Different Collections Different Rules

My Pirates collection is based around being a team collector. Of course I favor certain players, but I don't have a desire to chase every release.  I crave variety so I like to spread my money around. With WVU different rules apply.  While I have the same mentality, the player pool is much smaller. 

The core four in my collection are Pat White, Steve Slaton, Joe Alexander and Devin Ebanks. While I've always had a WVU collection, these four gave the collection the proverbial shot in the arm.  It allowed me to chase newer football and basketball releases that I had to ignore for the longest time because WVU had a significant gap in producing top round talent. Now WVU is producing top round talent on a more consistent basis so I don't accumulate as much of one player. 

Long story short the core four flamed out extremely quick.  While this is disappointing my collection is more based on my collegiate alliance than professional success. This creates a nice buyers market. The time period these guys were drafted (2008-2010) was also peak auto/relic time.  So I have tons of cards to chase and with the ~10 year time lapse I've accumulated a ton. 

While I'm no where close to having everything ever produced of these players, I am to the point where I'm adding mainly parallels.  Sometimes they are of the very unique variety like my most recent Pat White purchase

2009 Absolute Memorabilia Pat White Patch /5

That is a prominent Reebok patch.  While I enjoy adding autographs this is one of the more unique White cards in my collection.  If I'm going to spend a higher $ amount I normally favor players in the WVU uniform, but this was so unique I pulled the trigger. I'm happy to give this one a good home.

Thanks for reading!

Rivalry Revival

I'm in the DC area this weekend to attend the WVU/Virginia Tech game. The game is being played at Fed Ex Field where the Redskins play their home games. The area is full of alumni for each school so it was an easy sell out.  It is very exciting to have one of our traditional rivals back on the schedule.  These schools played some memorable games back in the Big East days so the fanbases are super pumped. Hopefully at some point the teams can play each other on a more regular basis, but this kickoff classic will hold me over for now.

If you are neutral fan come join the Mountaineers bandwagon.  We have plenty of moonshine and pepperoni rolls for you.

Football season gives me a chance to showoff a few cards from WVU collection. Here is a cool dual auto featuring two of the most successful players in school history.

Let's Go Mountaineers.

College Football Mini Rant

Been a whirlwind (but fun) 24 hours for me. I got home around 1am this morning from San Antonio. The bad thing was I pumped myself full of caffeine to make the drive home from the airport that I had trouble winding down. After a nice early wake up call from my daughter I prepared for the WVU football game at 3pm against Liberty. After the WVU game I went immediately home so I could watch the Pirates/Brewers on TV. Since the Cardinals have decided to go on their worst stretch of the year it has allowed the Pirates and Cubs to make a run at the division. A fun day for sure that was only made better by a WVU and Buccos win.

Minor rant....

I find myself getting more and more tired of the in game experience at college football games. There is nothing worse than having some drunk idiot screaming his lungs out about play calling and screaming "Tackle" at the top of his lungs on every defensive play. The crazy thing about it is this game was never really in question and our quarterback only threw a handful of incomplete passes. My favorite moment was at the end of the game when we were running the ball to eat clock and "drunk coach" wanted us to throw the ball. We ended up running again and scored a touchdown. He almost acted dejected that we scored. No reasoning with drunk idiots.

2009 Exquisite Collection Pat White Quad Patch /35

Last week I had another drunk idiot behind me who couldn't let go of the fact that Pat White is no longer our quarterback. WVU is running a good bit of read option this year with our new quarterback to a decent amount of success so far. Obviously drunk idiot wasn't impressed as he would say "Pat White could do it better" after every run. Ugh.... 

What better way to introduce my newest Pat White card! This card is very colorful. One thing about the Dolphins is that their jerseys can make some sweet relics. I don't quite recall the price of this card, but I think it was around $10-15. White was a bust in the NFL, but his cards still sell well on the secondary market because of his college success. 

Thanks for reading. I'm sure Pat White could have wrote a better post......

Mad Dog and a Dolphin

When you build a good portion of your collection via eBay it is hard to be surprised when you come across certain cards. For me when it does happen, these surprises come in two forms. The first is when I come across a card that I didn't know existed. Since I'm a team collector that puts a heavy focus on autographs this rarely happens. Once a set is released my normal protocol is to look at the checklist and make a mental note of what Pirates are in the set. Over the next few months I keep track of auctions to get an idea of what the going rate is and try to find a deal.

As most of you know life sometimes gets in the way and with some many sets being released it is hard to keep track. So was the case with this gem from 2014 Leaf Memories.

2014 Leaf Memories Buyback Auto /5

I knew this set existed since I already had this Candy Man, but never paid attention to what Pirates were in it. It is a Pirates goldmine! 

The other type of eBay surprise I was referencing is when you find that illusive high end card. When it comes to WVU players Pat White is the cream of the crop. He won 4 bowl games during his career including two BCS games. In terms of his cardboard I have just about everything you can own of Mr. White. Most of the holes in my collection are high end/low numbered releases. One such card I've been looking for was the patch/auto /99 out of Exquisite. At the time these cards were super expensive costing hundreds of dollars. Since Pat fizzled out of the NFL I make it point to fill in some of the holes in my collection now that prices are much more affordable.

2009 Pat White Exquisite Patch Auto /99

My patience paid off as I found a copy with a premium patch. I was grinning from ear to ear when this card arrived in the mail.

So there you have it. Even on eBay you can be surprised in a good way when purchasing cards. You can find a mysterious Mad Dog and catch a big fish if you are patient.

Thanks for reading.

Big Game

Big game tonight between the Sooners and Mountaineers.  Should be an awesome environment.  I'm hosting a tailgate at my house in which the festivities are just about to begin.

2009 SP Authentic Dual Auto Slaton/White /50

Nothing beats a nice on card auto with beautiful signatures of two former WVU stars.  

Here are a couple craft beers we cracked open last night.

We started with the IPA and worked up to the unidragon stout.  Both were delicious!  

How about those Pirates!  What a game last night.  Russell Martin delivered a huge three run homer to lead the Buccos to a win against the Brewers.  A win tonight almost guarantees at least a wild card spot.  

Enjoy all the great football and baseball today.  Let's Go Bucs!  Let's Go Mountaineers!

Home Game

It's a football weekend in Morgantown.  The Mountaineers host Towson tomorrow night so it should be a fun atmosphere.  I live close to the stadium so my house or my in-laws house are usually the staging area for some fun tailgates.  My friends will be coming over early afternoon to get the party started.  Grilling, beer and music will be ready to go!

Pat White/Steve Slaton UD Black Dual Auto /10

This card is one of my all time favorites.  It features two of the most successful players in WVU history.  Both players have nice autos and the pennants really give a nice college feel to the card. The card is super thick and actually came with a certificate of authenticity.  Not sure it was originally a redemption or if was pack pulled.  

Hope everybody enjoys the games tomorrow.  Have a good weekend!