Card of the Day: Eddie George 2004 Upper Deck Sweet Spot #26

How To Spot A Fake Emmitt Smith 1990 Score Supplemental Rookie Card

Legendary running back Emmitt Smith’s most popular rookie card comes from the 110-card 1990 Score Supplemental Football set.

The 1990 Score Supplemental Football set was issued in factory set form only to Score’s dealers. No hobby boxes with packs.

Cards are designed to look like the regular 1990 Score Football set, except they have blue and purple borders.

Included within this set are rookies and players that switched teams during the off season. Its like an Update or Traded set you see from Topps.

Despite being released during the height of the junk wax era this card continues to hold quite a bit of value. Especially those examples that are in nice condition. Having colored borders makes it easy for chipping to occur.

A few counterfeit/unauthorized reprints of this card recently popped up.

You can clearly see the differences between an authentic card and a fake. Fakes have a blurry and grainy look to them. The color is off. In some cases the font isn’t quite correct and difficult to read.

People use the word “reprint” or the letters “RP” on their listings in an attempt to fool you into thinking that card came from a specific manufacturer. Places like eBay don’t know how or just don’t care enough to learn how to distinguish between the two. The people making these homemade cards are fully aware that passing them off as the real thing could come back to haunt them. Calling them reprints might not bring in the same amount of money, but it still allows them to move their hoard of counterfeits. Its a horribly abused wording loophole.

One of the best ways to tell if your card is authentic is by comparing it to another card from the 1990 Score Supplemental Football set. Specifically one that doesn’t have much value and wouldn’t have a reason to be faked. Score used the same printing method for all of the cards. The print pattern of an Emmitt Smith #101T should look the same as the other cards from this set under a magnifying glass.

Authentic Front

Authentic Back

Magnified print pattern of an authentic card

Fake Front

Fake Back

Fake Front

Fake Back

How To Spot A Fake Ludwell Denny 1990 Pro Set #338 Promo

The odds of you finding this card out in the wild are about as good as the Phillies calling me up asking if I’d like to play first base. Its not likely to happen.

As I mentioned in my 2021 Leaf Pro Set College Football Blaster Box Break, Ludwell Denny founded Pro Set in 1988. Between 1988 and 1994 Pro Set issued card products for the NFL, NBA, NHL, NASCAR, and PGA Tour. Their parody “Flopps” promo set was about as close as they got to making MLB cards. Outside of sports they made a variety of entertainment products as well. Pro Set went bankrupt after 1994. In February 2021 it was announced that Leaf Trading Cards had acquired the Pro Set trademark, and quickly began using it on their products.

Mr. Denny had a card of himself printed in 1990. Don’t bother ripping through old packs hoping to find it. They were used as promotional handouts. Almost like a business card. Although an official print run was never released, supposedly one sheet amounting to (90) cards was made. How many were actually handed out is a number we will never know.

Pro Set was notorious for their errors, misprints, corrections, short prints, variations, etc… Sometimes I think they did this on purpose just to keep collectors on their toes.

The Ludwell Denny promo card is one die-hard Pro Set collectors would love to add to their collection. I’ve only seen one show up for sale, and it has been on eBay for years with an incredibly high asking price.

No authentic alternate versions of this card are known to exist. No errors, misprints, corrections, short prints, and/or variations. What you see is what you get. However, there are counterfeits floating around.

The differences drastically stick out when an authentic card is placed side-by-side with a counterfeit one.

Characteristics of a counterfeit card include dark coloring on both the front and back.

The font is completely different where it says “Ludwell Denny Head Coach Giants” on the front. Turning the card over you can see the font used for “Ludwell Denny Head Coach” is also quite different. The font used for the card number isn’t correct either.

Counterfeits use a dot instead of a dash to separate the words “Coach” and “Giants” on the front.

Numerous misspellings and grammatical errors totally pollute the description on the back of the counterfeit.

On the back of a counterfeit the words “National Football League Players Association” surround the football image near the bottom. Authentic examples do not have this wording.

Authentic front

Authentic back

Counterfeit front

Counterfeit back

Card of the Day: Gary Carter 2004 Upper Deck Sweet Spot Classic #30

How To Spot A Fake 1985 Star Gatorade Slam Dunk Michael Jordan #7

Fans who attended the 1985 All-Star Weekend Banquet in Indianapolis received a 9-card set of Star basketball cards featuring the Gatorade logo on them. It’s official name is the 1985 Star Gatorade Slam Dunk set. The set includes Checklist #1, Larry Nance #2, Terence Stansbury #3, Clyde Drexler #4, Julius Erving #5, Darrell Griffith #6, Michael Jordan #7, Dominique Wilkins #8, and Orlando Woolridge #9.

Technically there are (10) cards in this set. Terence Stansbury was a late substitute for Charles Barkley. Both cards were produced, but the Barkley card wasn’t released along with the others. Eventually the Barkley card leaked out, and collectors saw it surface on the secondary market.

Star cards are notorious for being counterfeited. That especially goes for Star cards of Michael Jordan. I can’t stress how many counterfeit Michael Jordan Star cards there are floating around. You can easily find them on eBay.

Counterfeit examples of the Michael Jordan 1985 Star Gatorade Slam Dunk card are all over the place. Some people advertise them as authentic, while others do the whole “reprint” or “RP” thing. People use the word “reprint” or the letters “RP” on their listings in an attempt to fool you into thinking that specific card came from a manufacturer like Star. Places like eBay don’t know how or just don’t care enough to learn how to distinguish between the two. The people making these homemade cards are fully aware that passing them off as the real thing could come back to haunt them. Calling them reprints might not bring in the same amount of money, but it still allows them to move their hoard of counterfeits. Its a horribly abused wording loophole.

When placed side-by-side the difference between an authentic example and counterfeit can easily be seen. One of the biggest red flags of a counterfeit is the lack of a line going through the letter “N” in “JORDAN” on the front. I’ve never seen an authentic version without this printing defect. Most counterfeits forget to include this element. Overall photo blurriness, and incorrect coloring can be other signs of a counterfeit.

Flipping the card over you’ll see more red flags. Counterfeit backs tend to have thicker/bold font. In some cases the font is a completely different color especially in Jordan’s bio. Its not uncommon for the text in Jordan’s bio to be broken too on a counterfeit.

If capable, compare the Jordan with another (less expensive) card from the same set. The printing techniques should be similar. Star did not print Michael Jordan’s card any differently.

Counterfeit front

Authentic front

Counterfeit back

Counterfeit back

Authentic back

How To Spot A Fake Jim Kelly 1984 Topps USFL Rookie Card #36

Wouldn’t it be fun to see new cards made that pay tribute to the USFL? I truly believe collectors would like to pull autographs of Steve Young in an LA Express uniform. Tell them to dig up one of Reggie White’s Memphis Showboats uniforms, cut it up, and place some swatches into a few cards. The list goes on and on. I’m not 100% sure how all the licensing works though when it comes to using team names and logos from a defunct league.

During it’s short lifespan, Topps issued two USFL sets. The first arriving in 1984, and the second in 1985. No packs. Each were issued in factory set form, and in much smaller quantities compared to their NFL counterpart. Hall of Famers such as Steve Young, Reggie White, and Jim Kelly made their cardboard debut in USFL uniforms. Their USFL rookies are in much higher demand compared to their first NFL licensed cards.

Lets get one thing straight. Topps has never issued any kind of USFL reprint. The 1985 set was the last USFL product they issued. Between you and me the word “Reprint” is being used way too loosely nowadays. An authentic “Reprint” originates from the card its modeled after original manufacturer. A homemade card doesn’t count as a reprint. That’s considered a counterfeit. People use the word “reprint” or the letters “RP” on their listings in an attempt to fool you into thinking that specific card came from a manufacturer like Topps. Places like eBay don’t know how or just don’t care enough to learn how to distinguish between the two. The people making these homemade cards are fully aware that passing them off as the real deal could come back to bite them. Calling them reprints might not bring in the same amount of money, but it still allows them to move their hoard of counterfeits. Its a horribly abused wording loophole.

Below are some tips for spotting a counterfeit Jim Kelly 1984 Topps USFL #36 Rookie Card. FYI – Most of these tips also apply to 1984 Topps USFL rookies of Steve Young, Reggie White, and Herschel Walker.

• Centering – Authentic cards from the 1984 Topps USFL set are notorious for having bad centering. Most counterfeits have excellent centering because they want the card to look as good as possible. Its possible to find an authentic example with nice centering, but its just something to keep an eye out for.
• Corners – Counterfeits tend to have perfect corners. The factory set boxes authentic cards come packaged in are made of flimsy cardboard. This makes it very easy for the corners to sustain damage.
• Back Surface – With the pink/red back its common for authentic examples to have chipping (white areas) showing. The back is quite condition sensitive. Counterfeits tend to be too good looking.
• Contrast – As you can see below the coloring on the counterfeit is much brighter compared to the authentic example.
• Trademark/Copyright logos – On the front of the card you’ll see two “TM” logos. One is located next to the letter “L” in “USFL”. The other is next to the profile view of the helmet. Located on the bottom of the back are the USFL and Topps copyright logos. On counterfeit examples these trademark and copyright logos are blurry. Of all the things to look for when it comes to spotting a counterfeit blurry trademark/copyright logos is the first thing to watch for.

If capable, use a less expensive card from the set (one that nobody would bother to counterfeit) and place it side-by-side with the one you are thinking about picking-up. The characteristics between the two should be similar. Topps used the same printing techniques for that less expensive card as they did for the rest of the set.

Counterfeit front

Counterfeit back

Authentic front

Authentic back

Card of the Day: Joe DiMaggio 2005 Upper Deck Sweet Spot Classic Jumbo Patch

How To Spot A Fake Don Mattingly 1984 Donruss #248 Rookie Card

It might seem like a trivial card to counterfeit today, but at one time the Don Mattingly 1984 Donruss #248 rookie card was the king.  Back in the 1980s this card easily fetched over $100.  Many hobby veterans consider it to be the card that kicked-off the whole prospecting phenomenon.  With that type of attention and money being thrown around its no surprise that the counterfeiters came crawling.

Counterfeit Don Mattingly 1984 Donruss #248 rookies have been around almost as long as the real card itself.  If it weren’t for counterfeit versions of this card being made, the Upper Deck Company most likely wouldn’t exist.  Getting duped is what gave them the idea to print cards featuring holograms in order to make counterfeiting more difficult.

Don Mattingly has a very dedicated group of collectors.  His rookies may not be worth what they once were, but still are in demand.  An endless amount of counterfeits will always be floating around.

Here are some tips for spotting a counterfeit Don Mattingly 1984 Donruss #248 rookie card:

• Card Stock – Large quantities of counterfeits were printed on thin card stock.  Authentic examples have card stock which is much thicker.
• Gloss – Counterfeits tend to contain a lot more semi-gloss on the front.
• Print – Blurry, dot-matrix printing is a major red flag of a counterfeit.  Especially on the front where it says “DONRUSS ’84”.
• Coloring – A lighter-colored front/back is a telltale sign that the card is not genuine.  On an authentic example these areas will be darker.

One of the best things you can do is compare your Don Mattingly 1984 Donruss #248 rookie to other cards from that same set.  The card stock, gloss, photo, and text should all look similar.  I wouldn’t use cards depicting star players from 1984 though.  Even those are known to have been counterfeited despite not being rookies.  Use some nobody.

There has been a growing trend of counterfeit cards being sold as reprints.  Counterfeits and reprints are two completely different things.  Reprints originate from the card manufacturer.  Counterfeits are whipped-up in some losers card doctoring lab.  Its a wording loophole that helps them move their stash of counterfeits.  They’re hoping the people buying them don’t realize the difference.

Authentic front

Authentic back

Counterfeit front/back

How To Spot A Fake Stephen Curry 2009-10 Topps #321 Rookie Card

In 2016, a massive wave of counterfeit Stephen Curry 2009-10 Topps #321 rookie cards found their way into the hobby.  They continue to surface today.  Some sellers will attempt to pass them off as the real thing, while others claim that they’re reprints.

When I see the word “reprint” I think that the card’s original manufacturer made more later on to use as an insert set in another product.  That certainly isn’t the case with these.  This card has no genuine reprints.  Although they might not be asking the price they would if they were passing it off as the real thing, using the word “reprint” still makes people think it was printed and distributed by Topps.  Its just another way to move their hoard of counterfeit cards.  A major loophole in the wording, and the misinterpretation from uneducated buyers.

Here are a few tips for spotting a counterfeit Stephen Curry 2009-10 Topps #321 rookie card:

• Extra Gloss – Counterfeit examples tend to have more gloss on them compared to an authentic card.
• Incorrect Card Stock – When placed side-by-side its obvious that the card stock on the counterfeit isn’t the same as an original.  Counterfeit card stock has a cheaper feel to it.
• Blurry Topps Logo – The Topps logo on the front of a counterfeit can be blurry and made up of tiny print dots.  On authentic examples this logo will be much clearer.
• Wrong Font Size/Color – On the front of a majority of the counterfeits “Stephen Curry” and “Guard” are printed in a completely different size and color compared to an authentic example.  What should be small and silver is big and white on a counterfeit.  With that being said, I have seen some (not many) counterfeits that have the correct font size and color.  But even those don’t look right.

One of these counterfeits found it’s way to Pristine Auction.  And it sold for a total of $66.99.  You can clearly see the font isn’t what it should be.  eBay has them too.

Counterfeit front

Counterfeit back

Authentic front

Authentic back

How To Spot A Fake John Elway 1984 Topps #63 Rookie Card

John Elway and Dan Marino are the two key rookie cards when it comes to the 1984 Topps Football set.  Eric Dickerson, Howie Long, and Dwight Stephenson aren’t far behind.

Here are some tips on spotting a counterfeit John Elway 1984 Topps #63 RC:

• Image Quality – Counterfeits tend to have a blurry, fuzzy, pixelated quality to them.  Its actually not uncommon for authentic cards to have a snowy-look to them as a result of a printing defect.  Another printing defect found on some authentic cards includes a small bubble around Elway’s fingers.
• Card Stock – Counterfeit examples in many cases are printed on much thinner card stock.  When placed side-by-side the counterfeit tends to be half the thickness compared to the original.  Thin white edges are a pure sign of a counterfeit.
• Black Border – Its not the easiest factor to spot, but the black border on a counterfeit can have very sharp 90-degree angles to them.  Authentic examples have a black border with a bit softer/rounded angles.
• Blue Line – Some counterfeits contain a blue line within the Broncos logo on the front.  Right beneath the horse.  Originals do not have this.
• Centering – Authentic examples are known to be off-center.  Counterfeits like to look as perfect as possible.  If it looks too good to be true, it probably is.

Remember, not every counterfeit John Elway 1984 Topps #63 RC will have all of these features.  Topps did issue genuine reprints over the years.  A majority of the reprints up for sale were not issued by Topps though.  A lot of these counterfeit cards are now being sold as genuine reprints.