“Pin-Up” of the Week: Tampa Bay Bandits USFL Helmet Logo Pin

Given the buzz on Burt Reynolds’s current financial status, I’m betting he wishes he could have back that small investment he made in the USFL.  Reynolds was part owner of the Tampa Bay Bandits from it’s start in 1983 until the league finally folded a few years later.  Over the weekend he sold a ton of memorabilia for around $2.5 million.  That included the Smokey and the Bandit Trans Am for $450,000, and his film worn helmet from The Longest Yard for $8,125.

If you had to invest in a USFL team at the time, Tampa Bay was one of the better choices.  The Bandits were one of the few teams that had a solid home and steady finances.  They were also the only team to have the same coach, owner, and home city throughout the league’s entire existence.  Coach Steve Spurrier is probably the most recognizable member of the team.  If the league would have been run better, the Bandits could have had a bright future.  Then again, we are talking about the USFL here.  Picking the best team to invest in is like trying to decide whether you’d like to suffer from explosive diarrhea or projectile vomiting for a week.  Either one you choose, the end result isn’t going to be fun.

Just like the NFL, USFL teams had merchandise too.  Some of that merchandise is highly sought after today because the league wasn’t around that long.  This Bandits pin is worth about $8.00.  An entire USFL helmet logo 20 pin set recently sold for $154.00.

Collectors are always looking for something new.  It would be fun to see someone bring back the USFL in the form of cards.  I’m not talking about a whole set, but something thrown into an existing product.  The USFL had a lot of great players like Steve Young, Jim Kelly, and Reggie White.