1952 Wheaties Football Cards
There are sixty cards in the multi-sport 1962 Wheaties set: a portrait card and an action card for each of thirty athletes. The cards were printed on the backs and sides of Wheaties cereal boxes, ten to a box. You can see five of the six ten-card panels in a thread in the Collectors Universe forums, and there is a checklist of all sixty cards at oldbaseball.com.
The twelve football cards in the set are pictured below. The cards are not numbered, so I listed them in alphabetical order. For more information on other vintage football cards that were distributed with food, see my blog article, W is for Wonder Bread.
| Image | Set | # | Card Title/Players | Pro Team | Position | College | Honors | Notes | Grades available at Nearmint Sports Cards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1952 Wheaties | Glenn Davis in Action | Davis was nicknamed "Mr. Outside" at Army; his teammate, Doc Blanchard, was nicknamed "Mr. Inside." | ||||||
| Glenn Davis | Los Angeles Rams | halfback | Army, Cal Poly Pomona | College Hall of Fame 1961, Heisman Trophy 1946 | |||||
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1952 Wheaties | Glenn Davis Portrait | Davis did not play in 1952; a knee injury had ended his career. | ||||||
| Glenn Davis | Los Angeles Rams | halfback | Army, Cal Poly Pomona | College Hall of Fame 1961, Heisman Trophy 1946 | |||||
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1952 Wheaties | Tom Fears in Action | In 1949, Fears broke the NFL record for receptions in a season, with 77. In 1950, he broke it again, with 84. | ||||||
| Tom Fears | Los Angeles Rams | end | UCLA, Santa Clara | College Hall of Fame 1976, Pro Football Hall of Fame 1970 | |||||
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1952 Wheaties | Tom Fears Portrait | Fears appeared in several movies; one was Two-Minute Warning. | ||||||
| Tom Fears | Los Angeles Rams | end | UCLA, Santa Clara | College Hall of Fame 1976, Pro Football Hall of Fame 1970 | |||||
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1952 Wheaties | Otto Graham in Action | In 1952, Graham led the NFL in attempts, completions, passing yards, touchdown passes, and interceptions. | ||||||
| Otto Graham | Cleveland Browns | quarterback | Northwestern | Browns Ring of Honor 2010, College Hall of Fame 1956, Pro Football Hall of Fame 1965 | |||||
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1952 Wheaties | Otto Graham Portrait | Graham played in the league championship game in each of the ten seasons he played in the AAFC and NFL. | ||||||
| Otto Graham | Cleveland Browns | quarterback | Northwestern | Browns Ring of Honor 2010, College Hall of Fame 1956, Pro Football Hall of Fame 1965 | |||||
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1952 Wheaties | John Lujack in Action | Lujack set an NFL record with 468 passing yards in a game in 1949. | ||||||
| John Lujack | Chicago Bears | quarterback | Notre Dame | College Hall of Fame 1960, Heisman Trophy 1947 | |||||
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1952 Wheaties | John Lujack Portrait | Lujack did not play in 1952; he retired after an injury in the 1951 season. | ||||||
| John Lujack | Chicago Bears | quarterback | Notre Dame | College Hall of Fame 1960, Heisman Trophy 1947 | |||||
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1952 Wheaties | Doak Walker in Action | Walker missed five games because of an injury in 1952. It was the only season he did not make the Pro Bowl. | ||||||
| Doak Walker | Detroit Lions | halfback | SMU | College Hall of Fame 1959, Heisman Trophy 1948, Pride of the Lions 2009, Pro Football Hall of Fame 1986 | |||||
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1952 Wheaties | Doak Walker Portrait | Walker had a 79-yard quick-kick punt in the 1949 Cotton Bowl. His SMU teammate, Kyle Rote, had a 84-yard quick-kick in the same game. | ||||||
| Doak Walker | Detroit Lions | halfback | SMU | College Hall of Fame 1959, Heisman Trophy 1948, Pride of the Lions 2009, Pro Football Hall of Fame 1986 | |||||
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1952 Wheaties | Bob Waterfield in Action | In 1945, Waterfield became the first rookie to win the NFL MVP award. | ||||||
| Bob Waterfield | Los Angeles Rams | quarterback, kicker | UCLA | Pro Football Hall of Fame 1965 | |||||
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1952 Wheaties | Bob Waterfield Portrait | Waterfield was married for 25 years to actress Jane Russell. | ||||||
| Bob Waterfield | Los Angeles Rams | quarterback, kicker | UCLA | Pro Football Hall of Fame 1965 | |||||