How about them Wolverines!

I'm trying not to get to excited about the way they are playing but it's hard not to. The offense still scares me a little, Rudock really scares me, even though he looked pretty good this weekend against BYU. Rudock's decision making doesn't always please me but as long as he's not turning the ball over, which he didn't yesterday, I'll stop complaining about him, for now. Our stable of RB's are playing well. There's no doubt our starter should be De'Veon Smith, but with all those backups and potential starters behind him, you really could throw a few of them out there and they would excel, and they have. We are back to power football and I am excited, trying not to be, but I am.

That defense though, has been outstanding and they only seem to get better each week. BYU was supposed to throw over the top of us but the defensive line didn't give the QB much chance to get set and even when he did, our secondary was right on top of their receivers. We've seen a pretty good defense for the past couple of years, but this one seems even better and on top of that, we seem to be getting our offense together.

The best thing I have seen so far this year, and it really has been the difference, is Jim Harbaugh. The last few years, there was no excitement, no fire on this team, and no fire on the sidelines. I was ecstatic when Harbaugh went nuts on the sidelines a couple of weeks ago when the refs were blowing all kinds of calls against Oregon State. That fire has worked it's way onto the team, just look at our RB's, Smith and Green were both playing for us last year, but I don't remember them being anything like they are this year. Especially Smith, he ran hard last year, but not like he is this year, he is not any easy tackle anymore.

I'm not excited yet (I'm lying) because after the last decade we've had, I'm still reserved (not really) about how good this team is. They aren't going to be in the national title game (yet) but they can reek some havoc in the big ten, and as good as little brother is (they're good), I think we have a shot at beating them (finally) and as poorly as Ohio has played (they've sucked), they will be better by the time we face them, yet, I still think we have a chance at them too.

I think with the level of improvement we've seen from the Utah game to the BYU game, we're only going to get better. I am excited about that and I'm excited that the game are enjoyable to watch again. Not that I think we belong there yet, but I think we may crack the top 25 this week.

The real reason for this post was to show off the Michigan cards that Dennis sent me, but since they are duplicates from him, you've probably seen them all before, so I thought I put down some thoughts on this blog about this team. It's been hard to do the last few years but things are definitely looking brighter.

Thanks for the awesome package, Dennis.

The You Complete Me RCs

This evening over on TMV I showed off the third and final group of packages in my most recent You Complete Me feature, in which I go envelope-by-envelope highlighting purchases towards completing sets.  This time the project focused on three football sets, all of which included some Wolverines:  2008 Score, 2008 Upper Deck First Edition, and 2012 Upper Deck.

I needed most of those Michigan players before this recent round of purchases, so I thought it would be fun to scan all of the rookies (you can see a few of the vets in the above linked post) and show them off here.  While doing that I also decided to scan the rookies I'd already acquired, because why not?  I was already doing the scanning anyway!

So here's a quick look at the 2008 and 2012 Michigan rookies from these sets:

Adrian Arrington 2008 Score and Upper Deck First Edition RC

Shawn Crable 2008 Upper Deck First Edition RC

Mike Hart 2008 Score and Upper Deck First Edition RC

Junior Hemingway 2012 Upper Deck RC

Chad Henne 2008 Score and Upper Deck First Edition RC

Jake Long 2008 Score and Upper Deck First Edition RC

Mario Manningham 2008 Score and Upper Deck First Edition RC

Mike Martin 2012 Upper Deck RC

David Molk 2012 Upper Deck RC

As a reminder, please feel free to keep an eye on my Michigan Football RCs album.  As I find the time (and the lack of inspiration for posts), I'll be adding to it from my completed sets and box o'Wolverines that includes lots more rookies!

2014 trade package #9: lots of Reds From the Dollar Store

It's been a bit more than a couple months since I posted my last trade package, which came from Doug of Sports Cards From the Dollar Store.  I'm here today to end that hiatus with a NEW package...from Doug of Sports Cards From the Dollar Store.

Mr. C hit up his annual Expo earlier this month, and between that and the usual repack madness he came up with a bunch of great stuff to send my way, namely:

A random bunch of hockey, baseball, and football Wolverines, including five hockey Mikes, a masked Turco, a numbered Travis Turnbull rookie, a Leaf Leach (from a cheapo box he nabbed) and a SAGE HIT of Denard I didn't have.

However, a large amount of Doug's attention went towards acquiring me 10 O-Pee-Chee issues of famous Canadian Wolverine Gordon "Red" Berenson, an NHLer who played for the Red Wings, among other teams, and once scored six goals in a game.  He of course went on to become a huge part of Michigan Hockey lore in leading his teams to two national titles.  He's even still at the helm of college's premier program, though it looks like 2014-15 will be his final campaign.

Here's what Doug grabbed for me:

O-Pee-Chee cards from 1969-70, 70-71, 71-72, 72-73, 73-74, and 74-75.  The '69-'70 has seen better days, but who doesn't enjoy well-loved vintage?  I of course like the Wings cards the most.

Here's cards from 75-76, 76-77, 77-78, and 78-79.  After getting sent to Detroit in 1971, Red returned to St. Louis in 1974 for the remainder of his career, and as the '78-'79 states, he retired after the previous season.

I'm thrilled to have Red's base O-Pee-Chee run, and with this kind of start courtesy of Doug, I'm officially pursuing Berenson as a player collection.  Check out the album here, which includes a few others I already had, and follow along with his checklist if you'd like (I'm currently at 12/54).

Speaking of collecting hockey, he of course threw in a couple hits from that sport:

Chris Brown 2013-14 Panini Playbook Breakout Jerseys jersey (#134/199)

Chris Brown 2013-14 SP Game Used Gold auto

They just happened to be of the same player.  Chris Brown, the pride of Flower Mound, Texas, (they play hockey there?!) is the 32nd member of my hockey PC thanks to this pair.  The jersey relic, a shocking crimson swatch of a Coyotes sweater, looks fantastic but is quickly upstaged by the auto.  I got to see Brown play for a bit while he was in Ann Arbor, and I look forward to acquiring more of his stuff.

Marcus Knight 2006 Upper Deck Arena Football AFL Fabrics jersey

Moving on to football, Doug sent me my first Arena Football League relic of former star WR Marcus Knight, who apparently was with the Philadelphia Soul here.  It's a very cool looking card with a nice large swatch, and it marks my fourth hit (and first relic) of Knight.

David Molk 2012 SP Authentic auto

Finally, I scored big with this David Molk auto (just my second), which I just barely missed out on over on COMC during their recent promotions.  Doug had my back, though, and picked this up for me at the expo.  As with the other Molk, I love that this one is of the former center (and rock for the OL) in his Michigan uni.  I'm still working on picking up the other Wolverines in the set.

For the 80th time or whatever, thanks for a fantastic trade package, Doug!  I should have a return envelope heading your way if I can hit the PO after work today, and I promise you'll like this one too.  Readers, go enjoy this Loonie trader's blogging over at Sports Cards From the Dollar Store today!

Dennis week–Friday

Dennis week – Monday (Jim Abbotts), Tuesday (Barry Larkins), Wednesday – Vintage collection, Thursday – White Sox collection, Friday – (Grand Finale of Michigan cards)

If you’ve been following on my blog, then you’ve seen the awesome cards that Dennis has sent for my player collections, vintage collection and my White Sox collections.  Today, obviously since we are here, you are going to see what he sent for the Michigan collection.

David Molk and Mike Martin - 2012 Upper Deck SP Authentic

For those that don’t know, my Michigan Wolverines collection consists of Wolverine players but I only collect them in the maize and blue.  Both of these 2012’s go right into that.

Jerame Tuman – 1999 Skybox Premium Autographics

I actually have a personal link to Jerame, albeit a little far fetched but it’s a link.  Jerame Tuman was roommates with Scott Dreisbach while at Michigan who was a quarterback on the team.  My brother played football with Scott in high school.  But wait, there’s more.  Jerame ended up marrying Scott’s older sister, with whom I went to school with and while we weren’t besties, I was somewhat friends with her.  I told you it was far fetched but I’m still looking to grab a Scott Dreisbach autograph for my collection, maybe even a duplicate for my brother.

Jerame started the year the Wolverines went undefeated and won the championship in 1997 and was best known for his decisive touchdown in the 1998 Rose Bowl win over Washington State to secure the undefeated season.  He was drafted and played for the Pittsburgh Steelers for 9 years, mainly as a second string Tight End but won a Super Bowl with them in 2008.  He was released a month later and picked up by the Arizona Cardinals where he only played in 3 games before being released again.

This is my 1st autograph card of Jerame Tuman.

Kevin Koger – 2012 Leaf Young Stars Draft Autographs

I love these 2012’s because they are actually players I remember playing.  Kevin was a pretty decent tight end from what I remember but he wasn’t really used as much as I thought they should.  He was injured during a workout for the NFL draft and was therefore not drafted.

He is currently coaching at Saline High School under his previous high school coach while he works out and tries for another shot at the NFL.

This is my 1st autograph card of Kevin Koger.

Terrance Taylor – 2009 Upper Deck Draft Edition silver autograph

A defensive tackle who was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts but didn’t stay long as he ended up with the Carolina Panthers and Detroit Lions all in 2009 before being released again.  He ended up playing for a couple of Arena football teams up until last year.

This is my 1st autograph card of Terrance Taylor.

                                                

Adrian Arrington – 2009 Topps Magic Autographs, 2008 Press Pass Gridiron Graphs autograph & 2008 Press Pass autographs

This is another player I remember watching.  He was pretty much the #2 receiver behind Mario Manningham (you may have heard of him here).  He didn’t do much until his senior season but was a solid #2 and had one of his best games against a heavily favored Florida team in the 2008 Capital One Bowl where he had 9 catches for 153 yards and 2 touchdowns to secure a win for the Wolverines.

He was drafted in 2008 by the New Orleans Saints and didn’t play much but stay signed for a few years, mainly for the practice squad.  He did play some in the pros but not much.  He did earn a Super Bowl ring by being on the active roster in 2010.

This is my 5th, 6th and 7th autograph of Adrian Arrington.

Tim Jamison – 2009 Upper Deck draft edition silver autograph

A defensive end who recorded his first sack against Brady Quinn (just had to throw that in there).  He had a pretty decent college career but was left undrafted.  He ended up getting signed as an undrafted free agent by the Houston Texans and has been there since.

This is my 2nd autograph of Tim Jamison.

Jake Long & Adrian Arrington – 2008 Sage Squared dual autographs

This was my favorite card because it was my first of the top draft pick in 2008.  He was a monster as a Wolverine before starting his career with the Miami Dolphins.  He played with them for 5 years before signing with the St. Louis Rams.  He made the pro bowl his first 4 seasons.  You can read up on Adrian Arrington up above.

This is my 1st autograph of Jake Long.

Tony Pape – 2004 Press Pass autographs

In case you hadn’t notice Jake Long’s number up above, it is the same as Tony Pape.  He was the starting offensive tackle in Jake Long’s freshman year.  He was also drafted by the Miami Dolphins and played with the San Diego Chargers as well as a couple of European teams.  He is now an offensive line coach at Oak Lawn Richards High School.

This is my 1st autograph of Tony Pape.

Jason Avant – 2006 Sage HIT blue autograph

Jason was the #2 wide receiver to Braylon Edwards until his senior year where he led the team in receptions, yards and touchdowns.  In his final 2 seasons as a Wolverine, he was a candidate for the Fred Biletnikoff award which goes to the nations best wide receiver.

He was drafted in 2006 by the Philadelphia Eagles and has been there ever since.  He has had some productive pro years to go along with his outstanding college careers.

This is my 1st autograph of Jason Avant.

Shawn Crable – 2008 Upper Deck Draft Edition Autographs

Shawn was a defensive back for the Wolverines who enjoyed a couple pretty good seasons.  He was named 2nd team All Big Ten Conference his junior and senior year.  As a senior he led the Big Ten in Tackles for a loss and was 2nd in the nation.

He was drafted by the New England Patriots in 2008 but because of injuries didn’t make it to the active roster until 2010 when he played 6 games before being released.  He signed with a couple of UFL teams until 2012 when he was released and has been a free agent ever since.

This is my 2nd autograph of Shawn Crable.

Gabe Watson – 2006 Press Pass Autographs

Gabe played 8 games as a freshman and then every game the following 3 years.  He was named All Big Ten Conference first team in his final 2 seasons.  He finished his college career with 92 tackles and 5 sacks.

He was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in 2006.  Watson had a productive career until 2008 when he fractured his knee cap and missed the season.  He came back to record 28 tackles in 2009 before signing with the New York Giants in 2011 but didn’t make the team.

This is my 1st autograph card of Gabe Watson.

    

Brandon Graham – 2010 Upper Deck Sweet Spot Signatures & 2010 Upper Deck SP Authentic Rookie autographs #’d 372/599

After a rough start to his college career off the field, he came back strong once he started getting some playing time.  He ended up being on the all Big Ten Conference second team in his junior year and the first team his senior season.  He also led the conference in tackles for a loss during both years.

Graham was drafted in 2010 by the Philadelphia Eagles where he is still on the active roster.  He has since moved from defensive end to linebacker but is still playing every game.

This is my 1st and 2nd autograph of Brandon Graham.

                                               

Marlin Jackson – 2005 Topps Draft Picks & Prospects Class Marks Autograph & 2005 Upper Deck Rookie Debut Ink Autograph

Marlin is one of those guys that was big when I really started to watch Michigan football again.  Plus he played for the Indianapolis Colts who are my favorite NFL team.  Marlin was a great safety and ended his college career with the 2nd most pass breakups.  He was such a good safety that the Big Ten teams took notice and only threw his way less than 14% of the time in his senior season.

He was drafted by the Colts in 2005 where he played until 2009 and then signed with the Philadelphia Eagles but was injured and cut.

This is my 3rd autograph of Marlin Jackson.

Mike Martin – 2012 Leaf Draft red autograph

Martin had an exceptional career as a Wolverine after almost leaving when Lloyd Carr left but he decided to stick around and was a very bright spot on a very poor defense.  Martin started as a freshman and never looked back earning freshman All-American honors.  He went on to earn second team All-Conference nominations in his junior and senior year.  He accumulated over 170 tackles in 49 games as a Wolverine.

He was drafted by the Tennessee Titans in 2012 where he is currently still active.

This is my 1st autograph of Mike Martin.

Gil Chapman – 2004 TK Legacy autographs

Chapman was recruited as a Running Back and a return specialist.  He was a pretty good running back and his senior year, was a pretty good receiver but he was a great return specialist.  By the time he graduated, he set all time school records in career kickoff return yardage and single-game return yardage and held them until Anthony Carter and Desmond Howard took them,  He ended up with a total over 1000 yards just on returns for his Michigan career.

Gil was drafted by the New Orleans Saints in 1975  where he continued to be a return specialist.  After a pretty good rookie season began he injured his knee late in the season and it ended up finishing his career.

This is my 1st autograph of Gil Chapman.

Alan Branch – 2007 Press Pass autographs

You all should know who Alan Branch is on this blog.  He was one of the anchors of the defense from 2004 to 2007 and specifically in 2006 when Michigan had one of the best defenses in the country.

He was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in 2007 where he played for 4 season before moving on to the Seattle Seahawks and eventually the Buffalo Bills where he still is.

If you still can’t place him but you’re a regular reader of this blog, maybe this will help

Alan Branch kills QBs

This is my 1st Alan Branch autograph.

Maurice Williams – 2001 Press Pass SE autograph

Maurice came to Michigan as a high school all-american, where he played all 4 years but only started his senior year.  After starting every game his senior season, he earned honorable mention of all-big ten team honors.

He was drafted in 2007 and started 10 games but was supposed to take over as the starter at right guard in 2008 but lost it to injury in the first game and missed the entire season.  He ended up getting released and picked up by the Denver Broncos but only for a month before being released there as well.

This is my 1st autograph of Maurice Williams

Greg Mathews – 2010 Sage Hit silver autograph

Mathews recorded over 1000 receiving yards while at Michigan and also returned punts throughout his college career.  His heroics in the 2009 game against our (apparently not) rivals Notre Dame by scoring our game winning touchdown with 11 seconds left.

He ended up being undrafted and has played for 3 teams on practice squads but has yet to see the field in an NFL game.

This is my 3rd autograph of Greg Mathews.

 

As you can tell, Dennis sent me an awesome package and I can’t thank him enough for it. 

The Molk's on Blue

It's hard to say enough good things about former Wolverine OL David Molk, who graduated this past year and was ultimately drafted by the Chargers.  The kid (man?) who was the lynch pin of the 2011 Michigan football team as its center showed over the course of his career characteristics such as loyalty--staying through the hard times of a program in disarray after the death of its patriarch, even when nobody would have blamed him for leaving the mess far behind; leadership--Three and Out did a great job crediting Molk with holding the team together through multiple coaching and scheme changes, unheard of W/L records and booing fans; guts--to call the kid a "warrior" for playing through gruesome injuries because there was no other option would be an understatement; and heart--going out every day and giving his all for his team and his teammates.  David Molk was and is a Michigan Man.

For all those reasons, I was thrilled when Upper Deck (pfft, who was gonna do it, TOPPS?!) produced autographs--make that college-uni autographs!--of four Wolverines that have been otherwise shut out of the major manufacturer card world this season (aside from a couple of SPx issues--also an Upper Deck brand). The fact that Molk, WR Junior Hemingway, TE Kevin Koger and DT Mike Martin (a second-round defensive stud who STILL wasn't deemed worthy) all got into this set partly subdues my anger towards Topps, which continues to ignore quality rookies in favor of undrafted former college stars like Kellen Moore who are unlikely to do much in the pros.  I don't think this needs to be an either/or, though--Topps should think about making a college-themed set of just the year's draft picks (and major UDFA signings, sure)--I would be ALL OVER THAT.

Anyway, whether or not you read all that, here's one of my recent eBay pickups that makes the ode to Molk make some sense:

David Molk 2012 Upper Deck Rookie Autographs auto

Other than the extremely ugly green foil that mars the design, this is a wonderful tribute to Molk, whose helmet looked like that pretty much nonstop.  I'm excited to have him as the 87th different subject in the PC, and I'm also excited to announce that I have all three of his teammates headed my way from COMC in the near future.

For more on how much Molk meant to the 2011 Wolverines team that made Maize and Blue-wearing people feel all warm and fuzzy again, please check out this article and this one, among others.  And of course, if you haven't yet, please make sure to check out Three and Out, which is a phenomenal read by one of Michigan sports' best authors.

Good luck to Molk as he pursues his NFL career, and GO BLUE!