Stars of undefeated Miami Dolphins add to popularity of 1972 Topps Football set

Unbeaten. Untied. A perfect season: 17-0.

It’s hard to believe it has been 50 years since the 1972 Miami Dolphins posted a flawless record, unmatched in NFL history.

A good YouTube video on that historic team is: “NFL America’s Game Super Bowl 7 Champions 1972 Dolphins.” About 32 1/2 minutes into the production Miami head coach Don Shula lightly chuckled and said, “You’ve got the green light, Larry, as long as you make it.” No pressure, right?

In this case, Shula was referencing Dolphins punter Larry Seiple during the 1972 AFC Championship game against Pittsburgh. With the team losing by a touchdown early in the second quarter, Seiple lined up to punt, took the long snap, and then saw most of the Steelers run away from him to cover the scheduled kick. The pesky punter saw lots of green, as in open space, tucked the ball and scampered about 37 yards to set up his team’s first score. Shula approved.

Let’s call that huge momentum-changing and potentially season-defining play “The Immaculate Misdirection.”

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About a week before in an AFC divisional playoff battle between Oakland and Pittsburgh, Steelers’ fullback Franco Harris finished off perhaps the most famous play in pro football history as he snagged a deflected pass at about shoe-top height and, with virtually no time left, ran it in for the game-winning touchdown — “The Immaculate Reception.” The Steelers, who lost to the Dolphins in the 1972 AFC Championship game, went on to win three Super Bowls in the 1970s.

Like those memorable NFL moments and a few others that season, the 1972 Topps Football set had some memorable surprises, too.

1972 Topps Football set.

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The biggest surprise Topps revealed that year involved test marketing a third series of football cards (#264-351) in only a handful of areas.

Mark Briggs, like many collectors, found out about the ’72 third series well after its initial release.

“When I was a kid I never saw any of the third series, I didn’t even know they existed — and [later] the high numbers were another reason why I wanted to collect the set,” Briggs said. His 1972 set now ranks 14th on the PSA Set Registry for that set.

Two of the offering’s more difficult cards for Briggs to find in high grades appear in the high numbers and many collectors can sympathize with his picks: the rookie card of future Hall of Famer Rayfield Wright (#316) and Ken Willard’s “Pro Action,” the set-ender and part of a subset where a player is seen “in-action” in an actual game — although helmet logos, like Willard’s, normally received the airbrush treatment.

1972 Topps Rayfield Wright card.

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1972 Topps Ken Willard Pro Action card.

Briggs began his graded 1972 Topps Football journey several years ago. Jeffrey Mazzeo, meanwhile, stepped on that field in March 2022 and has just about completed all three series.

Mazzeo, whose set ranked sixth for the collection on the PSA Set Registry, pursues a collection with a specific plan.

“My strategy with sets is I’d rather take a PSA 6 to fill the slots than wait for all PSA 8s,” he said.

Utilizing eBay’s “Buy It Now” option has helped him a great deal.

“I have my eBay app set to notify me for newly listed PSA-graded ’72 Topps cards,” he said. “It’s more desirable than some of the late-’60s sets. It’s accepted as the last vintage set [certainly the last older set distributed by series], it’s pretty popular.”

Two other factors that make the set special, according to Mazzeo, are the Pro Action cards and it’s the first football set highlighting all of the postseason games.

ANOTHER LEVEL

Collector Steve Humanick collected 1972 Topps Football with some solid purchases well before most card prices got out of control, supreme tenacity and patience.

“It took me a decade to get that number one spot on the PSA Set Registry,” said Humanick, who has owned the top position since 2017. “I opened a lot of packs, a lot of vending boxes and spent a lot of money. At one point I had a 5,000-count box full of ’72 high numbers, from buying complete and partial sets.”

Some of Humanick’s favorite high numbers include the All Pro cards subset in general, where Dolphins Larry Little (#267), Paul Warfield (#271), Bob Griese (#272) and Garo Yepremian (#275) all make an appearance.

1972 Topps Bob Griese All Pro card.

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His other top picks in that 88-card third series run include the regular card of Miami quarterback Earl Morrall (#308) and the Pro Action card of New York Jets legend Joe Namath (#343), one of the most sought-after cards in the issue.

1972 Topps Joe Namath Pro Action card.

Humanick calls the Namath action shot “cool and the second highest weighted in the set.” The 1972 card carrying the most “weight,” via the Set Registry, just happens to be one of Humanick’s favorites, a routine selection among collectors of this issue, quarterback Roger Staubach (#200).

1972 Topps Roger Staubach card.

“It’s a Hall of Fame rookie card,” he said. “He served his military time and then came back to football.”

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A few other bigger-name rookies in the set include John Riggins (#13), Ted Hendricks (#93) and Steve Spurrier (#291)

Of the 351 cards in Humanick’s 1972 Topps Football collection, 65 are PSA 9s (Mint) and 286 are PSA 10s (Gem Mint), with 77 of 88 high numbers in the best grade possible. Let those numbers sink in for a moment.

Like Hall of Famer and ’72 Dolphins star fullback Larry Csonka, who often dragged defenders with him as he powered through defenses, Humanick expects the 1972 Topps Football set to continue to gain momentum and value among collectors.

“I think they are undervalued compared to late-’70s sets and even cards into the 1980s,” Humanick said. But he sees that trend reversing over the years.

Will Humanick ever reach his dream of a complete ’72 football issue in PSA 10? Some of that hinges on the affordability of certain star cards and there is a possibility a few pasteboards may never meet that grading level.

“A Staubach rookie in PSA 10 [which he needs and has a Population Report of two] is likely to sell for at least half-a-million dollars and 15 different cards have yet to even reach the PSA 10 level,” he said.

Then again, like Larry Seiple, the collector might enjoy some big success under high pressure. In one scenario, Humanick could rip some of his unopened 1972 packs and maybe find some cards he needs that earn the supreme grade.

Either way, the spirit of Coach Shula no doubt looks upon his pursuit with glee and gives Humanick the permanent green light in his relentless search of his Gem Mint goal. Whether he makes it or not, that will likely keep him “undefeated” atop the PSA Set Registry with this collection for years to come.

For now, call it “The (In Progress) Immaculate Collection.”

WAX PACKS

When original sales flagged on the last series of 1972 Topps Football cards, a Wisconsin-based Topps salesman contacted full-time card dealer Larry Fritsch of nearby Stevens Point to gauge his interest in purchasing some of the cards. Fritsch bought the entire load — around 50 wax cases, each with 15 boxes, for about $5 each.

Chances are the large majority of sharp condition 1972 high numbers in hobby circulation stem from Fritsch’s purchase and subsequent sales to the public.

Although Fritsch died in 2007, his grandson, Jeremy, now heads the enterprise. And, somewhat surprisingly, the company still has a few unopened 1972 third series wax packs for sale, but they do not advertise them on their website (fritschcards.com), you have to specifically ask about the packs. A company rep said the packs sell for the “current market rate.”