March 5th, 2012 |
Published in
Player Deaths
John Panelli, a fullback and linebacker from 1949 to 1953 for the Detroit Lions and Chicago Cardinals, passed away on March 2. In college, Panelli was a member of Notre Dame’s national championship teams of 1946 and 1947, and of its undefeated team of 1948. JohnPanelli.com, an impressive web site dedicated to Panelli, contains a detailed account of his football career, including many photos.
Panelli appeared on one football card, the 1950 Bowman card pictured here.
March 3rd, 2012 |
Published in
CFL Cards, Halls of Fame, Player Deaths
Alex Webster, a running back for the New York Giants from 1955 to 1964 and the team’s head coach from 1969 to 1973, passed away today. The nj.com web site has a report and a recent photo. Webster was a member of the Giants’ NFL Championship team in 1956, he made the Pro Bowl in 1958 and 1961, and he was elected to the Giants Ring of Honor in 2011.
The cards pictured here are Webster’s rookie card, a 1956 Topps, and his last card, a 1964 Kahn’s Wieners card. You can see all of Webster’s NFL cards in the Vintage Football Card Gallery.
Before playing for New York, Webster spent two seasons with the Canadian Football League’s Montreal Alouettes. He appeared on at least one CFL card, a scarce 1954 Blue Ribbon Tea card. You can see it at cflapedia.com.
February 27th, 2012 |
Published in
Player Deaths
Don Joyce, a defensive lineman from 1951 to 1962 for the Chicago Cardinals, Baltimore Colts, Minnesota Vikings, and Denver Broncos, passed away on February 26, according to the twincities.com web site. Joyce made the Pro Bowl in 1958, and he was a member of the Colts’ NFL Championship teams of 1958 and 1959.
Joyce finally appeared on football cards in his 11th NFL season, after the Vikings acquired him in the 1961 NFL Expansion Draft. The cards shown here are his 1961 Fleer and 1961 Topps cards. He also appeared with the Vikings on a 1962 Post Cereal football card, but he played for the AFL’s Denver Broncos in 1962.
February 14th, 2012 |
Published in
Player Deaths
Freddie Solomon, a wide receiver from 1975 to 1985 for the Miami Dolphins and San Francisco 49ers, passed away yesterday. Solomon was a member of the 49ers’ NFL Championship teams of 1981 and 1984. His best season was 1981, when he gained 1012 combined yards rushing and receiving. Playing quarterback at the University of Tampa, Solomon gained 3299 yards rushing, then an NCAA record for a quarterback. There is a picture of him in action on the University of Tampa web site.
I have just one Freddie Solomon card, his 1976 Topps rookie card, pictured here. He also appeared on many newer cards that I don’t yet have in the Gallery. You can find most of them on eBay.
February 4th, 2012 |
Published in
Player Deaths
Frank Aschenbrenner, a star halfback for Northwestern University in 1948 and 1949, passed away on January 30. Aschenbrenner was named the outstanding player of the 1949 Rose Bowl after scoring on a record-setting 73-yard run and rushing for a total of 119 yards. He is a member of the Northwestern Athletics Hall of Fame and the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame. After college, Aschenbrenner played one season for the AAFC’s Chicago Hornets and one season for the CFL’s Montreal Allouettes.
While at Northwestern, Aschenbrenner appeared on the 1948 Leaf football card pictured here. The 1948 Leaf set contains cards of both NFL and college players, with most of the college players falling among the scarce high numbers, 50-98. Aschenbrenner’s card is number 93.
February 3rd, 2012 |
Published in
Player Deaths
John Guzik, who played linebacker from 1959 to 1961 for the Los Angeles Rams and Houston Oilers, passed away on January 22. Guzik was a first team All-American guard at the University of Pittsburgh, but his pro career was shortened by injuries. There is an interview with Guzik and a summary of his career on the NFL Former Players blog.
Guzik never appeared on a regular issue football card, but he did appear on the 1959 and 1960 Bell Brand Rams cards pictured here. These scarce cards were distributed regionally in bags of Bell Brand potato chips and corn chips; you can read more about them in my article about regional sets. You can see that Guzik switched from number 60 to number 65 in 1960. He apparently gave number 60 to rookie Jerry Stalcup, who had worn number 60 at the University of Wisconsin.
January 27th, 2012 |
Published in
Player Deaths
Greg Cook, a quarterback with the Cincinnati Bengals from 1969 to 1974, has passed away. Cook was an American Football League Co-Rookie of the Year in 1969, but he suffered an injury during the 1969 season from which he never fully recovered. He led the AFL in passer rating, completion percentage, yards per attempt, and yards per completion in 1969. After the 1969 season, he appeared in just one regular season game, in 1973.
Pictured here are Cook’s rookie card, a 1970 Topps, and his 1969 Tresler Comet Bengals pre-rookie card. Cook also appeared on several other cards in 1970, all of which showed the same image as his regular-issue Topps card. You can see all of Greg Cook’s football cards in the Vintage Football Card Gallery.
January 24th, 2012 |
Published in
Player Deaths
Clarence Self, a back from 1949 to 1955 for the Chicago Cardinals, Detroit Lions, and Green Bay Packers, passed away on January 21. Self played college football at Wisconsin, and he still holds the school record for kickoff return yards in a game, with 178.
Self appeared on one football card, the 1948 Leaf card pictured here, while still at Wisconsin. It is one of the scarce high-numbered cards in the set. 1948 Leaf cards were printed on two sheets, one holding cards 1-49 and the other holding cards 50-98, and Leaf apparently printed the second sheet in much smaller quantities. The Self card is number 78.
January 22nd, 2012 |
Published in
Brothers, Player Deaths
Joe Paterno did not play professional football, but he was a quarterback and defensive back in college, at Brown University. He appeared on one football card, the tiny 1950 Topps Felt Back pictured here. The image on the card resembles the one in a photo on the Sports Illustrated web site; my guess is that they were from the same photo session.
According to the Sports Illustrated page, Paterno’s record as a quarterback was 15-3 over two seasons, 1948 and 1949. He also intercepted 14 passes in his college career, still a school record. (He shares the record with Greg Parker.)
One of Paterno’s teammates at Brown was his brother George, who played fullback. George Paterno led the team in rushing in 1949, with 480 yards. From 1976 to 1999, George was a broadcaster for Penn State football. He passed away in 2002.
You can see all of the 1950 Topps Felt Back cards in the Vintage Football Card Gallery.
January 17th, 2012 |
Published in
Player Deaths
Mike Current, a tackle for 13 seasons with the Denver Broncos, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Miami Dolphins, has passed away. According to his page at bucpower.com, Current started 105 consecutive games for the Broncos and played in a total of 169 AFL and NFL games. Current was elected to the AFL West All-Star team after the 1969 season.
The cards pictured here are Current’s rookie card, a 1970 Topps, and his last card, a 1976 Topps. You can see all of Current’s cards and stamps in the Vintage Football Card Gallery.
