CamaroDMD
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I think most sports fans come across a player during their lives that stands out as special...even if they don't really find great success. For whatever reason, you become a fan of that athlete...often because they were in the right place at the right time. For me, former quarterback Tony Graziani is that person. Let me explain that story.
I grew up in Eugene, Oregon, the home of the University of Oregon and their Oregon Ducks. Now, as a child...the Ducks weren't what they are today. In 1993, I was 8 years old and my dad took me to my very first Ducks game...we went to the annual rivalry game the "Civil War" and watched Oregon loose. The Ducks lost 12-15 capping a 5-6 season. On that day, I had never heard of Tony Graziani nor did he stand out. He was the redshirt freshman backup QB to junior starter Danny O'Neil. Even though Oregon lost and it was an ugly game...I was already a budding Oregon fan. My first experience at Autzen cemented my love for the Ducks and going into 1994 I was a die hard fan (as much as a 9 year old could be).
In 1994, Oregon was expected to finish 9th in the Pac-10...and it didn't start out well. The Ducks played 4 non-conference games (they had a 12 game schedule due to their road game against Hawaii) to start the season...and they had started 2-2. To make matters worse...senior QB Danny O'Neil had an injured hand and was unable to play in the conference opener. Oregon opened it's conference schedule on the road against Pac-10 favorite USC...at this time, Oregon hadn't beaten USC in the Coliseum in 29 years! Sophomore backup QB Tony Graziani made his first career start that day. Watching the game on TV...I witnessed this big, mobile southpaw QB lead Oregon to a shocking 22-7 victory over the Trojans. That was the turning point in the 1994 season. Graziani would only play sparingly the rest of the season...but Oregon would go 7-1 in conference (9-3 overall) and end up playing in the Rose Bowl.
As a junior, Graziani took over as the starter in 1995. The defending Pac-10 champs came into the season with huge expectations. He led Oregon to a 9-2 record (8-2 as a starter...missing 1 game due to injury) while commanding an offense that led the conference in passing yards and total offense. Although they did not win the Pac-10, they would earn a bid to the Cotton Bowl Classic on New Years Day.
He would return for his senior season in 1996...again with high expectations. Oregon opened the season on the road against Fresno State...which was a home coming for Graziani and he had made it known in the press that playing well in this game was a HUGE deal for him. In a classic, Oregon would edge Fresno State 30-27 in college football's very first overtime game. Disaster struck the next week when Graziani injured his knee against Nevada. He would miss several weeks but eventually return to finish out the season...but the season was lost. Oregon would miss a bowl game.
Originally expected to be a 4-5 round pick, Graziani fell in the draft following his injury and was selected 204th overall in the 7th round by the Atlanta Falcons in the 1997 NFL draft. He would play for the Falcons from 1997-99 seeing occasional action as a backup. He was on the 1998 Falcons team that lost Super Bowl XXXIII to the Broncos but did not play in that game. He was released by Atlanta after 1999 and spent 2000 in the Cleveland Browns organization, he was sent to NFL Europe and playing that year for the Barcelona Dragons.
He would then sign with the AFL's Los Angeles Avengers prior to 2001. He became the starter for LA in 2002 and continued in that role through 2004. He found success in the Arena Football League and when he signed with the Philadelphia Soul prior to 2005 he became the league's highest paid player. He would play for the Soul from 2005-08 before his career came to an end. While playing in the AFL, he would throw for nearly 500 touchdowns.
I followed him throughout his career and when I returned to collecting cards around 2010...I decided I should see if he had any. As it turned out, Graziani had 49 cards (48 according to Beckett but they have omitted a parallel for some reason). I made it my goal to try and track down every issue. At this point, I am only missing 5 cards (including his sole 1/1). I have also picked up a couple "unlisted" cards.
I thought I would share my collection with my friends here.
1995 Oregon Smokey #4
1996 Oregon Smokey #2
I'll post the rest of the collection later.
I grew up in Eugene, Oregon, the home of the University of Oregon and their Oregon Ducks. Now, as a child...the Ducks weren't what they are today. In 1993, I was 8 years old and my dad took me to my very first Ducks game...we went to the annual rivalry game the "Civil War" and watched Oregon loose. The Ducks lost 12-15 capping a 5-6 season. On that day, I had never heard of Tony Graziani nor did he stand out. He was the redshirt freshman backup QB to junior starter Danny O'Neil. Even though Oregon lost and it was an ugly game...I was already a budding Oregon fan. My first experience at Autzen cemented my love for the Ducks and going into 1994 I was a die hard fan (as much as a 9 year old could be).
In 1994, Oregon was expected to finish 9th in the Pac-10...and it didn't start out well. The Ducks played 4 non-conference games (they had a 12 game schedule due to their road game against Hawaii) to start the season...and they had started 2-2. To make matters worse...senior QB Danny O'Neil had an injured hand and was unable to play in the conference opener. Oregon opened it's conference schedule on the road against Pac-10 favorite USC...at this time, Oregon hadn't beaten USC in the Coliseum in 29 years! Sophomore backup QB Tony Graziani made his first career start that day. Watching the game on TV...I witnessed this big, mobile southpaw QB lead Oregon to a shocking 22-7 victory over the Trojans. That was the turning point in the 1994 season. Graziani would only play sparingly the rest of the season...but Oregon would go 7-1 in conference (9-3 overall) and end up playing in the Rose Bowl.
As a junior, Graziani took over as the starter in 1995. The defending Pac-10 champs came into the season with huge expectations. He led Oregon to a 9-2 record (8-2 as a starter...missing 1 game due to injury) while commanding an offense that led the conference in passing yards and total offense. Although they did not win the Pac-10, they would earn a bid to the Cotton Bowl Classic on New Years Day.
He would return for his senior season in 1996...again with high expectations. Oregon opened the season on the road against Fresno State...which was a home coming for Graziani and he had made it known in the press that playing well in this game was a HUGE deal for him. In a classic, Oregon would edge Fresno State 30-27 in college football's very first overtime game. Disaster struck the next week when Graziani injured his knee against Nevada. He would miss several weeks but eventually return to finish out the season...but the season was lost. Oregon would miss a bowl game.
Originally expected to be a 4-5 round pick, Graziani fell in the draft following his injury and was selected 204th overall in the 7th round by the Atlanta Falcons in the 1997 NFL draft. He would play for the Falcons from 1997-99 seeing occasional action as a backup. He was on the 1998 Falcons team that lost Super Bowl XXXIII to the Broncos but did not play in that game. He was released by Atlanta after 1999 and spent 2000 in the Cleveland Browns organization, he was sent to NFL Europe and playing that year for the Barcelona Dragons.
He would then sign with the AFL's Los Angeles Avengers prior to 2001. He became the starter for LA in 2002 and continued in that role through 2004. He found success in the Arena Football League and when he signed with the Philadelphia Soul prior to 2005 he became the league's highest paid player. He would play for the Soul from 2005-08 before his career came to an end. While playing in the AFL, he would throw for nearly 500 touchdowns.
I followed him throughout his career and when I returned to collecting cards around 2010...I decided I should see if he had any. As it turned out, Graziani had 49 cards (48 according to Beckett but they have omitted a parallel for some reason). I made it my goal to try and track down every issue. At this point, I am only missing 5 cards (including his sole 1/1). I have also picked up a couple "unlisted" cards.
I thought I would share my collection with my friends here.
1995 Oregon Smokey #4
1996 Oregon Smokey #2
I'll post the rest of the collection later.
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