2012 Topps Allen & Ginter Autographs – Meet the Non-Baseball Signers
Every year, Topps Allen & Ginter has an eclectic mix of content that has nothing to do with baseball. The most notable are a group of "champions" from other areas of sports and pop culture. These personalities usually appear in the base set, on memorabilia cards and, most notably, on signed cards. The list of 2012 Topps Allen & Ginter autographs is as varied as ever. However, there does seem to be fewer champions from obscure and oddball sports and a greater focus on media personalities. Sure, there's a strongman, a racquetballer and a fly fisherman, but they're more the exception rather than the norm.
Below you'll find a breakdown of all 33 non-baseball signers slated to appear in 2012 Topps Allen & Ginter Baseball.
(Updated 7/10/12 to reflect final checklist.)
2012 Topps Allen & Ginter Autographs - Non-Baseball Signers
AGA-ADK Annie Duke
One of the best female professional poker players. She was also a finalist on TV's Celebrity Apprentice.
AGA-APA Ara Parseghian
Legendary college football coach. Led Notre Dame to National Championships in 1966 and 1973. Elected into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1980.
AGA-AP Arnold Palmer
All-time golfing great. Won 95 professional tournaments including seven Majors. Elected into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1974.
AGA-AUS Al Unser, Sr
Member of one of the most famous racing families. Between 1965 and 1993, Unser drove in 322 races. He won 39 of them and finished on the podium for almost 100 races.
AGA-BH Bob Hurley Sr.
In 39 years of coaching high school basketball, Hurley has won 26 state championships. He is also one of just ten coaches to win 1,000 career games. He became the third high school coach to be elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame when he was inducted in 2010.
AGA-BK Bela Karolyi
Legendary gymnastics coach. Led Olympic teams for both the United States and Romania. Karolyi coached such notable gymnasts as Kerri Strug, Mary Lou Retton and Nadia Comaneci.
AGA-BK Bob Knight
One of the most polarizing college basketball coaches ever, the fiery Knight led the Indiana Hoosiers to three national championships. His 902 career wins is second only to Mike Krzyzewski, one of his former players. While Knight's explosive temper made him a highlight reel regular, it also got him into trouble.
AGA-CM Colin Montgomerie
Although he has yet to win a major tournament, Montgomerie is still one of the best golfers in the world. To date, he has won 40 tournaments.
AGA-CN Curly Neal
Harlem Globetrotters great who played in more than 6,000 games with the team between 1963 and 1985. He was also made into a cartoon character for a couple of Globetrotters-themed shows and a guest spot on Scooby-Doo.
AGA-DD Don Denkinger
A curious selection, Denkinger is perhaps best known for a mistake rather than being a champion. An American League umpire for 30 years, Denkinger famously blew a call in Game 6 of the 1985 World Series. The lapse gave the Royals the opening they needed for a comeback victory. The sent the series to a seventh game, which the Royals ended up winning as well.
AGA-DW Dale Webster
Cal Ripken has nothing on Dale Webster. The surfer holds the world record for "most consecutive days surfing," with more than 10,407. The streak ran from 1975 to 2004.
AGA-EA Erin Andrews
Sports broadcaster. Just left ESPN for FOX Sports. Finished third on Dancing with the Stars in 2010.
AGA-EM Ewa Mataya
"The Striking Viking" is one of the best women to ever play the game of pool. A champion at several world-class tournaments, she now can be found as a commentator on ESPN during nine-ball coverage.
AGA-FT1 Fatal1ty
Want to get paid to play video games? Talk to this guy. Widely considered to be one of the pioneers for professional gamers, Fatal1ty has won tournaments for many prominent games and multiple World Championships.
AGA-GB Guy Bluford
Astronaut who went on four space missions. Bluford is also the first African American to go into space.
AGA-GG Greg Gumbel
One of the most famous play-by-play announcers in sports. Currently broadcasts NFL games on CBS.
AGA-HH Hank Haney
Golf coach for both Tiger Woods and Mark O'Meara. Has been named the sport's Coach of the Year numerous times by different organizations and publications over the last 30 years.
AGA-JB Jerry Bailey
Over the course of his career as a jockey, Bailey won nearly 6,000 races. Among these were two each at the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes. In 1995, Bailey was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame.
AGA-JBR James Brown
Longtime football analyst and broadcaster on FOX and CBS. He is currently a host on The NFL Today.
AGA-JKJ Jackie Joyner-Kersee
Winner of six Olympic medals, including three gold, in three different events. Named as the Greatest Female Athlete of the 20th Century by Sports Illustrated for Women.
AGA-KB Keegan Bradley
The PGA's Rookie of the Year in 2011, Bradley has already notched a major with his victory at the 2011 PGA Championship, which also happened to be his first-ever major appearance.
AGA-KH Kirk Herbstreit
College football analyst and announcer. Herbstreit can be found on College GameDay on ESPN.
AGA-KU Kate Upton
Model and current "it girl." Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue cover girl. Miss. Upton and her bathing suits seem to be everywhere right now. If we were to say this will be one of the hottest cards in the set, you'd probably look for some sort of double-meaning. This card will likely be chased big-time, enticing many non-collectors.
AGA-LK Lefty Kreh
Author, photographer and a legend among fly fisherman. Kreh is especially renowned for his expertise in salt water fly fishing.
AGA-MB Michael Buffer
"Let's get ready to rummmmmble!" Need we say more?
AGA-MH Marty Hogan
It's unlikely that racquetball will ever inspire its own standalone set. Here's your chance to own one of the sport's all-time greats. Between 1976 and 1990, Hogan never ranked lower than second in the world. Hogan won more than 100 international tournaments during his career.
AGA-ML Meadowlark Lemon
Another Harlem Globetrotters legend. And former Burger King pitchman.
AGA-MP Michael Phelps
This modern day Midas has already won 14 Olympic gold medals. There's a good chance that total will jump in the weeks ahead during the London games.
AGA-PP Phil Pfister
Strongman. Won the 2006 World's Strongest Man competition.
AGA-RF Roger Federer
Tennis legend. Ranked number one men's player in the world for a record 237 straight weeks between 2006 and 2008. Could go down as the best tennis player ever.
AGA-RG Rulon Gardner
American wrestler who won medals in the 2000 and 2004 Olympic Games.
AGA-RPT Richard Petty
Winner of seven NASCAR cup championships, Petty is a member of both the International Motorsports Hall of Fame and Motorsports Hall of Fame of America.
AGA-SC Swin Cash
Women's basketball star. Helped lead the University of Connecticut to National Championships in 2000 and 2002. Member of Gold Medal-winning squad at the 2004 Summer Olympics. Three-time WNBA champion.
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