My '55 All-American set expands with Jurgensen

There's really not too much to say about the newest card in my series of 1955 Topps All-American style customs.


I've added quarterback legend Sonny Jurgensen to my Third Series checklist. I was happy to add a Duke player to my series because as a kid, next to the Army logo, the Blue Devil on Ace Parker's card in the original 1955 Topps A-A set was my favorite. 


In researching the write-up that appears on my card back, I learned a lot about this gutsy, versatile ballplayer.


You can google him yourself on Wikipedia, the Pro Football Hall of Fame site, etc., so there's no need for me to sing his praises here or recap his career.


The most interesting thing I found was a quote from Vince Lombardi, who coached Jurgensen in his waning years in the NFL. The man who coached Bart Starr to numerous NFL and Super Bowl championships said of Jurgensen, "He may be the best the league has ever seen. He is the best I have seen."


Though he was drafted by the Eagles in 1957 and appeared in the 1958 Topps set, Jurgensen was a backup quarterback and was not in Topps' 1959 or 1960 sets. As he career wound down, Topps also failed to include him in its 1973 and 1974 sets. Jurgensen did get half a card in the 1975 set, sharing the NFL Passing Leaders card with Kenny Anderson.


I've been encouraged by collectors in the past to create 1973 and 1974 style Jurgensen custom cards, but doubt that he'll make my to-do list in the foreseeable future.