Coach to drink which resulted in a suspension then firing. Coach Sark had proven to be a good recruiter but the team hadn't put it together on the field so this Trojan fan isn't upset about his exit.
Now we find ourselves at 3-2, out of the rankings and with an interim coach facing the Fighting Irish tonight at 4:30 PST. This is a game I typically don't miss but I have a wedding to attend tonight so I will tape it and hopefully bury my head in the sand, keep the score a mystery and stay up late after the wedding to watch. I am fully expecting disappointment once again but a guy can dream.
In order to try and do something the bring the Trojans some luck I thought I would post some Trojan pick ups to see if the appearance of some of their past stars will inspire them. It also will help clear out my scan folder a bit as I have quite a few.
This is a 1/1 Autographed printing plate of former SC TE Anthony McCoy. I dabbled with Supercollecting McCoy early on and was able to get a few 1/1s on the cheap but then someone else with some deep pockets started outbidding me. I still stay on the lookout but it is rare for me to get one of his limited print run cards these days.
Cushing is a beast, I remember him just blowing up offenses during his days at USC. This dual jersey/hat relic is numbered 49/50, a very nice pick up.
This is my most recent pick up in this group, a bid board win for $3. I believe I saw that Buck Allen may be in line for some significant playing time with the Ravens over the next couple weeks. I hope he can take advantage of it. This is numbered 50/100 - since it is the middle one printed does that make it an eBay 1/1 :-)
Galippo only had about 15 non-1/1 cards produced and I have 4 of them including this blue version of his Leaf Draft card. I seem to recall he had some injury challenges in college and it doesn't look like he made it to an NFL roster. He was signed by the Colts as an undrafted free agent in 2010 and was there for a couple of months during the off season and was cut. He currently is a color guy for high school football.
One of my favorite Trojans of all time. RIP Junior.
This guy has a ton of cards for someone who really didn't do a ton as an NFL player. He was the #1 RB recruit coming to USC and leaving his home town LSU Tigers behind. He was hailed as the next Reggie Bush but didn't ever live up to those expectations and was involved in some controversy a couple of times including being banned by the team in his final bowl game.
I couple of sweet looking cards of defensive star Lawrence Jackson. He was great at USC and had an up and down 5 year NFL career with the Lions and Seahawks. I worked with his mom during his time at USC and after being drafted and that connection always leads to a little extra excitement when I pick up his cards.
I little while ago I did a quick search to see how LenDale White's cards were faring when it came to resell price. I was reminiscing about the 2006 card collecting season when Reggie Bush and Matt Leinart joined White in most card products. LenDale's cards sold for quite a bit back then but I was able to pick up one of his more desirable rookie autos for a pretty low price.
Marc's claim to fame was being the son of former Rams and 49ers star Wendell Tyler. He was solid at SC but never made it into an NFL game.
Mark Sanchez's career so far is fairly well chronicled. His cards were super hot after he was drafted and I was lucky enough to pull a couple autos out of box breaks. I of course held on to them despite some pretty hefty offers from fellow Trojan fans in Orange County. In hindsight I probably should have sold high and looked at reacquiring them now but I will never forget the excitement of pulling a manupatch auto out of Prestige in a 3 pack purchase.
Lee only had 3 catches this year as he battles injuries. I like this card in large part due to the 3 different jersey pieces used in the card - I love it when card companies take this type of care.
Similar to LenDale White and Mark Sanchez, Matt Leinart's cards have come down a ton since he was the #10 overall pick. I know his pro career didn't meet expectations but I have yet to see a college QB that was better. His is a collection I wouldn't mind beefing up with some additional card pick ups.
I got this card in a Sportlots auction, it wasn't too much but I do remember a little bit of a bidding war. It looks and feels like a Superfractor but has no numbering. There should be a 1/1 on there but it doesn't exist. This is either an error card or some card that Topps released after the fact. I just got it because it is cool.
I think Leaf did a nice job with this set and I am so glad there are so many cards with players in their college uniform. This card scanned nice and shiny and is that way in person as well.
Not a ton to say about Rhett, a solid TE. He didn't think he was going to be drafted and went in the 4th round to the Vikings and he still plays for them.
Going old school here, remember when a card serial numbered to 2815 was rare? I was surprised I didn't already have this card of the former USC signal caller.
Similar to Anthony McCoy, I shortly dabbled with supercollection All-Pro Center Ryan Kalil. He is a stud offensive lineman but ultimately my collecting interests went in a different direction. I had an old Kalil 1/1 search in eBay and came across this for a low price so I decided to pick it up.
Finally a nice dual jersey of CB Terrell Thomas. I really enjoy the Threads cards from 2008 (I have the auto version of LoJack above), this card looks great. Thomas had a pretty solid NFL career as well but has some injury woes.
All right, I am finished. I doubt many, if any, made it this far but I am hoping the presence of this post helps my team rally against Notre Dame later today. Fight On!
That superfractor-ish card without the 1/1 stamp is probably one of those test proof cards. They're basically prototypes of official cards that were part of uncut sheets that were eventually distributed (somehow), cut up and sold all about.
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