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1966 Topps baseball card of former major league pitcher Sonny Siebert, who threw for 12 seasons, half of which were for the Cleveland Indians before splitting the last 6 with 5 different clubs. Often overshadowed in the Tribe’s rotation by Sam McDowell and Luis Tiant, he consistently finished in the top 3 of American League hurlers in strikeouts and ERA, usually behind McDowell. Siebert was drafted by the NBA’s St. Louis Hawks the same year Cleveland picked him in the MLB draft. He tossed a no-hitter in 1966 against the Washington Senators. Siebert, now 86, is enjoying retirement living in St. Louis.

1952 Bowman football card of a former NFL running back who played 5 seasons for the Los Angeles Rams from 1949 until 1953, Vitamin Smith. Like vitamins do for your body, he provided extra energy to the Rams’ attack as a kick return specialist, and in 1950 returned 3 kicks for touchdowns, a league record that would stand until 1967. Smith served in the U.S. Army during World War II and took part in the battle of Normandy. A track star in college, he passed away in 2000 at the age of 76.

1967 Topps football card of former pro quarterback George Wilson Jr., who had a brief career, basically only a single season, in the American Football League with the Miami Dolphins. He was drafted by Buffalo in 1965 but never played for them, then was traded to Miami in ’66, where he linked up with the Dolphins’ head coach, his father George Wilson Jr. He played in all 14 games that year, the Dolphins inaugural season as a franchise, and his claim to fame was that he quarterbacked the first victory in team history that year. He was then traded to Denver but didn’t make the squad, so his short-lived pro career was finished. Wilson Jr. died of throat cancer in 2011.

1990 Fleer football card of former pro football quarterback Jim Kelly, who played 13 years, 11 of them in the NFL with the Buffalo Bills. He joined the Bills after spending 2 years with the USFL’s Houston Gamblers leading the “run and shoot” offense there. He enjoyed tremendous success in Buffalo, guiding the Bills to 4 consecutive Super Bowl appearances running the fast-paced “K Gun” offense. Kelly was a five-time Pro Bowler as well as a member of the Bills’ Wall of Fame, and his jersey number 12 is retired by the franchise. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2002. He still lives in the Buffalo area, and has raised millions through his Hunter’s Hope (named after his late son) and Kelly For Kids Foundations.

A custom-designed 1954 Bowman football card of former NFL player and coach Don Shula. The card never actually existed in the ’54 Bowman set, but is the artwork of that master of producing fake football cards, Bob Lemke. Shula was a 7 year journeyman defensive back as a player in the 1950s, but went on to become the winningest head coach in NFL history with 347 combined regular season and playoff wins. He coached teams to the Super Bowl 6 times, winning a pair with the Miami Dolphins that included the undefeated 1972 club. Shula was voted to the 1970s All Decade team and the 100th Anniversary team as a coach. He was a four-time NFL Coach of The Year, and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1997.

1989 Pro Set football card of former NFL head coach Marv Levy, who has a long and storied coaching career at various levels dating back to 1951. He was an NFL head coach for 17 years, and had his most success in Buffalo, where he led the Bills to 4 consecutive Super Bowls. Levy also coached the Montreal Alouettes in the Canadian League for 5 seasons, winning 2 Grey Cup titles. A vegetarian, the 98 year old Levy lives with his wife in the Chicago area. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2001 and the CFL Hall of Fame in 2021.

1978 Opeechee hockey card of former pro hockey center Don Luce, who played 13 seasons in the National Hockey League for 5 different teams. He enjoyed his most success with the Buffalo Sabres, where he centered a top checking line along with Craig Ramsay and Danny Gare. After retiring as a player Luce worked in player scouting and player development for the Sabres and Philadelphia Flyers, and is currently a scout for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

1968 Topps football card of former pro football defensive tackle Jim Kanicki, who played 9 seasons in the NFL, mostly with the Cleveland Browns. In the years before the 2 leagues merged both the NFL and AFL held separate player drafts, and Kanicki was picked by the Browns and the Buffalo Bills of the AFL. He chose to sign with Cleveland and helped anchor their defensive line for 8 years. He was a member of the Browns’ 1964 NFL championship team, and was named one of the top 100 players in franchise history in 2012.  After retiring, Kanicki purchased the Arthur Louis Steel Company in 1985, and still maintains control of the business.

1973 Topps football card of former pro football defensive end Al Cowlings, who played 10 seasons of pro ball, 9 in the NFL, with 5 franchises. A top pick of the Buffalo Bills, he flamed out there after 3 years and drifted around the league for the rest of his years. They included a season in the Canadian League with Montreal in 1978. Cowlings dabbled in acting for a brief period after retiring as a player, but his claim to fame was unfortunate, as he was best friend O.J. Simpson’s driver in the slow-speed police chase that ended in Simpson’s arrest for murder in 1995.

1965 Topps football card of former pro quarterback John Huarte, who played 8 years in the AFL and NFL for 5 different teams. He was once listed as one of the top 50 draft busts of all time, but there’s more to his story. After winning the Heisman Trophy at Notre Dame, he was picked in the second round of the AFL draft as a highly-regarded prospect. The only problem was the team that drafted him, the New York Jets, had chosen Joe Namath in the first round. Despite that, Huarte kicked around pro ball as a backup and even won a Super Bowl ring as part of the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl IV squad. After his playing days he opened a tile business that has grown to 30 locations and employs 1,000 people.