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1983T Michigan Panthers - USFL's First Champ
The upstart USFL was determined not to embarrass themselves as the mid-1970s World Football League did. Deeper pockets and wider vision were at the foundation of the USFL and the first 12 teams provided excitement and plenty of star power. The Panthers started slow and then opened the checkbook and signed key offensive lineman in midseason. This proved to be the key that gave them the strength to win it all after a disappointing 1–4 start. New superstars emerged like Bobby Hebert, Anthony Carter, and John Corker and the cast of supporting players were also solid. This set features: John Banaszak,...
1960 NFL Series Two!
By the late 1980s, it was understood that the modern football era began in 1960. This made some sense because in the 80s we had the hindsight to recognize that 1960 was the beginning of pro football’s main expansion with the advent of the newly formed American Football League and the beginning of Pete Rozelle’s 30-year reign as NFL Commissioner. Looking back from the 21st century, 1960s football seems charming if not ancient. But the decade of the 1960s was the first real growth period in football’s modern era. There were two football card sets in 1960, one taking the NFL players and the other dealing exclusively with the...
1983 Oakland Invaders: Who Needs the Raiders?
We Don't Want the Raiders – We Want the Invaders! so the slogan went, hailing the coming of the new USFL's Bay Area team in Oakland. The Invaders had the fortuitous situation of being in the right place at the right time, filling the vacuum left by the NFL's Raiders, whose owner Al Davis always like to keep on the move. Once the dust settled, the Invaders seemed that they had put together on of the best teams in the USFL. With Raider veterans Ray Chester, Arthur Whittington and Cedrick Hardman to helping to sell tickets, the Invaders put together...
1969 Oakland Raiders
1968 saw the Raiders compile an impressive 12–2 record despite a rash of injuries to their defense including Tom Keating, Bill Laskey, and Kent McCloughan. Luckily, key rookies like George Atkinson stepped up to compensate. New stars were emerging like Warren Wells, Gene Upshaw, and Art Shell and in 1969, young coach John Madden took over and improved their 1968 to 12–1–1 in 1969. The Kansas City Chiefs proved to be too much for the Raiders in 1969, beating them 17–7 in the AFL Championship Game, but the Raiders had built a tradition of winning and that would carry them...
Those We've Lost in 2020: Part Three
This part three post of the many sports and pop culture figures we have lost in 2020. Paul Crane, Helen Reddy, Jay Johnstone, Mike Tilleman, Tom Yewcic, Dick Nemelka, Charlie Pride, Matt Blair, Larry Wilson, David Lander, Whitey Ford, Ron Perranoski, Jake Scott, Gale Sayers, Bill Mathis, Alex Trebek, K.C. Jones, Joe Morgan, Milt Sunde, Ray Perkins, Phil Niekro, Gord Brooks, Bird Averitt, Ron Widby, Derland Moore, Bob Whitlow, Jimmy Orr, Tom Dempsey, Fred Dean, Loyd Phillips, and Louis Carter. Thank you for checking out this special series of Those We've Lost.
Those We've Lost In 2020: Part Two
This part two post of the many sports and pop culture figures we have lost in 2020. Bob Oliver, Howard Mudd, Joe Beauchamp, Little Richard, Bob Watson, Dick Lucas, Earnie Killum, Tom Seaver, Rosey Taylor, Lee Grosscup, Wes Unseld, Mike McCormack Rodger Bird, Don Zimmerman, Dick Coury, Tom Vaughn, Paul Rochester, Claudell Washington, Oscar Brown, Dick Allen, Jim Frey, Wilford Brimley, Carl Garrett, Mitch Hoopes, Lou Brock, Earl Thomas, Horace Clarke, Dave Lewis, Jim Kiick, Jerry Sloan, Stan Hindman, and Don Shula. Part Three is to come!
Those We've Lost in 2020: Part One
As time presses on, we continue to lose many sports figures and pop culture personalities from the RetroCards Era of 1955-1988. In this Part One of Those We've Lost in 2020, RetroCards offers a brief memorial by showing a "card that never was." Those who have passed and are featured here include: Herb Adderley, Sean Connery, Eddie Van Halen, Sam Wyche, Don Larson, Doug Hart, David Stern, Neil Peart, Allen Brown, Willie Wood, Orson Bean, Robert Conrad, Kelley Nakahra, Ja’Net Dubois, Nesby Glasgow, Gloster Richardson, Del Shofner, Lyle Waggoner, Benny Malone , Curly Neal, Mike Stratton, Jim Wynn, Goldie Sellers,...
The NFLs Golden Boy: Paul Hornung
The NFL’s Golden Boy, Paul Hornung, passed away at the age of 84 on November 13th, 2020. If you were to pick one player on Vince Lombardi’s Green Bay Packer teams that launched that dynasty in the 1960s, it would have to be Paul Hornung. An unlikely NFL quarterback, the Heisman Trophy winner was drafted number one in 1957 to bolster the hapless Packers at time when the term “Titletown” was a distant memory. In his first two seasons Hornung was under utilized as a runner, receiver, and kicking specialist, tallying only 85 points in his first two seasons. Granted,...
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