Excited for today's chat. We're gonna be talking about, college cards collecting the ever changing role. I got a chance to sit down in real life and in person with today's guest over a meal not too long ago, which was fun.

And as we kind of went our separate ways, I started to think a lot about college cards and collecting and figured, you know what?

We can probably make an episode out of this. Today, I'm joined by David, mostly nineties basketball cards. And, yeah, we're gonna dig in. But without further ado, David, welcome, man. How are you? I'm great.

You know, nursing my wounds after a second round exit in the NCAA tournament. So that was tough over the weekend, but doing well otherwise, and happy to be here talking about cards. I'm glad you brought it up, and I didn't have to.

We it was it's crazy how fast things change in college athletics. We when we got together, we you know, it was pre the big big tent. The they had won, but they hadn't gone on the big run yet.

And Mhmm. The Badgers in Indianapolis made it all the way to the championship game. And so there was a lot of momentum, I feel like, coming from your squad going into the tournament.

And just like the tournament does. Right? It it takes out teams, the way it does, and it's brutal. But, like, I know you were a huge fan of this team.

Like, I could sense that from our conversations. I like, obviously, it's disappointing, but how are you feeling right now about just, like, the season you had and maybe the future outlook?

I am, like, heartbroken, really, for the players, because they were so good, and many of them were at Wisconsin for their whole careers.

We had six seniors on the team, five of whom were in the rotation. So, like, five of our eight or nine players were seniors.

And they had fallen just short of the sweet 16 a couple other times. The last two seasons, we made runs in the big ten tournament, got to the championship, and then fell short there.

So they they just came up just short of all of these kinda major accomplishments, which would have been really nice, for them to experience because they they deserved it.

They they were winners. They they put together a lot of wins. They overachieved. But mostly, I'm just grateful to, to have been able to watch them play.

They they brought me a lot of joy over the last four or five years, and, really, they, like, stabilized the program this year because last year, we had a, an early exit in the NCAA tournament, and it was pretty disappointing, but we had a a lot of talent coming back.

And then our two blessed two best players transferred as happens so often in college sports these days. So it was kinda devastating because we've never really been bitten by the, transfer before.

So it was a little destabilizing. We were picked twelfth in the big ten preseason. So we were not supposed to be in the tournament, and we ended up being a three seed. You know, we we won a game. So really just kinda grateful.

They they kept that floor high, and, I'm I'm optimistic going into next year, kinda that we can keep this, just stable, consistent winning culture even in this high transfer portal era and NIL and all the other changing the changing landscape of college sports.

It's pretty crazy, but, just really grateful that I got to cheer for that team. I sense that'll probably be a part of how we talk about collecting.

But maybe for people who don't know you, I I think, you you know, you go to your page, you scroll down, you see nineties cards, but I think mostly you see Badgers cards.

And you I as long as I've known you and interacted with you, I know, like, we all have, like, our teams, but everyone who's got our teams has our, like, our go to, and we're die hard for a specific team.

And I've always viewed you as just, like, Wisconsin Badgers fan above all else, and you express that through your collection.

Maybe talk about, like, where the the Badgers fandom came from and kinda how that led into you collecting cards. Yeah. I'm I'm a Wisconsin sports fan, so I I do cheer for the the Packers and the Brewers and the Bucks.

But I grew up just outside of Madison where the University of Wisconsin is, and, you know, went to high school in a a suburb just outside Madison and always went to basketball games and football games, mostly with my dad, but, a lot of games every year and got to to see all those players come through starting in, like, probably about 1994.

So, you know, Michael Finley was going to school, when I started going to games. And then I I went to college there, which was, like, 02/2004 to 02/2009.

So it's just always I I think I kinda having grown up in that environment in a college town where, like, so much revolves around, like, football Saturdays and badger game days, it it always just felt normal to me.

And I kinda realized, like, as I grew up and moved around to different cities and you see how different, sports fans react and react to, like, you know, college versus pro.

Like, I I almost didn't realize that the Badgers were college and that the Bucks were pro.

It was just like these are just, like, two basketball teams I cheer for, and it it it's never been, like, different levels to me even though, obviously, it is.

And I fully realized that the the NBA is a much higher level of basketball than college, but I the passion I have for, those Badger teams and just, you know, trying to win the big 10 against all the other schools from well, it used to be around the Midwest, and now it's across the country.

But, just all of the the vibe of the student section and the band and all the sights and sounds, like, that just feels like it's more ingrained in my blood than than any other, fandom for any other team.

So that that's just really how I grew up, and it it I still, like, feel that way today.

Like, when when the Badgers lose a basketball game, I'm just I'm I'm I'm not over the NCAA tournament loss yet, but it's it's different when it ends your season.

But, like, we'll lose a regular season game that we're not supposed to, and I am just, like, devastated for a week.

And, you know, if if the Bucks lose, there's 82 games, and we move on to the next one. And it it sucks, but it's not it's not the end of the world.

But, yeah, the the Badgers, I I live and die by Badger basketball games, especially. If it makes you feel any better, it took me, I think, five weeks to get over the Notre Dame national championship loss.

So I I finally have, clarity around that. But, yeah, the the losses can be brutal. But I feel like in those moments, it kind of tests you as a fan and and really shows you kind of where your allegiance lies.

Thinking about maybe collecting and I know you you kinda straddle both. Like, you have college cards and you've got, you know, pro cards, and a lot of your pro cards are former Badger players.

But maybe what does collecting Badgers cards allow you to express that maybe, like, traditional NBA pro cards, nineties cards, whatever era, current day Giannis cards?

Like, maybe talk a little bit about the difference that you you get as you collect Badgers cards.

I think, you know, the the one thing that ties them all together, I've got, you know, from from Michael Finley, basically, is the first Badger card, like, in a a produced set, in 1995, through, like, present day or or, I guess, a couple years ago.

And, like, just looking at a card and seeing the Wisconsin logo and the jersey just kinda gives me that that warm feeling.

And they're they're all different eras and all different manufacturers and all different sets, but, like, just seeing on, like, a a well made produced card, a picture of a Wisconsin jersey almost almost doesn't matter who it is.

Like, that resonates with me, and it's something that I want to own. So I I get a lot of nostalgia for, like, logos, I think.

I I really like some nineties basketball cards just because they feature, like, the old NBA logos. And I just feel that way, especially when I see, like, the Badger w on the front of a basketball card.

So I definitely like, I am drawn towards the nineties cards of of all the eras because that's that's really what I grew up with. I think my my collecting prime as a kid was really, like, '93 to '97.

So those those eras and those those jerseys and players, like, I have I have nostalgia for for all of those players from that era across all teams, and I do some set collecting, in NBA, but I'm not really just like a full on team collector for NBA cards.

That's where that's where the Badger connection comes in.

And, for me, it it's kind of nice because it brings this what most people think are, like, a random collection of players together in a cohesive way that makes sense, and it allows me to, you know, collect Finlay cards in the nineties of, like, all those parallels you hear about.

And then, you know, you get you get more players every few years. So I get Devin Harris, and I can collect all the the tops chrome and finest and that stuff in the 2 thousands.

And then I've got a a few different players, Kaminski and Decker and Johnny Davis in the Panini era. So it it gives me a reason to collect in all different eras.

And it's kind of, for me, like, a manageable, amount of players too. Like, it's basically, like, every three to four years, maybe I'll get one pro from Wisconsin. And it's kind of been spaced out like that ever since 1995.

If I was a Kentucky or a Duke fan, it would be an issue. Right? Because you have every single year, you have maybe multiple players who are in a bunch of sets, so you you would have to pick and choose.

Like, I I'm not making a whole lot of choices over here. I'm pretty much collecting any badger card, college uniform, especially.

But even in the pro stuff, there's there's not that many players who have gone that deep into their careers and been included in that many sets. So it it's a nice collection of players for me to focus on. I I love that.

And maybe I know we're gonna talk about some of the newer stuff and maybe where there's some gaps through your observation, but I don't think many it's it hasn't probably the only other person who has brought it up on this show has probably been you, but maybe talk about you said that sweet spot of collecting years in the nineties.

Maybe, Cheryl, the landscape for the types or the products of college cards that existed in the nineties. I remember classics. I remember, like, that being the brand.

I remember ripping open packs. I pulled the I still have it. I pulled the Jason Kidd in his Cal Jersey classic autograph, and I thought it was, like, the coolest college card I've ever pulled in my life.

It's still in a screw down, but I don't think that, like, that era of, like, nineties college collecting is it it's not, like, prevalent and hardly anyone talks about it.

But, like, how do you view that that lane of yours? Like, what are some of the sets that stand out? Yeah.

First of all, I I love, like, going down those little lanes and, like, getting just the smallest niche possible that it feels like nobody else is doing and just researching everything I can and then collecting that and, just completely staying out of the mainstream stuff.

And, that that's, like, my favorite way to collect.

So that's drawn me in even more than just my love for college basketball in Wisconsin, but, like, just getting to, like, pick apart those those little lanes and products that are pretty much forgotten, that that just kinda warms my collecting heart.

But, yeah, I've I kinda started off collecting all these Wisconsin cards and then realized, like, okay. I I've only been focusing on '95, '90 '7, '2 thousand '4, '2 thousand '7, like, the the draft years of Wisconsin players.

And I think it was about a couple years ago, I really started to go back and search for, cards from every school to figure out what the landscape of college basketball cards really look like.

So you're right. Classic was, I think, the first one that really produced college basketball cards. And so that was in 1992. They had Shaq autographs, and they had very similarly 1993 Chris Webber autographs, Penny Hardaway.

Pacific also started in 1994. There's other brands that popped up in, '95. Press Pass, which is one of my favorites. Signature, '96 with, like, that amazing draft class.

Right? There's a lot of great college players plus Kobe. So scoreboard and collector's edge. And one of my favorite all time sets is from 1996. It's a insert set in press pass, and it's the first game used Jersey card set.

So I've been collecting those like crazy for the past few years. So they start in '96, and, they did every year through February and then a few more years in the February.

So and then two more notable college sets that came up in '98. Sage is a brand that started in '98, and they were around through the February. And SP Top Prospecs, is a a pretty notable college brand.

They did quite a few sets, and they they really started, having some of the rarer parallels. So they had a parallel called I think it's called president's edition, and it was numbered to 10 in 1998, which is almost impossible to find.

So it it kinda mirrors, a little bit the trajectory that NBA cards did in the nineties where those early classic sets are borderline junk wax.

Right? There there are some autographs in there, but everything else, there's nothing that rare.

And then they got into, like, right around '96. They I think they led the way a little bit with with some of the stuff and and inspired Skybox and other brands to, to to make some rarer, shinier parallels.

But, yeah, you do get some some high numbered stuff in the early to mid nineties. Like, it'll be autographs numbered out of a thousand, or there's a lot of parallels in '96 that are numbered out of 1,000 or 2,000.

So that was extremely rare for for that time period, but nothing super rare until you get to, like, 1998. You mentioned you you like being in a lane that is empty, and there's maybe not very few people looking at it.

And I think with college cards, maybe that you're in a good spot, or I know it's changed a little bit, but maybe when you started collecting, there were were less people.

But, you know, there's these existing narratives of, like, people saying, why would you collect college cards? Like, once they turn pro, they lose these cards lose their value.

But, you know, that obviously doesn't take into consideration someone of your profile who, like, lives and breathes badger sports and basketball and football and everything.

I guess with their with their being maybe it's still being maturing, maybe less as pro sports, maybe talk a little bit about just, like, the the community of college collectors and just, like you can, also, like, include, you know, yourself in this mix, but, like, what are the traits of the people who are, like, we don't care.

Like, we're here to collect, these cards because we have a personal connection to them. And then, like, maybe just your experience interacting with other Badger collectors or collectors of other college, teams.

Yeah. I mean, if if you know other badger collectors, let me know. I'd I'd love to I'd love to meet them. Now there's there's a couple Kaminsky collectors I talk to regularly, but they don't really collect, other badger players.

There's, you know, coming to mind, maybe three or four other, like, college basketball collectors, I would say, on Instagram that I interact with regularly.

Maybe Michigan, Kansas. I think maybe there's a one good Duke collector that I talk to quite a bit. So it's it's sporadic. We've we've found each other, but it's not a huge community, and it's difficult.

So it it has to start with just passion for your school and your team, because it's not set up to, be easy for a college collector. None of these, none of these cards I collect are, like, produced with me in mind. Right?

I'm I'm finding what I like about these cards and these sets and then bringing them to my collection, but nobody's, like, making the same sets every year with every year with Wisconsin players so that I can get my team set together.

It also, I should I should say, like, about all these college sets and kind of the shifting landscape, all of these have always just been the draft picks type sets because it was it's never been legal to make cards of amateur athletes and compensate them for it.

So you always had to wait until these players were either declared to go pro or graduated from college.

So every single one of these sets is is gonna be just the draft class. And to me, that doesn't really capture college basketball very well. Sometimes there's a big overlap, but it it also leaves huge gaps.

And there's a lot of great college players who never have any pro prospects and are are not gonna get drafted, and they just get left out of these sets oftentimes. So there's there's a lot of, room for improvement.

So they you know, the NIL era coming in, players being allowed to be compensated and make money, while they're in school, I'm I'm all for it. It's great. It hasn't totally changed the way cards are made yet.

Right? You you do see some, high impact freshmen who are gonna be high lottery picks in these sets. But it's it's not like they're now just cranking out college sets with a wide variety of players and teams in them.

So it it is still a struggle, and I think that's why if if you're a college collector, you're coming in with your your team passion first and and trying to get everything you can.

Because certainly, there are cards I wish existed that just they're not they're not anywhere to be found.

So it it's tough to kinda, like, build the history of your team when so many critical pieces are missing, but, that's where just kinda seeing any Wisconsin player in a w on a card, gets me excited.

But it's gotta be your team passion first because it's it's not easy. I wanna maybe dig into some of your favorite cards in your collection before we move over to, like, the current landscape and talk about, like, Bowman.

But, maybe before we talk about your cards, let's talk about just, like, maybe some misconceptions. Like, what are what do you think or what do you hear as that being, like, the central force of your collection?

I'm sure, like, whenever you hear anyone talking about college collecting or college cards, like, it raises antennas and you're one of the there's probably more than we're giving it credit for, but we'll just say one of the few, primary college collectors out there on Instagram.

What are some of those common misconceptions that you hear today even today about college collecting? One of my biggest pet peeves is that, like, any card of a player in a college uniform is unlicensed.

It it drives me crazy. I absolutely hate unlicensed college cards. It's like airbrushing the w off the helmet, or the jersey is like sacrilegious, and it's it's disgusting.

It should not be done. I don't want to see that card. It's, it's not for me. So so people often refer to anything that is not fully MBA licensed as unlicensed, and that is, not at all true.

The I think the individual colleges have to license out the the branding themselves. So, yeah, that is one of the pain points, I think, of producing college cards is you have to go to each school and and get their approval.

But, that that idea and then also the more widely known general idea that pro cards are always more valuable and always more desirable than college cards.

It's just I mean, that's true for a lot of great pro players who have gone on to, like, win MVPs and championships in the NBA.

But for so many players and so many of the players I collect, like, Frank Kaminsky is an absolute college legend, and a lot of NBA collectors will hear the name Frank Kaminsky and just think, oh, yeah.

That guy was just like this washed up scrub. Like, he I think he was on the end of the bench in Phoenix or, like, whatever they remember about him.

Like, he is, like, the number one by a mile best badger of all time. Like, he his jersey is in the rafters. And so, like, if I can get a card of him, I so much prefer a Wisconsin Badgers card than a Charlotte Hornets card.

And that's true of all the Kaminsky collectors I know too. So his cards do sell more in a badger jersey than in a Charlotte jersey.

That's that's very true. So it it really depends on the player. Obviously, with with someone like him, it's, it's pretty easy to see why. I love that. Frank Kaminski is probably the best possible example that you could throw out there.

And there's plenty others for specific teams, but I think as I'm thinking about the Badgers and people who've had decent careers, Kaminski is definitely the top the one that comes top of mind, for me.

I'd love to see maybe some of your favorite Badger cards or college cards within your collection. Maybe share a few and and talk about why they mean, so much to you.

Alright. So I'm gonna show you three different players. This first one is is Devin Harris. Right. That's the 02/2005 Bowman Chrome gold refractor out of 50. It's BGS95, and it's the jersey number copy.

So Devin does not have any one of ones. There's two sets he's in in the Badger uniform that have serial numbered parallels. So this is one of them. It's the rarest parallel, and it's the jersey numbered copy.

So this to me is is the top of the mountain for for Devin Harris collecting. And there there are some, a couple other Devin Harris collectors out there who have some some really strong stuff, but they're NBA focused.

Right? They're they're fans of NBA teams or a fan of him as an NBA player. And for me, I, you know, I still want his college stuff over the pro stuff.

So this this is just, like, my my absolute favorite card, of his. And I think, like, each of these badger cards going back, they also they change their uniform, like, every few years, and you just see, like, this shot of them.

And there's, like, just an era and a vibe that comes through with, like, the nineties and the early two thousand stuff and, like, these big baggy shorts. And, it's just it makes me feel like I'm in high school looking at that picture.

Is is so is that so for the listeners, Harris is rocking Badger gear. Is that is that a Bowman Chrome MBA product, though? Yes. So this is a And he's featured in his college stuff.

Featured in his college stuff. You can see up and down on the the blue on the side that says Dallas Mavericks. Okay. Or he's already been drafted. They know where he's going. And then also it it it's NBA licensed on the back.

So it's a fully NBA licensed card. So, again, it's, like, in that that area where I get so pissed off when people call it unlicensed because this is actually an MBA licensed card. It's it's not an unlicensed card.

They just used the college uniform picture, which is ideal for me. And then there's even a Mavericks logo on the back. But then it it's got all of its college statistics and and highlights and things too.

So, kind of best of both worlds for me. That's awesome. Is that is the, pro card appearing like, rookie appearing in college uniform, is that, common, not common, somewhere in between?

I would say that's pretty uncommon. I think there are a few random, like, Topps chrome cards in the early two thousands where there were college uniform players.

Nobody from Wisconsin, but, like, in looking through other schools, there are I think there was an Indiana player in, like, o one or o two who was in a pro tops chrome set in Indiana jersey.

So it hap happened a little while, sometimes in the February.

Now I think they probably would just Photoshop it so it wouldn't happen. Well, what's great I'm thinking about this now and, like, I'm, like like, racking my brain. And 2020 Prism Football, I'm, like, thinking about that.

And Julian Blackman, who's the safety for the Colts, he shows up in a Utah like, he's in his Utah jersey in 2020 Prism. And it just now that I'm thinking about it, that's not common and obscure.

And I just think about, like, the decisions manufacturers make at that time if it's, like, a rush thing or what. But, anyways, yeah, that's it's a unique scenario for sure.

Yeah. Yeah. I've got a lot of questions for the manufacturers. I'm sure you do. What do you got next? Alright. So next up is my, my favorite Frank Kaminsky card. So this is, 2015 Immaculate Collegiate Patch Auto platinum one of one.

So it it looks just like the the pro immaculate version, just a collegiate product. I think this had basketball and football players in it, and then has, you know, badger stats on the back and a blurb about him.

So, yeah, the the hollow foil around the the patch opening and along the auto, really, really shines there. It is a player worn jersey patch. There's so here's another struggle of being a a college collector.

There's never been a game worn Wisconsin patch in a basketball card. I'm still waiting. I don't think it's gonna happen anytime soon, so maybe someday, and I will collect the heck out of it.

But, I I do collect the, you know, the press pass set that has game worn patches in it, and I I love to get just patches from different schools and kinda see those old jerseys and colors, but no Wisconsin so far.

So player worn is what I have to settle for. And, also, it's it's, more upsetting to me to have a player worn college jersey than, like, you know, exquisite RPA.

That's a player worn photo shoot because they've already worn all their jersey. Right? The all of the jerseys they're gonna wear, in games for Wisconsin have been worn at the time these cards are produced.

I'm I'm basically just collecting one year of cards for each player, when when they're done with school and about to get drafted. So, player warns things a little bit more in in collegiate collecting to me.

Yeah. I'm beginning to sense there's, like, kind of this with collegiate collectors, especially leading with collegiate collectors. There's, like, a little bit of a throw throw us a bone, everybody. Like, come on.

Yeah. It it would be so easy. I have I have some suggestions, so we'll get there. But, yeah, it's it's a struggle. And maybe that's part of why I love it so much, because if it was easy, it would it wouldn't be as much fun.

But, yeah, it's there's, some big gaps. So the the last one I have for you is, Johnny Davis is our most recent draft pick in 2022. He's completely flamed out with the Wizards.

He's now been he's now been traded and cut, and I think last I saw, he was playing, for the Knicks g league team. So, it's not going great, but his cards are cheap. So this is a 2022 Chronicles draft picks Select Gold Vinyl one of one.

So they this product, I actually really liked. Chronicles Draft Picks that had Select and Optic and, like, six or eight other brands in it. So there were a lot of options and, you know, not too many parallels per set within that.

So to me, that was, like, an ideal set to make for college collectors because we don't get that many sets. So they they kinda take all these sets and put them into that product, and, a bunch of really nice looking cards, came out of it.

Awesome group of cards. It's definitely interesting to understand the different avenues and mentality and the way you have to approach collecting badgers based on the limited supply.

I think when people think of college cards right now, like, the easy thing to think about is Bowman You, Bowman Chrome You, especially, you know, you watch any content or hear conversations.

Those those are showing up in showcases at shows.

You've got right before draft time for a lot of these players. You know, those cards sell well, especially because players from or collector from pro teams want a piece of those players, like, instantly when they're drafted.

But I know you've got a lot of thoughts and opinions just based on the construct and the way that product has been taken to market.

So I'm just gonna just, like, lob it over to you. Let's talk about Bowman Chrome U and maybe talk about if there is anything that you think is a a net positive that you like, I'd love to hear that.

If there are negatives and maybe where the product is not necessarily shaping up for a college collector like you, I'd love to hear that. So the floor is yours, David.

Yeah. I mean, I'll I'll start with the positive stuff because that'll be quick. I'm glad it exists. I'm glad we have something called Bowman Chrome University basketball, and it presents as a college product.

So that's that's like a nice starting point. And I I think improvements could be made to keep people like me happy and keep the prospectors happy.

It's been licensed now, I believe, for three years where, you know, since the NIL era started and college players can start getting compensated while they're in school, They've been making these cards, primarily for, players who are going to get drafted.

The the main problem for me is that the the checklist is based off of preseason draft lists, which are already extremely unreliable.

And, you know, like I've touched on, they don't necessarily match up with who the best college players are.

Right? They're just they're looking at who might be the best pro prospects down the line, and it's it's kind of taking more after, Bowman Chrome baseball.

The way the way I understand that works, it's I'm not totally familiar with that, but, right, those are baseball players who are getting drafted, and they're gonna be in the minor leagues for two to three years at least before they start popping off as actual rookies.

So so people are collecting those cards, just completely prospecting, and then open to cash in, once they become major league players.

And and that's kind of the way this is working too. I had a little bit more hope this year because they delayed the release until March, and they had released it previously in, I think, January.

So it was just obvious that they had started manufacturing it at the start of the season, and you you can't wait and see who's good.

It really is difficult in college basketball, especially now with all the transferring, to predict who the best players are gonna be, because there is so much player movement, and guys will all of a sudden get an opportunity and be able to show their talent on the right team and the right situation.

And, you know, it was frustrating for me this year because we had a a player named John Tonjay who transferred to us, through Missouri.

He was hurt last year, so he really didn't get to, show his skills at all, but he was incredible, for Wisconsin this year.

Second team all American, first team all big 10 unanimous selection. Like, he's he's one of the, I would say, five to eight greatest Badgers in my lifetime, and he's not included in that set.

And it's, you know, it's Bowman Chrome University basketball. It's it's named university. It should be a college set, but it's it's really for pro prospecting.

So the the first problem, I think like, the first problem is it's based off of those NBA draft list for the season. The second problem is I think they're just not including enough players.

It's a 100 player checklist. You've got over 300 teams. And, I mean, in just the major conferences for the major schools who have really large fan bases, there's probably, like, 80 teams.

So even if you give one one school, each school one player in the checklist, you're you're pretty much done.

And but that's not even what happens. There hasn't been a Wisconsin player in the checklist in the last three years since the NIL era. And to be clear, like, I I've talked about how desperate I am and how I'll collect anything.

Like, if there's a Wisconsin player in Bowman Chrome new next year, I will collect the hell out of it. Like, it's, it's not like I'm boycotting or anything. I I wish it was put together differently.

I wish they waited a little while into the season before finalizing that checklist and printing the cards. I don't I don't know how long the manufacturing process takes and everything, but I I wish they would just simplify it.

For me, I wish they would get rid of autographs. They're usually sticker autos anyways, and I'm sure that delays everything and makes it more complicated to put the product together.

But if you could just add 50 or a hundred even more cards onto that checklist and wait a little bit into the season to solidify that, add any players who, you know, in the first month or two are really showing, that they're gonna be, significant contributors to their teams during the college season.

You can keep all of those prospects you want. You can let everybody prospect and then add 50 more players at the end that are just for the collegiate collectors.

And I I would go through and make sure that every college team from a major conference has at least one player every year because there are sickos like me out there who are gonna collect that.

It doesn't matter who the player is. Like, if it's a Wisconsin basketball player, I'm collecting it. And I I think there's probably people like that at each school. So you're just gonna draw in more people who want the product.

You're not gonna take away from any of the the pro prospectors. Certainly, it would be, conflicting for me if we ever did get a, like, number one overall lottery pick type player, but that I don't think that's happening anytime soon.

So, I I would just take anything, really. And if if it's a collegiate licensed card, just a base parallels, that's all I need.

Based on the changing landscape and, you know, manufacturer shifts, it really feels like this Bowman Chrome U brand is unless, you know, other decisions are made where they expand the portfolio of brands to support, college collecting tops or whatever fanatics.

Do you is your if the if it runs its course and stays the way it it it is right now for the next foresee for the foreseeable future, is your mentality just to continue to explore and try to find cards that already exist from the past that represent your Badger collection?

I guess there's there's probably not too many other options.

Do you have hope that there might be some changes down the road to satisfy the the type of college collector like you? I I have a little bit of hope, but I I don't know I don't know that it's gonna happen with with Bowman Chrome U.

I I think it is a pretty easy change what I just described. Just add more players to the checklist. Just make sure you have one player from every major team.

I I don't see why that would create any more work. And even if you did have to set the checklist before the season starts, just pick whoever you think the best player is gonna be on each team and and put them in the set.

So I I have a little bit of hope. May maybe that'll happen. Maybe it won't.

But, you know, maybe it'll just keep operating the way the way I have been through, like, the era where if there's a Badger who has a big season and ends up being a NBA prospect, then they'll show up in chronicles draft picks or prism draft picks or some of these, you know, immaculate, type collegiate cards that they make.

And, you know, I'll I'll keep doing that, but, we'll see. I don't I don't think that, John Tunde as great as his college season was. I still don't think he's getting a lot of looks for NBA.

So I don't think he's gonna make it into those draft pick sets, which means that, you know, we're just gonna go through this whole year without ever making a card of him, which is it stinks.

I I wish I wish there was a way to to get a license card of of a player who had such an incredible season.

I think about all the hurdles and the roadblocks and just thinking about the amount of time energy that I put into just my Notre Dame fandom. And but I it took me forever to finally make the jump and start buying cards.

And I think maybe it was, like, probably these preexisting notions and narratives in the hobby when I should've just been listening to myself. But for whatever reason, I was like, you know what?

Like, that's probably not worth my time. But once I've made that jump, it's been really satisfying, and I'm I'm glad I did. I guess there's probably a lot of people listening. I would say probably a majority of people listening.

They all have their college team, whether it's, you know, they they like to collect or they like that college team, all sports, or maybe it's just one sport specifically, but have not taken the leap and have dug through all the holes to try to figure out what cards to collect.

You've you've kinda you've you've laid the the the groundwork.

You've been there. You've done that. You've you've turned over rocks and found a lot of nothing, but then found some sets, like, you know, press pass that you really appreciate.

For anyone who's listening, who's thought about college collecting but hasn't taken the jump, like, what sort of, maybe advice or feedback do you have for those collectors? I mean, I would say just go for it.

And the the thing that really motivates me to just keep going as far as I can and and searching every little avenue, that exists within college collecting is I get I get just as much, if not more enjoyment out of finding, like, a Devin Harris Wisconsin card as I would finding a Michael Jordan Bulls card or or, like, for me, a Ray Allen Bucks card, Giannis cards.

Like, I kind of equate those players on the same level as far as, like, my sports fandom pantheon.

But the cards are, like, this is not an exaggeration, like, one one hundredth of the price. Like, my enjoyment per dollar collecting those cards is just off the charts.

Like, I I have so much fun and get so much enjoyment from these cards, and they're so cheap. So, like, I I've gone, you know, into nineties collecting, sec collecting, nineties basketball cards.

And then, you know, with my my Michael Finley Pro cards, some of those are in the most desirable sets in the nineties where the prices jump up quickly, as as you get into certain sets, you know, rubies and PMGs and that type of stuff.

Like, every every nineties basketball collector is after some of those sets so that the prices are are going up real fast.

But, like, with my Wisconsin basketball cards, it scarcest, best cards I can find. Like, there there's no card that's out of my reach price wise. It's not it's not really a problem. The problem is finding them.

There there's nothing harder to do in this hobby, I think, than finding a rare, card that's cheap because nope nobody's, like, searching their boxes to to try to bring it to you because it it's not worth that much.

But when I do find them, I'm able to get them, and it's it's not difficult money wise.

So, that that would be my selling point is you can collect, you know, one of your favorite teams, for a fraction of the price of what you can do in the NBA.

If you're out at a, local flea market digging through crates and you end up with some sage or press pass Badgers card, you got you got a guy to connect with. There's no DM I would appreciate more than that.

You can follow him at mostly nineties basketball cards. David, appreciate you coming on and talking about college cards. We'll have to do it again. Thanks, Brett. It's a lot of fun. Why won't this end? Let's see here. What the?