1973-74 Rams James Harris?

[slats7]

they only exist in football card poses, not actual games

[G1X]

Nick,

With all due respect and not trying to be a complete pompous jerk, this is one of the things that annoys me about the game-used hobby. There is no photo or video evidence of the Rams ever wearing this style, there have been a few well-seasoned hobbyists who have weighed in on the jersey, there is not much that looks "right" about this jersey (wrong number style, name-on-back incorrect, length of sleeves are too long, lack of tail tags, etc.), yet we are still having this discussion 7 years later with the possibility of this jersey being put back on the market. This is how questionable stuff ends up becoming something that it is not. Fiction becomes fact, and fact becomes fiction. "Maybe it is", "I hope it is", "the LOA says that it is", "there aren't that many photos from back then so who knows", etc., etc., etc. Next thing we know, it is in an auction and some assume that it must be good, especially those who do not have the time and/or inclination to do their homework (research).

I'll be a bit more blunt. I collect stuff from this era, been doing it for a long time (41 years), and feel very comfortable with knowing what was worn during that time. I have a large photo reference library on hand from that era to assist with research. Having said all of that, I would not even contemplate selling this jersey if it were mine, much less be interested in buying it in the first place.

Not to say that the following method is either right or wrong, but I need the following to convince me that a "one-off" (exception-to-the-rule) jersey is possibly team issued and/or game worn:
1. Find a photo of the particular player in question wearing the "one-off" jersey. The best example I've had was when a Broncos collector approached me years ago about the possibility of John Elway wearing a Champion jersey in the mid-1980s during an era when the Broncos never wore Champion. It just so happened that I had a nice color photo of Elway wearing the said Champion jersey complete with logo on the sleeve.

2. If no photo available of the particular player, I then would need to find ANY player in a game photo/video/film wearing the particular "one-off" style.

3. If still no evidence, then the jersey sits in my closet until I can come up with definitive proof that the particular oddball style was worn in game action. To claim that it was game worn or even team issued without proof would be disingenuous.

Again, for those jumping in late in this thread, I am talking about "one-off", "exception-to-the-rule", "oddball" jerseys (or however you wish to label these anomalies).

As for the repair on this jersey, I cannot clearly see it in the photos in the opening post. Regardless, a good seamstress can fake a repair by matching the repair style, and it's even better if the actual team's seamstress is willing to "enhance" an otherwise clean jersey! There are a few folks in this hobby who have done the latter (some who have been busted).

Mark Hayne
Gridiron Exchange

[G1X]

they only exist in football card poses, not actual games

Slats,

Thanks for the input. These blue jerseys with the number trim were actually worn in preseason game action. Check out Getty Images from 1973 as there are several nice color photos from a Rams preseason game in '73.

The discussion here revolves around white Rams jerseys from that era (see photos in the first photo of this thread).

Mark Hayne
Gridiron Exchange

[slats7]

ah, sorry. some of those old pix didn't surface on the browser I was using.