GFA Lot 702 - Mecklenburg Broncos GU Jersey

[EndzoneSports]

Having recently reviewed Grey Flannel's Holiday Auction catalog, we were initially psyched to see an early-1990s Karl Mecklenburg game jersey being offered (see http://www.greyflannelauctions.com/s...Num=11&Lot=702)--as we have been actively searching for an authentic Meck gamer for some time. From our initial observations, a couple of items jumped out at us...

First was the apparent incorrect identification of the jersey. The GFA catalog lists this as being a "1991" era jersey, however, one minor detail would point to '92. 1991 was the first year where Broncos' uniforms were adorned with the NFL Shield; for the first year only, the jersey's embroidered patch was affixed below the collar's neckband (see detail/photos at http://endzone.pscoggin.com/PDFs/Uni_1991.pdf). In 1992 (and for all years thereafter) the NFL patch was raised and placed on the collar's neckband (see detail/photos at http://endzone.pscoggin.com/PDFs/Uni_1992.pdf). The "DU" date of manufacturing code (showing clearly on the flag tag below the manufacturer's tag), corresponds with a manufacture date of Feb '91--appropriate for use during the '91 season, although the NFL Shield patch's location would seemingly indicate '92. It is possible, that this jersey was acquired by the team in '91 then held over an prepared for use in the '92 season.

Our second concern was the amount of use (or lack thereof) present on this jersey. Whether used in '91 or '92, Karl was a 16-game starter for the team during both seasons. Playing in the trenches as a LB/DL during an era when players typically did NOT change jerseys as frequently as underwear, one would expect to see more significant wear exhibited. Another interest collector contacted GF to try to get more detail and was told (in a not very friendly way) "that if there were repairs or any other marks on the Meck that they would have been listed in the description."


As icing on the cake, I contacted Mr Mecklenburg via e-mail on 11/13 and asked him to review and offer any comments on this particular jersey. His reply is posted below:

----- Original Message -----

From: Karl Mecklenburg

To: 'Endzone Sports'

Sent: Tuesday, November 13, 2007 9:29 AM

Subject: RE: Jersey review for ESC

Early in my career I didn't have my jersey tailored at all but from 86 on I had the sides and sleeves heavily tailored. The jersey in the auction isn't a game jersey. The team had replicas for charity events etc. I suspect that this is one of them...

Karl

Mecklenburg Motivation

Karl Mecklenburg

Keynote speeches inspiring positive change in teams and individuals!

What I find most interesting in the prevalence of the "charity auction" jerseys, even back as far as the early '90s.

I forwarded this information on to GFA on 11/13, and while I did not receive a response to my e-mail, I see now that this listing has been removed.

Best regards,

[RKGIBSON]

Endzone,

Nice work.

As most here know I am friends with Kevin Greene. He has told me that in his time with the Steelers on a average he autographed 10 authentic jerseys a week. These were not modified like his game jerseys. He said he never ask what the equipment manager was doing with them, and did not care, as he took care of his equipment needs. He says that was also typical of what went on at the Panthers. I see them show up occasionally in auctions as game used too. The last company I notified about a Panther jersey, I sent pictures of his original with modifications, I was told were not going to pull it, we don't know if they all were modified. I tried.

I think this happened a lot with jerseys that were sold through the team stores of by equipment guys to memorabilia dealers on the side.

Roger

[both-teams-played-hard]

Good job, Pat. Another great example of why the auction houses should be grateful to this forum!

[bagbig]

Great work!! On a different note, what are Champ Bailey's autographed game used Bronco jerseys selling for?

[G1X]

Patrick,
A great job as always. For those in this Forum who still do not understand the protocols and Forum rules on addressing questionable items, cut out Patrick's post and tape it to the front of your computers. Read it each and every time before you decide to make a post about a questionable item. Many of you might be surprised at the positive action many Sellers will take if you contact them and present the facts in an orderly, non-accusing, and gentlemanly fashion.

Roger,
In your last paragraph, you stated, "I think this happened a lot with jerseys that were sold through the team stores of by equipment guys to memorabilia dealers on the side". I wasn't sure if you were referring to Kevin Greene jerseys or Panthers jerseys in general. If the latter, please elaborate.


Mark Hayne
Gridiron Exchange
gixc@verizon.net

[EndzoneSports]

Great work!! On a different note, what are Champ Bailey's autographed game used Bronco jerseys selling for?

Thanks! Re: the Bailey pricing, you can go to our web site and access the Broncos Jersey Sales Data Archive in .xls format at http://endzone.pscoggin.com/UniPrice.xls. We have recorded 13 total sales transactions for Bailey jerseys; the three which were annotated as being autographed sold at $459, $800 & $801 (mean price of ~ $687).

Best regards,

[EndzoneSports]

Gents:

Thanks ever so much for the kind comments. I wish that I could say that this was undertaken for the common good, but to be honest, I'm not so sure that I would have put the same time and energy into it if I hadn't personally interested in the item myself. I'm selfish that way, you know?

My work on this over the course of the last week was split in that I started doing the initial research on Mon-Tues then was interrupted by a 2-day hospital stay before being able to follow up with Meck & GFA on Thur-Fri. Now that I'm off work for 3-6 weeks while recuperating from surgery, hopefully I won't become a pain in the a$$ here on the forum. ; )

Regards,

[EndzoneSports]

Great work!! On a different note, what are Champ Bailey's autographed game used Bronco jerseys selling for?

Thanks! Re: the Bailey pricing, you can go to our web site and access the Broncos Jersey Sales Data Archive in .xls format at http://endzone.pscoggin.com/UniPrice.xls. We have recorded 13 total sales transactions for Bailey jerseys; the three which were annotated as being autographed sold at $459, $800 & $801 (mean price of ~ $687).

Best regards,

[RKGIBSON]

Mark,

I mean by most all teams, not just the Panthers, Steelers or Kevin. I really do not now about other teams, just suspect it happened. I was just relating the story that I was told.

Selling autographed authentic jerseys, or unautographed, seems to be standard operating procedure any more and many show up as game used at auction houses or on ebay.

Roger

[G1X]

Roger,

Thanks for the response. Referring to your statement, "I think this happened a lot with jerseys that were sold through the team stores of by equipment guys to memorabilia dealers on the side", I feel compelled to offer some insight on Team Store offerings and making bulk buys from teams.

Based on various bulk buys I have made over the years, observing bulk buys made by others, and observing what is available in Team Stores/Team websites, only a portion of the inventory being offered will show game use (usually the majority of jerseys) in most cases. Most of the jerseys, regardless of the amount of visible game use, will be properly cut and tailored, but there will usually be a few of the "mint" jerseys that have not even been tapered.

When making a bulk buy, it is almost never an option to cherry pick only those jerseys that show good game use. One very important fact to understand (and this might come as a very big surprise to many in this Forum) is that there are a fair number of collectors who prefer jerseys with little or no game wear, or else just don't care whether a jersey shows game use.

While it is the Dealer's responsiblity to properly describe a jersey before money exchanges hands, it is also the Buyer's responsibility to do the same when they decide to sell the jersey. Unfortuantely, it doesn't always happen, especially more so when the Buyer becomes a Seller.

Mark Hayne
Gridiron Exchange
gixc@verizon.net