Tuesday, December 30, 2014

2014 COMC purchases: Harbaugh's here! This calls for QBs and coaches!

It's Jim Harbaugh day here in Ann Arbor today as the school's 20th head coach was officially introduced to the world.  Still, I wouldn't be too surprised if ESPN was still holding out hope he was staying in the NFL--they've got "sources"!

Anyway, what better way to celebrate a former Michigan QB coming home to coach than to post COMC pickups of more former Michigan QBs and coaches?  Let's do this!
Chad Henne 2008 Ultimate Collection jersey auto RC (#277/375)
Let's kick things off with a high-end Henne.  For as much as some of these can go for, I was lucky to nab this one for under $10.  The swatch is nothing to write home about but at least it's large, and as usual the signature is the highlight anyway.  That's 69 different Hennes for me as he continues to lead the charge in the football PC.
Drew Henson 2004 Flair Autograph Collection Silver auto (#014/100)
Henson's NFL (and MLB) career wasn't quite as good as Harbaugh's, but at least he can claim some nice college memories as well.  Here's Drew on a Cowboys auto that actually doesn't feature Dallas' uni.  Speaking of the Cowboys, I hope they beat the pants off the Lions on Sunday!  As for Henson, this is my eighth hit of the former two-sport star, all of which are autographs.
Denard Robinson 2013 Elite Rookie Inscriptions Black auto and 2013 Topps Platinum Rookie Autographs Refractor auto
And now we have a college QB who doesn't look like he's gonna get a shot at that position in the NFL, but is still making the best of his opportunity at the next level.  Denard was obviously the more explosive college player, but Harbaugh wasn't a bad running QB himself and decidedly less statuesque than many of Michigan's more traditional players at the position.  Meanwhile, Shoelace is pictured here on a pair of cool autographs.  The first is from the beautiful transparent Elite Rookie Inscriptions set and is the black ink version of the blue ink one I already own.  The Platinum isn't as cool, but it's still a Denard auto and cost around $5, which isn't bad at all.  The speedy Robinson is quickly moving up in my collection with 13 total hits.
Tom Brady/Chad Henne/David Harris/Mario Manningham 2011 Totally Certified Stitches in Time quad jersey (#106/150)
I saved what I consider the coolest football hit for last:  this quad relic featuring two QBs, a WR, and a LB.  For under $10 I was able to score this sweet piece, which combines four of Michigan's best recent football alumni.  Brady is the obvious highlight, but Henne's carved himself out a decent career as a backup, Harris continues to be a tackling machine, and while Manningham has largely been shut down by injuries, he's a Super Bowl hero.  That's a nice combo for sure and I was very excited to add this to my collection.  It's my 6th Brady (5th relic), 70th Henne, 23rd Harris (first relic!), and 44th Manningham.

And with that QB-heavy pile, my football count climbs to 940.  Stay tuned for plenty more football soon.

Like I mentioned earlier, today also seems like a good day to mention a couple other Michigan coaches, so here they are:
John Beilein 2011-12 Fleer Retro 1998-99 Autographics auto
Beilein has flat out revitalized a moribund basketball program since arriving from West Virginia a few years ago.  Besides some hiccups this year, he's gotten the Wolverines to a place where bigger things are expected of them, and even got them to the NCAA title game a couple years ago.  I think I put down maybe $5 for this, perfectly reasonable for a guy putting the University back on the map, just like Harbaugh will be doing for the football program.  John is very welcome to the collection as my 15th basketball subject and 31st hit overall.
Red Berenson 2012-13 ITG Motown Madness auto
And last but not least is Michigan's longest tenured coach, Red Berenson.  Like Jim he starred in his sport for the Wolverines, had a good pro career, then eventually found his way back to Ann Arbor at a time when his program wasn't up to its historic standards.  Red comes to us today in the form of this ITG Motown Madness Red Wings auto, a card I've been chasing for quite a while.  It's actually the first one I picked up in November, even before the sales really got started, because it was on sale for under $3.  That was too ridiculously cheap for me to pass up, and now I'm halfway to Red's collection with 28/55 (and 30 cards overall).

It's been a great day for Michigan fans, what with Harbaugh being introduced, then apparently rubbing off on the basketball team as they stormed back against Illinois at home to win in OT after Jim's halftime speech--just sayin'.  And this Michigan fan is happy to look forward to the future while appreciating the players you see above from the past.  GO BLUE!

2 comments:

  1. I love that Beilein auto. He is well liked around these parts as he revitalized our program too. One of the more underrated coaches in the game.

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    1. Yeah, I'm very happy that there's not so much animosity with him and WVU fans like there was with RichRod. I don't know that he'll be able to right the ship this year, but this team still has a bright future with him in charge!

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