1972 O-Pee-Chee Monroe Eley #48 BC Lions Running Back

Description

1972 O-Pee-Chee Monroe Eley #48 BC Lions Running Back Speed, versatility, and special-teams electricity converge in the 1972 O-Pee-Chee Monroe Eley #48 BC Lions Running Back, an underrated blue-border gem that captures a dynamic import who made an immediate splash after arriving from Arizona State University. As card 48 of 132 in the celebrated 1972 O-Pee-Chee CFL set, the final O-Pee-Chee football-only issue arranged by team and cherished for its exclusively Canadian bilingual presentation, this card sits squarely in the BC Lions cluster between Trev Ekdahl and Jim Evenson and offers collectors a chance to own the backfield complement to Big Jim himself. The front showcases the familiar 1972 template with a sky-blue LIONS banner, MONROE ELEY RB nameplate, and a posed portrait of Eley in the Lions orange jersey number 26 clutching the ball against the stadium backdrop, a simple but powerful composition that emphasizes his poised, game-ready demeanor. The bilingual back biography tells the fuller story that makes Eley a cult favorite, noting he came to the Lions after his Junior year, ranked second last year in rushing in the W. A. C., lettered in track and baseball as well as football in high school, and listed at six foot three approaching 200 pounds as an import from Arizona State, details that explain the explosiveness he brought to Vancouver. History confirms the hype, in his rookie 1972 season chronicled by this card Eley rushed for 517 yards and led the entire West Conference with 1,033 kickoff return yards, showcasing the dual-threat ability that made him a dangerous weapon on kick teams, he then added 373 yards in 1973 behind 1,000-yard man Johnny Musso before breaking out with a career-best 1,176 yards in 1974 when Musso was injured, a performance that caught the eye of the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons who had drafted him in the fifth round in 1974 and brought him south for stints in 1975 and 1977. For vintage enthusiasts the card also represents the crossover appeal of WAC college football to the CFL, the pipeline that brought Arizona State talent north, and the 1970s trend of versatile backs who could run, catch, and return, all immortalized by O-Pee-Chee’s uncoated bilingual cardboard printed in Canada. The 1972 O-Pee-Chee Monroe Eley #48 BC Lions Running Back therefore appeals to Lions team builders, Arizona State alumni collectors, and return-specialist aficionados alike, and its relatively low population in high grade makes attractive raw examples increasingly sought. This is a Canadian O-Pee-Chee bilingual back and is not a puzzle back, featuring green Demi-offensif panel, English biography, small WAYLAID BY THE... cartoon, card number 48, and PRINTED IN CANADA notation on tan stock. The card examined shows honest vintage wear with no creases, wrinkles, or pen marks, corners are moderately softened with the lower left exhibiting a faint touch of rounding and edge whitening, blue borders display light chipping speckles especially along the top edge consistent with OPC handling, surface retains decent color with minor print granularity and no surface breaks, centering on the front is about 60/40 left to right with the back text well framed. A conservative grade estimate of VG-EX 4 is warranted, reflecting the corner softness and border speckling that prevent an EX assessment despite the crease-free, presentable face, making the 1972 O-Pee-Chee Monroe Eley #48 BC Lions Running Back an honest collector-grade example with strong eye appeal for its grade. Grade Estimate: VG-EX 4