Nearmint's Vintage Football Card Blog

Billy Neighbors, who played guard from 1962 to 1969 for the AFL’s Boston Patriots and Miami Dolphins, passed away on April 30. There is a story and a recent picture of Neighbors on the AL.com web site. Neighbors was voted to the Associated Press and UPI All-AFL teams in 1962, 1963, and 1964. In college, he played for Bear Bryant on Alabama’s 1961 national championship team. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2003.

The cards pictured here are Neighbors’s first two cards. The first, a 1961 Nu-Card, shows him still with Alabama, and the second, a 1963 Fleer, is considered his rookie card. (I don’t know why 1961 Nu-Cards are not considered rookie cards.) He appeared on several other cards and stamps, as well.

It’s Trivia Tuesday! Just pick the “Answer” links to see the answers.

1. What is the error on R.C. Owens’s 1958 Topps football card, pictured here? Answer
2. Who were the first two players elected to the New Orleans Saints Hall of Fame? Answer
3. What USC quarterback, who appeared on a 1955 Topps All-American football card, became a film editor and received an Academy Award for his work in Mary Poppins? Answer
4. What Hall of Fame defensive tackle, who spent his entire 14-year NFL career with the San Franciso 49ers, was born in Lucca, Italy? Answer
5. What Pro Football Hall of Famer was married for 25 years to actress Jane Russell? Answer
6. What member of the College Football Hall of Fame, who spent most of his NFL career with the Minnesota Vikings, played Officer Joe Coffey in the TV series Hill Street Blues? Answer
7. One card in the 1935 National Chicle football card set does not picture an NFL player. Which card is it? Answer

Like these? See my trivia questions from past weeks.

Today I added 1926 Shotwell Red Grange Ad Back cards to the Vintage Football Card Gallery. These cards, which all picture Red Grange, were one of two series included in 1926 Shotwell Red Grange candy bars. (The other series, which is blank-backed, pictures Grange in scenes from the movie One Minute to Play.) The cards are slightly smaller than standard cards, and they are printed on thin, fragile paper. A huge thanks to MSB Sports Cards for the images for this set.

Though it is not mentioned on the Shotwell cards, Grange co-founded the 9-team American Football League in 1926, and he played for the league’s New York Yankees that year. The AFL survived only one season, unfortunately. Grange and the Yankees moved to the NFL in 1927, but the Yankees lasted only two seasons in the NFL before folding.

Here’s another round of trivia. Just pick the “Answer” links to see the answers.

1. John “Red” Cochran, pictured here on his 1950 Bowman football card, is a member of what NFL team’s Hall of Fame? Answer
2. Who was the first player chosen in the first-ever NFL draft? Answer
3. Who scored the first touchdown in the history of the American Football League? Answer
4. What Los Angeles Ram and NFL Hall of Famer starred in a movie about himself in 1953? Answer
5. What Redskins kicker holds the NFL record for most extra points attempted in a game? Answer
6. Pro Football Hall of Famer Bronko Nagurski’s son played in the Canadian Football League. What was his name? Answer
7. Doak Walker had a 79-yard punt for SMU in the 1949 Cotton Bowl. One of his teammates had an 84-yard punt in the same game. Who was it? Answer
8. What Pro Football Hall of Famer was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame as an umpire in 1976? Answer

Here’s a short test of your football and football card knowledge. Just pick the “Answer” links to see the answers.

1. Who scored the first touchdown in Super Bowl history? Answer
2. After his career with the Detroit Lions, who married former Olympic skier Skeeter Werner? Answer
3. Before playing for the New York Giants, who won gold medals in the 200 meter sprint and 1600 meter relay in the 1964 Olympics? Answer
4. What former Colt, Packer, and Raider shares the NFL record for most safeties in a career? Answer
5. What former Cincinnati Bengal is a member of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame? Answer
6. Hardy Brown was one of only two players who played in the AAFC, NFL, and AFL. Who was the other? Answer
7. What is the error on Dave Middleton’s 1959 Topps football card, pictured here? Answer
8. Nicknamed “Mr. Inside,” who was the first college player to win the Heisman Trophy as a junior? Answer

Rich Saul, who played center for the Los Angeles Rams from 1970 to 1981, passed away on April 15, according to nfl.com. Saul made the Pro Bowl the last six of his twelve seasons, and he played in Super Bowl XIV against the Steelers. Saul’s brothers Bill and Ron also played in the NFL. Rich and Ron Saul were teammates at Michigan State; there is a nice article about them at profootballresearchers.org.

The card pictured here is Saul’s rookie card, a 1976 Topps, issued in his seventh season. He also appeared on a Topps card each year from 1977 to 1982.

Tom Runnels, a running back and kick returner for the Washington Redskins in 1956 and 1957, passed away on April 7. The Hood County (Texas) News web site has an obituary and a recent picture.

Runnels appeared on one football card, the 1957 Topps card pictured here.

When I realized that today was Friday the 13th, I tried to think of players on vintage football cards who wore number 13. Don Maynard is the most famous player I came up with; he is pictured here on his 1962 Fleer card. Do any others come to mind? Dan Marino wore number 13, but his rookie card is a 1984 Topps, and I wouldn’t call it a vintage card.

Don Maynard had a long career with the New York Titans/Jets, but did you know that he spent his rookie year with the New York Giants? You can see him, wearing number 13, on the 1959 Topps Giants team card. Maynard played for the Giants just one season, 1958, but Topps used the Giants’ 1958 team photo on cards from 1959 to 1963. So, from 1961 to 1963, Maynard appeared on cards from both New York teams!

Last year, after looking at a number of badly miscut cards, I concluded that uncut sheets of 1965, 1966, and 1967 Philadelphia football cards all had the same numbering scheme. So, from a picture of a half-sheet of 1966 Philadelphia cards, I was able to construct virtual half-sheets of 1965 and 1967 Philadelphia cards, as well. Unfortunately, I have not seen an example of the other half-sheet from any of the three sets, but I have been slowly piecing one together by looking at more miscut cards. Last weekend I added a few more pieces, and the second half-sheet took more shape. One of the new pieces is shown here: it’s a miscut 1966 Atlanta Falcons card that has a tiny piece of a Don Perkins card in the lower left corner.

To see my progress on the second half-sheet, go to the Uncut Sheets in Progress page and scroll down to the bottom. For a full list of my virtual uncut sheets, see a previous blog article, U is for Uncut Sheets.

This week I added 1962 Topps CFL cards to the Vintage Football Card Gallery. There are 169 cards in the set, about 21 per team. Most Topps sets contain about 10-12 cards per team, so many of the players in the 1962 CFL set were making their first appearance on a card.

As usual with non-NFL sets, I enjoyed finding players who had played in the NFL but who had not appeared on cards for their NFL teams. Pictured here are three of the those players: Hal Ledyard played for the 49ers in 1953, Chuck Quilter played for the 49ers in 1949 and 1950, and George Scott played for the Giants in 1959. I identified a few other ex-NFL players, as well; just browse the set to see them.