Instantly one of my favorites

Shown here is a 2001 Los Angeles Xtreme jersey worn by Jamal “Deathblow” Duff in the first and only XFL ‘Million Dollar Game’. I acquired it this week and it’s been on my grail list for a couple years.

Like many other Millennials, I watched the XFL’s maiden games in 2001 with a ton of excitement. We were promised a league that would deliver big hits, compelling new rules, and top-level talent. The first five minutes of the season opener delivered, showing fun team logos and player jerseys with nicknames on the back. What we quickly discovered, however, was that the XFL was minor league football with a dash of schticky promotion. Still, I’ve always been intrigued by the XFL. It was a cultural meteor that flashed across the sky, capturing the nation’s attention for a moment (and upstaging JLo’s SNL hosting gig).

Some of you might recall my post from last year in which I presented my game-used LA Xtreme jersey of Errick “E-Rupt” Herrin, which I successfully photomatched by combing through roughly 8 hours of XFL game footage on YouTube. While I watched all those broadcasts, I was reminded of a gigantic lineman named “Deathblow”. He was perhaps the most recognizable nickname in the league behind “He Hate Me” and he captured the essence of the XFL: A former NFL player with hulking biceps and an intimidating demeanor. I remember thinking ‘Man, if I could get one of his jerseys…’. But I assumed it would be impossible given the small number of game jerseys the team wore and the fact that he was such a recognizable name.

Well, last week I stumbled across this jersey on eBay. It wasn’t advertised as worn in a specific game, but it featured hit marks and red field paint transfers that could only have resulted from game use. I submitted an offer for the jersey that was accepted but I recognized that I’d probably never be able to photomatch it to a game due to grainy and scant footage.

While waiting for it to arrive I Googled high and low for game photos and scrubbed through every LA Xtreme home game on YouTube but couldn’t find any definitive matches. Defeated, I blandly searched “LA Xtreme” on YouTube and found an account that posted raw sideline camera footage from XFL games. I watched the footage from Week 10 against the San Francisco Demons and found a play that showed Duff’s jersey with 3 large red paint stains on the front numbers. I went back to the jersey and found red ghost stains in those exact spots. Boom! Photomatch.

I knew the jersey wasn’t used in games prior to that because his jersey from earlier in the season had a large gash on the back numbers that isn’t present on my jersey. The only game in which this jersey style was worn again was the XFL Championship, more famously known as the ‘Million Dollar Game’. I threw that game on my TV and in the first defensive drive Duff jumped offsides and the camera panned him closely for several seconds. There it was: a red ghost stain in the exact spot on the front numbering. To make it even better, the left shoulder showed a red paint transfer that was another clear match.

Not only did I get the player I wanted—I got the game I wanted. What are the odds?

That was the last professional football game Duff ever played. He went on to become an actor after hanging up his cleats and is credited with a long list of performances. You might remember him as Me’Shell, the scary giant who was on Ben Stiller’s Globo Gym team in the movie Dodgeball.

This jersey isn’t worth a ton of money. It’s almost certainly in the mid-three figures at most. That said, if this jersey was worth the same as a jersey worn by Montana, Rice, or Brady, call me crazy but I’d want this one. It speaks to me, and that’s the essence of collecting.

I don’t know where my collection goes from here, but I have my first grail.

One of my favourite sightings at the Toronto Sports Card Expo - Game Used 1986-87 Mario Lemieux Assistant Captain's jersey - coming for auction with Classic Auctions. Amazing piece of hockey history!

Since the current-day Bengals bring me nothing but pain, here’s a card from a previous era of Cincinnati football…

…which also brought me nothing but pain.

The newest entry to my game-used memorabilia collection is this 2003 San Diego Chargers jersey worn by wide receiver Dondre Gilliam.

This jersey has a crazy story. Gilliam was a graduate of D-II Millersville University in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He was signed and waived by the Chargers 5 times in 2002 without logging a stat. Going into Week 4 of the 2003 season, the chargers found themselves down five receivers - including David Boston, Reche Caldwell, and Tim Dwight - so the Chargers gave Gilliam a call and started him that week against the Raiders. Gilliam was issued #10 because every other common receiver jersey number was taken.

In that game, Gilliam was in the huddle with Drew Brees, LaDainian Tomlinson, Antonio Gates, and Lorenzo Neal - indisputably among the top-20 all-time at their respective positions, and possibly even top-10 all-time. To make it even more crazy, Gilliam ran routes against Charles Woodson and Rod Woodson.

Gilliam posted 4 receptions for 67 yards, leading the team. The top receivers for the Raiders? Jerry Rice and Tim Brown. The Raiders won the matchup of legends in overtime, 34-31. More ridiculous footnotes: The game featured the first career reception for Antonio Gates and the only career touchdown reception for Drew Brees.

Gilliam went on to play three more games in this jersey, logging his final two career receptions from Doug Flutie, before the Chargers went back to full staff and waived him for good.

I don’t have definitive photomatches for this one given that I only have two game photos of Gilliam to work with, but it’s a slam dunk for a combination of reasons:

1. The jersey tag is from 2003

2. Photos from the Raiders game show the layout of his jersey lettering is a perfect match

3. The jersey shows the stitch outline of a removed patch worn that season and the placement matches the photos

4. The jersey has repairs so it was worn in multiple games

5. There’s no way the team issued Gilliam a new jersey part way through the season because he had little playing time and a constantly-uncertain roster status

All in all, this jersey tells quite a story and I’m happy to have it.