Do you like collecting sports cards? What about autographs? If you are an Alabama Crimson Tide football fan, or need to purchase a gift for one, then Upper Deck has what could be a great gift idea—an Alabama Crimson Tide trading card set.

2012 Upper Deck Alabama Football Autograph Card featuring Nick-Saban
2012 Upper Deck Alabama Football Autograph Card featuring Nick-Saban

The set features 100 cards including legendary Alabama names like Paul W. “Bear” Bryant, Joe Namath, Kenny Stabler, Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson.

Upper Deck provided a couple of boxes for review, and there were two things we learned.

First, it is a fun, addicting gift. The boxes we were provided included 24 packages of cards with each pack containing eight cards. Once we started opening the packs, we couldn’t stop. We had to see what was in the next. Would we get an autograph? What legend would be in the next package?

Each package was a treat. Whether it was a contemporary player or a legend like Ray Perkins or Kermit Kendrick or Ozzie Newsome or John Hannah or Johnny Mack Brown, each name resulted in talking about or sharing an Alabama football memory. The cards not only feature players, but great moments. One card in a package we opened included the Goal Line Stand from the Sugar Bowl between Alabama and Penn State. Another moment featured on these Tide Through The Years cards was Bear Bryant’s last game as coach of Alabama. The card features an image of Bryant at the Liberty Bowl being carried off the field the night of December 29, 1982.

2012 Upper Deck Alabama Football Autograph Card Joe-Namath
2012 Upper Deck Alabama Football Autograph Card Joe-Namath

Second, these are high quality collectible cards. The photographs are good and the paper stock is substantial. These are a higher grade collectible card than previous Alabama football cards—though I cannot be sure, the only other cards of this nature that I remember ever seeing came in the late 1980s or early 1990s with a team of the century theme; however, these Upper Deck cards are much higher quality if you remember that set.

As for the autographed cards, over 80 former Alabama football players signed their autograph to cards in the set. In the hobby boxes, you get on average one autograph per box.

The cards are available at retail outlets in and around Alabama. Two lists follow below with hobby shops and retail locations. The cards are sold in hobby boxes and blaster boxes. The hobby boxes are larger and contain 24 packages containing eight cards. The blaster boxes are slightly smaller containing 80 cards and a national championship pennant. These are available at select Wal-Mart locations in Alabama. The list of Wal-Mart locations is included below. The championship pennants memorialize Alabama national titles from the years: 1925, 1926, 1930, 1934, 1941, 1961, 1964, 1965, 1973, 1978, 1979, 1992, 2009 and 2011.

In summary, I haven’t purchased a trading card since the late 1980s or early 1990s. However, these cards with the Alabama theme and autographs have me enthusiastically looking for more. One of the great features is how the cards when shared with family of friends, spur conversations and memories. Some of these are great memories of victories on the field, and some are sad memories of lives cut short like Derrick Thomas. These are Alabama memories. Upper Deck has done a great job preserving these for fans of the Alabama Crimson Tide.

You can visit Upper Deck for more information on the set.

You can find blaster boxes at these Wal-Mart locations:

Walmart Huntsville2900 South Memorial Parkway(256)536-2870
Walmart Huntsville2200 Sparkman Drive(256)852-2236
Walmart Dothan3300 South Oates Street(334)702-1310
Walmart Dothan4310 Montgomery Highway(334)793-3099
Walmart Athens1911 Epps Bridge Parkway(706)549-1423
Walmart Scottsboro24833 Lee Highway(256)574-1126
Walmart Ozark1537U.S.231(334)774-5508
Walmart Fairfield2701 North Texas Street(707)428-4792
Walmart Mobile5245 Rangeline Service(251)666-7972
Walmart Mobile685 Schillinger Road South(251)633-2211
Walmart Mobile2500 County Road33(251)633-6023
Walmart Mobile101 East I65 Service Road South(251)471-1105

You can find hobby boxes at these locations:

A Tiny KingdomBirmingham, AL 35223(205) 802-8469
Gadsden Sports CardsGadsden, AL 35901(256) 546-7335
Hobbie & CollectiblesGadsden, AL 35901(256) 543-2255
Baseball Card ShopHomewood, AL 35209(205) 823-1118
Champs SportscardsHuntsville, AL 35801(256) 539-8985
Quality CollectiblesJasper, AL 35501(205) 384-5005
Gulf Coast Cards & MemorabiliaMobile, AL 36606(251) 470-9989
Comics & Cards Trading PostMontgomery, AL 36116(334) 272-1787
Big Hit SportscardsSpanish Fort, AL 36527(251) 626-5050
Bob’s Cards & CollectiblesTuscaloosa, AL 35404(205) 556-5577
CJ Sports CardsVestavia Hills, AL 35216(205) 822-0408
All Star CollectiblesArab, AL 35016(256) 586-4704
Wonder WaterClearwater, FL 33761(727) 799-4855
Dave’s ComicsFayetteville, GA 30214(770) 716-9171
JT SportsMarietta, GA 30062(770) 977-0001
Lexington Sports CardsLexington, KY 40517(859) 271-0207
Collectibles & MoreMiddlesboro, KY 40965(606) 302-5948
G’s ComicsMurray, KY 42071(270) 759-4896
Chuck’s Sportscards – AlbanyAlbany, LA 70711(225) 567-9200
Ray’s Sportscards and ComicsScott, LA 70583(337) 236-6644
Gulf Coast CardsBiloxi, MS 39531(228) 388-5178
Tupelo SportscardsTupelo, MS 38801(662) 620-0980
Browns Ford Sports & CardsWilkesboro, NC 28697(336) 973-8877
Tenth Inning SportsBoiling Springs, SC 29316(864) 578-6730
TNC SportsBarlett, TN 38134(901) 372-1408
B & M AmusementChattanooga, TN 37416(423) 490-1162
Marty’s Sports Card ExchangeChattanooga, TN 37421(423) 648-7037
Hot Cards PlusCrossville, TN 38555(931) 787-1190
Sports Treasures LLCKnoxville, TN 37918(865) 688-2273
Webb’s Cards & CollectiblesKnoxville, TN 37919(865) 584-9311
The Collectable CompanyMorristown, TN 37813(423) 581-1800
Cards R FunNashville, TN 37211(615) 832-3216
The DugoutPigeon Forge, TN 37863(865) 429-3373
All Star SportscardsChattanooga, TN 37416(423) 894-3087
Bob’s Collectors DenCookeville, TN 38501(931) 526-2311

6 thoughts on “Alabama Fan Gift Guide: Collectible Trading Cards for the Crimson Tide”

  1. Greetings from California! I’m bored to tears at work so I decided to check out your site on my iphone during lunch break. I enjoy the info you present here and can’t wait to take a
    look when I get home. I’m amazed at how fast your blog loaded on my cell phone .. I’m not even using WIFI, just 3G ..

    Anyways, amazing blog!

Comments are closed.