I recently acquired this game-used 1997 Detroit Lions jersey of Glyn Milburn.

This jersey was advertised as being from 1994 due to the year tag sewn into the jersey, but there was one problem: Glyn Milburn didn’t play for the Lions in 1994 - or even 1995.

I dug into archive photos and saw that Milburn wore a different jersey throughout 1996, as that jersey featured a Reebok logo that pointed to the middle of the ‘3’ on the left shoulder whereas on this jersey it points at the upper part of the ‘3’.

I found a Getty Image from a 1997 preseason game that was a match for this jersey. But could it really have been used 3 years after it was made?

Turns out, yes. I photomatched this jersey to NFL broadcasts of 6 games in 1997, including the first and last game of the season, which means Milburn wore this jersey in every game in which the Lions wore this style, which is 10 games.

Although this jersey never saw the end zone, it saw some interesting moments:

• In the season opener, Milburn fielded punts on 5 successive plays due to penalties that led to re-kicks.

• Milburn wore this jersey during the Lions Thanksgiving Day win, logging 246 return yards.

• This jersey was worn in the last game of the season, during which Barry Sanders reached 2,000 rushing yards for the year.

Total Statistics:

• 747 kick return yards

• 283 punt return yards

• 5 receptions for 77 yards

8/31 vs Falcons

• 111 return yards

• 1 reception for 43 yards

9/7 vs Buccaneers

• 76 return yards

• 2 receptions for 19 yards

9/28 vs Packers

• 119 return yards

• 1 reception for 11 yards

10/12 at Buccaneers

• 40 return yards

10/19 vs Giants

• 93 return yards

11/9 at Redskins

• 200 return yards

• 1 reception for 4 yards

11/16 vs Vikings

• 38 return yards

11/23 vs Colts

• 54 return yards

11/27 vs Bears (Thanksgiving)

• 246 return yards

12/21 vs Jets

• 53 return yards

I started creating YouTube videos about my game-used jerseys. There are very few YouTube channels dedicated to collecting game-used jerseys and I hope to change that. Give me a look and a follow if you’re interested!

https://youtu.be/R5NQuI-BgtM?is=jZqddJPI8VTEphr5

I was fortunate to acquire this game-used 2015 University of Minnesota football jersey of running back Shannon Brooks.

Brooks wore this jersey in every away game his freshman year, which included showdowns at Purdue, #16 Northwestern, #8 Iowa, and #1 Ohio State. He shined in the spotlight of those games, rushing for a total of 322 yards with 2 touchdowns, and he also threw a 42-yard touchdown pass on a trick play against Iowa.

Brooks’ football career - and life - have been a series of obstacles and perseverance. He graduated from high school a 3-star prospect, landed an offer with the Golden Gophers, and started putting together an impressive college career…then lost half his junior season to injury; nearly the entire following season to an ACL tear; got word that his mom fell into a coma and died; tore his other ACL in his first game back the following year; then suffered a third ACL tear a year later. Staring down a future without football, he impulsively jumped in front of a train, tried to avoid it when he realized he wanted to live, still got hit by the train, and lost his front teeth in the process.

As for that future without football? Well, he found a way into the CFL, Indoor Football League, and Arena League, the last of which he’s still active in today.

Shannon Brooks, the unbreakable man.

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Photomatches

10/3/15 at Northwestern

Alamy Image 3C1DXJE

10/10/15 at Purdue

Getty Image 596930574

11/7/15 at Ohio State

Getty Image 496179756

11/14/15 at Iowa

Getty Image 497921816

My latest pickup is this 2006 San Diego Chargers away jersey of Malcom Floyd that was worn in 7 games. Although it was on the pricier end of my collecting range, it was undersold and is definitely worth more than I paid for it.

This jersey spoke to me because I watched a lot of Chargers games on TV when Floyd played and he had an impressive career. The seller advertised it as being from the 2004 season because a 2004 tag is sewn into the collar. The problem is, Malcom Floyd wore #13 in 2004 and spent 2005 on the practice squad.

I fired up the image searches and found photos of Floyd from multiple games in 2006 that feature distinctive characteristics on the jersey. I sent the seller an offer that was accepted and I received the gamer in the mail today.

With the jersey in my hands for closer evaluation, I was able to photomatch it to 6 games from the 2006 season, with an assumed 7th game in between those dates.

Floyd put in some serious work in those games, catching 9 balls for 170 yards and 2 TDs (the 2nd and 4th TDs of his career). He also registered his first career 100-yard game in a wild shootout against Cincinnati that saw nearly 1,000 yards of total offense. The metric that puts it over the top for me is that Floyd wore this jersey during two highlights featured on “NFL Primetime,” one which even warranted Chris Berman to give Floyd a “whoop!” after he shook some defenders. All in all, I’m thrilled to have it in my collection.

9/11/06 at Oakland

Getty Image 116614847

10/1/06 at Baltimore

Getty Image 112952214

1 reception, 31 yards, TD

10/15/06 at San Francisco

No photomatch

10/22/06 at Kansas City

Getty Image 72286653

1 reception, 19 yards

11/12/06 at Cincinnati

Getty Image 72513998

5 receptions, 109 yards, TD

11/19/06 at Denver

Getty Image 72662546

1 reception, 7 yards

12/3/06 at Buffalo

Getty Image 120974327

1 reception, 4 yards

It’s been awhile since I’ve landed a game-used jersey, but I got back on the big board with this XFL gamer of Nate “Big Nate” Miller.

Miller played football at LSU and spent a few seasons as an offensive lineman in the NFL, seeing some playing time with the Falcons in 1997. After NFL teams stopped calling, Miller resurfaced in the XFL with the Los Angeles Xtreme. I photomatched this jersey to the 2001 XFL “Million Dollar Game”, making it the second game-worn jersey I own from the league’s lone championship game and my third LA Xtreme jersey. This would be the last jersey Miller ever wore in a pro football game.

According to his XFL player bio, “Big Nate” is an avid comic book collector. Maybe he’ll show up here one of these days?