Last of the Topps

From The Florida Times-Union:

Loyal Jaguars fan earns salute from Topps NFL cards
He's among 11 military members to be featured.

By Timothy J. Gibbons
Story updated at 9:39 AM on Monday, Dec. 22, 2008

When Army Spc. Mark Middlebrook finished up a day in Iraq, one of the first things he'd often do is call home to talk to his parents.

Part of that was being a dutiful son. Other times he had, well, a more important reason for calling.

"All I'd want to know is if the Jags won," he said.

This is a guy who went to every home game the Jaguars played for the first four or five years the team existed. A guy who stayed up all night to watch the team play the Colts.

Now he's a guy with his own Topps NFL trading card.

Middlebrook was one of 11 people selected to be an Armed Forces Fan of the Game, a tribute by the trading card company to members of the military.

It's given the 23-year-old a certain level of fame, at least among card collectors.

"A sergeant calls me up out of the blue and says, 'I've got your card,' " Middlebrook said. "Three or four other people have said that to me."

The 11 Armed Forces Fans are scattered randomly among the 440 cards that make up the NFL set, which are sold in packs of 10.

The Jags selected Middlebrook after the NFL approached them about participating in the program. The team already has strong ties to the military, forged by sending players out to visit the area's bases, setting up special events for veterans and arranging for flyovers.

The rest of the story can be found here.