rhemphill's blog

It has been a long time since we had the 49ers and the Raiders doing well at the same time. Finally the good times appear to be back! Even with campbell breaking his collar bone, the Raiders should continue to succeed with the likes of Carson Palmer. NFL football is exciting again for the Bay Area fans. Let's hope this momentum can continue for many years to come.

This last week, a signing took place with a well known SF Giants pitcher. He appeared at a local known sports memorabilia store. The store did everything right to accomodate their customers as well as the athlete. However, once the athlete arrived with his agent, the agent created havoc and an unpleasant event. What is it with these big ego agents and the young athletes? This signing could have been a great event, instead the agent came in and had to be the big shot, taking over and doing a terrible job in having the athlete autograph merchandise. People were upset.

The numbered holograms applied to the NSD autographed sports memorabilia is desired by the insurance companies for any claim of loss. Here at NSD, we personally witness the athlete signing every piece of sports memorabilia that we sell. When we sell you the item, a numbered hologram is applied to the item, a certificate of authenticity is provided with the item reflecting the same number as on the hologram and this item is recorded under the buyer's name in our database. Why is this so important?

The NFL is back with the CBA agreed to today by the NFL players. Let's all think positive as the NFL moves forward with this new 10 year agreement. This is not only good news for everyone in the NFL but also for all the businesses associated with any aspect of the NFL from restaurants to sports memorabilia. We are all ready for some NFL football!

The NFL players and the NFL owners need to get the situation settled and do so quickly. The momentum of NFL sales related to all types of business is starting to have its effects on restaurants, jersey sales, all types of businesses and now the small businesses around the Pro Football Hall of Fame located in Canton, Ohio. Now that the Hall of Fame game has been cancelled, just think how many sales are lost for the hotels, the gift shops, the taxis, food outlets, the busses and all the rest of the businesses related to the NFL business. Come on players, vote and lets go!

Joe Montana was in an off road all terrain vehicle accident this last weekend. We wish him a speedy recovery and all the best. While his injuries are not life threating, we know that the comeback kid will once again recover and move forward. National Sports Distributors has worked with 49er Joe Montana for over 21 years and Joe Montana has always been a classy and great person. He has truly been a friend to all of us here at NSD. Once Joe Montana signed 9000 items for us in one day. Let's hope Joe and the economy recover soon so we can repeat this type of day again.

49er running back John Henry Johnson passed away this last weekend. In 2000 National Sports Distributors brought together all the existing 49er players that were in the Pro Football Hall of Fame to sign 500 helmets. It was an exceptional day with all the guys together, laughing and teasing each other with respect. Shortly thereafter, Leo Nomelini passed away and just recently Joe Perry passed away. Now John Henry Johnson joins them. Back in 2000 John Henry Johnson looked like he could still play.

As a former rugby player at San Diego State, it is great to see the sport of rugby grow in the United States. This weekend is the USA 7's Collegiate Rugby Championship in Philadelphia. The powerhouse rugby teams to beat are Cal Berkeley and Army. We wish all the teams the best in this growing sport which will also be included in the upcoming Olympic Games. While the 7's is a good game, the real game of rugby with 15 players on the field is a better game to watch and play. Two non-stop 40 minute halves of tough play, this 15 players per side is a great game.

All of us here at NSD were sad to hear about the passing of Harmon Killebrew. As time goes by, we must cherrish the years we have left with our elderly retired sports heroes. Take the time to hear their stories. They are alive with history and the stories they tell will never be repeated again. Harmon Killebrew was a great man. He will be missed by many and he will be remembered for many, many years to come.

The NFL Draft starts tonight. Let's all hope that this is the start for a great season in 2011. Let's hurry and get the strike settled so we can all move forward. At times I do not think the owners or the players really know how much is effected by a strike, the restaurants, the sports memorabilia stores, the bars, the fan shops, the framing industry, etc. With that said, tomorrow many retired players will announce a draft pick for their former team. We are glad to see that our great friend Dwight Clark will be announcing the 49er pick on Friday.