1999 Connecticut Huskies Men's Soccer Set

The 1999 Connecticut Huskies Men's Soccer set is a perfect example of why soccer cards will never be fully documented. Who the heck even knew these existed?

Consisting of fifteen player cards, these measure the standard 2-1/2 by 3-1/2 inches and are printed on white card stock with semi-gloss fronts. Large, color photos grace the fronts and are borderless except for the top, where a light grey box contains the "UConn" designation, player's uniform number, and "1999 Connecticut Men's Soccer." The player's names are found along the front bottoms, along with a small Huskies logo and First Union bank sponsor logo. Card backs feature college stats and summaries of high school and college performances. Cards are not numbered except for the player uniform numbers on the front.

Much of the fun of collecting the kinds of sets involves learning about the players, and quick internet searches reveal all kinds of information. Matt Chavlovich, the starting goalkeeper for UConn in 1999, went on to play one year in the USL with the Connecticut Wolves and is currently the Vice President of Licensing for MLS. Chris Gbandi played professionally for FC Dallas, Haugesund and Miami FC from 2002-2010, and is currently head coach of the Northeastern Huskies men's team. Back Max Zieky played one year for the Connecticut Wolves and has been been with Dell Computer since 2002, where he is currently in charge of Business Intelligence and Sales Analytics. Back Sam Forko, originally from Liberia, was on the roster for nine games with the MetroStars in 2002. 

A collector could probably spend the remainder of their life stumbling upon this kind of obscure issue. I love soccer oddball sets, though I couldn't care less about the sport itself (soccer oddballs are just... cool). It's difficult to place a value on a set that doesn't sell very often, but I'd certainly jump on this if I could get it for ten dollars or less. To the right fan or collector, the set might sell for considerably more.

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 (1) Matt Chavlovich, Goalkeeper

(2) Sam Forko, Back

(4) Chris Gbandi, Back

(7) Meurys Cajas, Midfielder

(8) Darin Lewis, Midfielder/Forward

(9) Ryan Brown, Back

(10) Luis Arauz, Forward

(11) Brent Rahim, Midfielder

(12) Roberto Vargas, Back

 (14) Alex Cortes, Midfielder

(17) Edwin Rivera, Midfielder/Forward

(18) Bryheem Hancock, Goalkeeper

(20) Ryan Tishon, Back

(22) Mansour Ndiaye, Midfielder

(23) Max Zieky, Back

1988/89 B.Y.U. Cougars Basketball

The Oddball Card Collector gets excited when he finds serial numbered sets from the 1980s. He gets equally excited when he finds sets from the 1980s that had a limited run of 5,000 or less. When he finds a set from that decade that is serial numbered and limited to 5,000 or less, he buys early and buys often.

The 1988/89 Brigham Young University Cougars basketball issue is of course one of these forementioned sets. Featuring 25 cards and sold in a clear PVC pack, a serial number is found on the backside of the packaging header (as pictured). The last card in the set states that "BYU has authorized 5,000 sets printed for the 1988-1989 season." The cards are numbered on the backs, along with a substantial amount of personal info, statistics and a team schedule. We assume these sets were sold on the B.Y.U. campus and basketball games, and possibly through local-area card shops.

Pretty much all of the bases are covered with this issue as the players, coaches, a team photo and several action cards add to the 25-card roster. Star Michael Smith can be found on fours cards; his "regular" card, two action cards and the team photo. He would go on to play for the Celtics and Clippers in the NBA, and today is a color commentator for the Clippers with fellow announcer Ralph Lawler.

Junior guard Marty Haws is featured on five cards, thanks to his inclusion on three action cards. Heavily recruited by several football schools, the talented Haws ran the 40-yard in 4.4 seconds. His son, Tyler, recently finished his junior season with the Cougars and has passed his dad on the B.Y.U. all-time scoring list.

Ladell Andersen is represented during his final year as the head coach, a position he held since the 1983/84 season. A card is also here for longtime assistant Roger Reid, who would succeed Andersen as head coach the following year and hold the position for the next seven seasons.

This set does not appear very often; but like most sets of this nature, the waiting game usually pays off with a little patience and regular searching. Our educated guess puts the value of an unopened set in the $10 to $15 range.

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1. Team Photo

2. Michael Smith, Fwd/Ctr

3. Alan Frampton, Guard

4. Alan Astle, Guard/Fwd

5. Mike Herring, Guard

6. Mark Heslop, Guard

7. Steve Andrus, Ctr/Fwd

8. Steve Schreiner, Fwd/Ctr

9. Andy Toolsen, Guard/Fwd

10. Vince Bryan, Forward

11. Marty Haws, Guard

12. Kevin Santiago, Guard

13. David Wolfe, Fwd/Ctr

14. John Fish, Fwd/Ctr

15. Carl Ingersoll, Asst. Coach

16. Roger Reid, Head Coach

17. Ladell Andersen, Asst. Coach

18. Alan Astle (Action)

19. Marty Haws (Action)

20. Michael Smith (Action)

21. Michael Smith (Action)

22. Marty Haws (Action)

23. Andy Toolsen (Action)

24. Marty Haws (Action)

25. 1988/89 BYU Basketball Header

1980-81 Arizona Wildcats Basketball

The Wildcats basketball team were featured on their first police card issue during the 1980/81 season. A large color, borderless, posed photo dominates the front of each card, with a white stripe across the bottom stating the player's uniform number and name. Card backs feature a short player bio, a basketball term and safety tip. Sponsors are listed at the bottom: Golden Eagle Distributors, Mr. Bill Clements President and the Tucson Police Department. Cards are not numbered, with the exception of player uniform numbers.

Ten-year Wildcats head coach Fred Snowden is probably the best-known name in the set. Two cards (Greg Cook and David Mosebar) were pulled before distribution and are extremely scarce -- fortunately, we somehow grabbed examples of both for our collection, and I'll try to add scans of them when I dig them out. Because the two "short prints" were never officially distributed, many collectors consider the set complete at 17 cards.

The cards are not easy to find. A lack of big names keeps the value modest, probably in the $25 to $30 range for a set without the two short prints. A set with the short prints (19 cards) might sell in the $100 range, in the unlikely event that one comes up for sale.

It is interesting to note that the design of the Arizona sets (basketball, football and baseball) changed very little during their run of ten-plus years. To make matters worse, the first two basketball sets were printed without any mention of the year of issue. One way to distinguish the two years is by looking at the player's uniform number and name across the front bottom of the card. The 1981/82 set features a black circle between the number and name, while the inaugural 1980/81 set features nothing but a space. In addition, the backs of the 1981/82 set give the Golden Eagle business address at the bottom (705 E. Ajo Way).

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(10) Russell Brown, G

(12) Ricky Walker, G

(14) John Smith, G

(15) Ron Davis, F

(21) Robbie Dosty, F

(24) Jeff Collins, G

(31) Frank Smith, F

(34) Harvey Thompson, G

(35) Donald Mellon, F

(41) Jack Magno, F

(52) Charles Miller, F

(55) John Belobraydic, F

Greg Cook (Short Print)

David Mosebar (Short Print)

Mike Frink, Asst. Coach

Len Gordy, Asst. Coach

Mike Green, Asst. Coach

Fred Snowden, Head Coach

Ernie Valenzuela, Equip. Mgr.