1970 O-Pee-Chee CFL George Reed #81 Hall of Famer Saskatchewan Roughriders EX-MT 6

Description

1970 O-Pee-Chee CFL George Reed #81 Hall of Famer Saskatchewan Roughriders EX-MT 6 Some players define an era of a franchise, and for the Saskatchewan Roughriders the 1960s and early 1970s belonged to George Reed, the powerhouse fullback whose number 33 hangs among the legends of Regina. This is his 1970 O-Pee-Chee CFL base card, number 81, presenting Reed in his green Roughriders uniform with a white border, a running pose against the empty northern Saskatchewan stadium that gives this vintage Canadian issue its unmistakable look. Reed's resume is among the most decorated in Canadian football history. He played for the Riders from 1963 to 1975, finishing his career as the CFL's all-time leading rusher, and he guided Saskatchewan to the 1966 Grey Cup championship while winning that season's Most Outstanding Player award. He repeated as the league's top player and earned a remarkable three Most Outstanding Player trophies along with repeated all-Canadian and Western All-Star selections, and in 1979 he was enshrined in the Canadian Football Hall of Fame. For collectors of Canadian football memorabilia, Reed is the single most important name on a Saskatchewan checklist of this era, which gives this raw 1970 card genuine and lasting demand beyond the ordinary. This is a clean autograph-free authentic original, not a reprint, and the printing quality and gloss are strong for the age. The card presents with sharp, nearly-square corners and only negligible softness at the tips, edges that are clean with no visible chipping or lifting, a bright and unmarked surface free of creases and wrinkles, and centering that sits slightly right of true with the white border slightly heavier on the left, which is typical of 1970 O-Pee-Chee production and why the grade stops just short of near mint. The back is the standard Canadian O-Pee-Chee bilingual back with English and French text on black with the green oval and cartoon highlight, and it is not a puzzle back, which is important to note for accuracy. Given the absence of creases, clean edges, and the moderate-to-slightly-off-vertical centering, a conservative raw grade estimate is EX-MT 6, a fair and defensible assessment that accounts for the era's printing tolerances without overstating appearance. This is a cornerstone card for any CFL or Roughriders collection. Grade Estimate: EX-MT 6