New England Patriots Player Appearances

Hello Again PatsFan.com!

It’s a funny thing when it comes to player appearances - you get these long droughts during the off-season, but when the rain comes, man it pours!

Such a perfect storm is almost upon us, so I thought I’d give you guys fair warning so you can plan accordingly - time to start thinking how you can sell three road trips to meet Pats players to the wife!

This trifecta will be happening on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday beginning July 24th.  First up we have newly inducted Hall of Famer Andre Tippett.  Andre will be the next guest speaker at the Hall at Patriots Place in Foxboro, MA in what is proving to be a very impressive speaker series (past guests have included John Hannah and Gino Cappelletti).  The speaker series is a great opportunity to get the inside track directly from the greats of the game.  At the conclusion of Andre’s presentation he will participate in a Q & A session with fans, followed by an oportunity for autographs.  This is an awesome chance to get your throwback gear signed by Andre with the fresh-off-the presses “HOF ‘08″ inscription.  Tickets for the speaker series with Andre are $25 and are available at www.TheHallatPatriotPlace.com or at the ticket booth while supplies last.  Your purchase will also include entry to Hall, and if you haven’t checked that out yet it is definately a must-see for any Pats fan.

Now, if you’re heading down to Foxboro on the 24th please don’t spend all your spare cash at the ProShop!   You’re going to want to set some aside for the next leg of this marathon weekend for a great event for a great cause - and yes, this one is especially close to me as it’s an event being hosted by yours truly.  “#84 Signs For One More” is our fundraising benefit for Benjamin Watson’s charitable foundation One More (www.watsononemore.org).  This event will be held on Saturday, July 25th at the Boston Billiard Club in Nashua, NH.  New England Player Promotions (www.neplayerpromotions.com) has teamed up with the Watsons, our long-time partners at Nashua Sports Collectibles (www.nashuasports.com) and our new friends at Sports Identity Inc. (www.sportsidentity.com) to put on an event that we believe will blow your mind.  In addition to a chance to meet and interact with Ben, we’ll be auctioning signed memorabilia from Tom Brady, Wes Welker, Randy Moss and many of Ben’s other teammates.  We’ll also be raffling off a game-used jersey of Ben’s which he’ll sign for the winner, and our “Balloon Benefit” will be an opportunity to win a variety of prizes like T-Shirts, Signed Memorabilia, Game-Used Equipment, and even Patriots tickets for the Pats/Titans game later this year.  The proceeds from these endeavors will help Benjamin and his wife Kirsten continue the good work they’ve been doing through One More.  Tickets start at just $20 and are available at www.neplayerpromotions.com/event_tickets and at the door while supplies last.  Discounted packages are also available exclusively on-line.

And lastly, if you’re not winded yet - and we hope you’re not - our friends at Inkline Marketing and Cardboard Promotions are hosting an autograph signing with fan favorite and Superbowl Champion Joe Andruzzi.  This signing will be at the Holiday Inn in Masfield, MA on Sunday, July 26th.  There will also be a huge card and memorabilia show and if you wear any item of Pats gear, you’ll gain free admission to the show!  Autograph tickets for Joe Andruzzi are a real bargain - just $10 for your first signature and $8 each for any additional autographs.  More information on this event can be found at www.cardboardpromotions.com.

So set aside the weekend, fill the SUV with gas, and get ready for a roadtrip!  I hope you’ll be able to enjoy one or more of these great events, and if you’re a die-hard collector like me you’ll be trekking to all three!  Hope to see you there!

 -Den

Greetings Pats Fans,

One of the things which I admire about the Patriots as a group of individuals is how active these guys are when it comes to using their time, resources, and status to contribute something positive to the community at large.

In an age of prima donnas and pacmans, it’s refreshing to see a group collectively take ownership over making a difference on scales both personal and grand.  Just go down the Patriots roster and for every name there seems to a foundation or organization to go with the individual.  Kevin, Vince, Jarvis, Adalius…each one has tackled a cause, or in many cases causes, which they saw needed to be adressed.  It is remarkable.

Which brings me to Patriots Tight End Benjamin Watson.  Ben and his wife Kirsten have decided to make a positive impact in “one more” life through their charitable foundation, One More.  Through One More, Ben and Kirsten have been involved in a number of outreach activities, everything from food and toy drives to conducting football clinics for underprivelaged children.

It pleases me greatly to announce that New England Player Promotions is partnering with Ben and Kirsten by hosting an autograph signing event to raise proceeds for One More.  On Saturday, July 25th Ben will be appearing at the Nashua, NH Boston Billiard Club from 5 - 7 PM.  The event will be an opportunity to meet and greet with Ben, peruse vendor tables from New England Player Promotions and NashuaSports.com, bid on items in a silent auction to benefit One More, and engage in the all-around good time that a NEPP event held at the Boston Billiard Club can provide.  Autograph tickets will be available for $20 and will be sold through www.neplayerpromotions.com and at the door while supplies last. 

 More information about One More can be found at www.watsononemore.org

 Hope to see you there!

 -Den

Hello PatsFans.com!

Draft Day has come and gone (can you believe we drafted a guy named Chung with our first pick!?!?!) and with Draft Day begins the official onset of Patriots Events!

I spent Draft Day once again with Vince Wilfork and his guests down in Milford, MA at Pinz Entertainment and a great time was had by all!  Vince’s guests this year included Stephen Gostkowski, Pierre Woods, Mike Wright, Jerod Mayo, Vince Redd, Adalius Thomas and Ellis Hobbs - in what would turn out to be his last day as a Patriot!

My personal highlight of the day - watching the Ghost miss one pin at the bowling alley wide right and telling him, “don’t worry, put a couple of goal posts on either side and you’ll nail that every time!”.  Hey, I made Stephen Gostkowski laugh - I’m happy

Adalius was on hand to support his defensive buddy Vince, and speaking of AD, he’s got a couple of events coming up!

This Sunday, May 3rd, AD and his buddy Ty Warren will be competing, along with “special guests”, in the “Grilling with the Pros” event in Boston at Harvard Square’s Mayfair!  If you like the Pats and you like barbecue, this is the event for you!  Enjoy some ribs basted by your favorite stars of the defense!  The details can be found here:

 http://www.adalius96.com/news.html

AD will also be hosting his first (of what will hopefully be an annual event) “Humble Pie Ride & Run” Event on June 14th.  Like classic cars, the Pats, and family fun?- Hey this is a great event combining all three and raising money for the Adalius Thomas Foundation at the same time!  Details here:

 http://www.adalius96.com/adalius_foundation.html

If you plan on going to either of these awesome events hosted by AD, please drop me a line - I’ll be there!

And talking about great Pats events, Kevin Faulk is once again bringing his teammates to Campanelli Stadium in Brockton, MA for the 3rd annual “Kevin Faulk Celebrity Softball Tournament” to benfit the United Way.  You want to meet Pats players - this is THE event!

I would highly encourage checking this  out.  LOTS of players show for this one. Just to give you guys an idea, last year drew Moss, Cassel, Green, Maroney, Morris, Izzo, Spann, Woods, Jackson, Yates, Alexander, Guiterrez, Warren, S. Thomas, Meriweather, Wilfork, Gaffney, Sanders, Washington, and of course Faulk.  There is a VIP open bar/buffet/meet & greet before the game if you can absorb the $130 ticket hit. Gen admin for the game is only $10.

Oh and did I mention the dance-off between Matt Cassel and Kelley Washington?  You Tube it here: 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vaq3G4utKWE

I expect this year’s event to be no less entertaining! 

Another last-minute tidbit, my friends:  Doug Flutie will be lecturing at Leonard Morse Hospital in Natick, MA on May 2nd from 10 Am untill noon.  This guy is a true humanitarian and stellar individual - stop by if you can!

So that’s the Player Appearanc Blog for the moment, my friends.  I must apologize for not posting as frequently as I would like to - I will improve upon that - I promise!  If anybody plans on going to Adalius or Kevin’s events, please PM me - I’d love to meet you!

And please remember to think of New England Player Promotions (www.neplayerpromotions.com) for your Pats Player Info & Merchandise!  I would love it if you joined my mailing list!  NEPP is currently working on an event for this season - please stay tuned!

Another blog entry soon - I promise, my friends!  Up next - where you can meet Richard Seymour and several of your favorite Boston Red Sox players!

Like the blog?  Have a question about autograph collecting?  Want to compare collections?  Need advice on autograph collecting?

Please e-mail me at dennisboyer@neplayerpromotions.com or PM me here at PatsFans - I am driven by your enthusuism! 

 Thanks PatsFans!  (Ian - you’re the best, my friend!)

 Take care & go Pats!

(And Celts and B’s! - what a great time to be a New England sports fan!)

 -Den

Hello PatsFans and welcome to the first official New England Patriots Player Appearance blog!  It’s the goal of this blog to keep you, the best fanbase in sports, in the know on where the players will be and how to meet them.  I’ll also be trying to share my personal thoughts and opinions on autograph collecting -specifically Pats autograph collecting - with you and will hopefully be able to provide some insight on how to start or expand your collection with some insider tips and hints.  You may also come across a fair share of anecdotal narration on my own experiences travelling across New England trying to add to my personal collection and attain my obsessional and completely unachievable goal of meeting every player to don the Nautical Blue, Red, New Century Silver, and White (the team’s official colors - there’s your first of what will be many useless gems). 

Before I go any further, however, I’d like to take a moment to thank Ian for this great opportunity.  As you all know, PatsFans.com is simply the best Patriots site on the net thanks to the hard-work and dedication of Ian and it is my great pleasure to attempt to contribute to this thriving and energentic community in this manner.  Thanks, Ian.

And next please allow me to take a moment and introduce myself.  My name is Dennis Boyer, although you may know me better as Den-in-NH.  I’m the guy who has been trying to keep PatsFans appraised of local (and by local I mean the entire Northeast) events involving the players and former players.  I’ve been doing this via the Offical Patriots Player Appearance Thread for awhile and I see this blog as an opportunity to expand upon that idea.  Ian and I both agreed that this was the next natural step in the evolution of the thread and I am committed to making PatsFans.com the best place for fans to find out what’s happening on the appearance scene. 

So how do I, your humble host, come across all of this precious information?  In a few ways, actually.  My wife Jenn and I own a small business called New England Player Promotions which is a Patriots-themed sports memorabilia company.  And unlike the big guys, we focus exclusively on the teams of  the New England Region, which makes us specialists of sorts.  In doing so we’ve built relationships with some key people and groups which keep us up-to-speed on where the players will be at:  other sports memorabilia vendors, sports agencies, charitable foundation organizers etc.  Plus, we try to organize and host several signings a year ourselves.  So if a Pats player is signing an 8×10 glossy somewhere in New England, chances are we’ve come across the info - and we’re here to share it with you.

So let us delve into our first topic of discussion:  how to score free autographs!

…wait a minute, here.  Why is a guy who sells autographs telling me where I can get them for free?  A couple of reasons.  First, I am a Fan and a Collector first and a Dealer second and am always happy to relay info to fellow fan.  Secondly, free autograph signings are great for the collecting industry and anything that helps foster interest in the hobby is something I’m interested in promoting.  And remember, nobody is going to get rich collecting free signatures and hocking them on eBay - there’s just no way to do that kind of volume to make it worth the travelling expenses.  And it’s generally agreed upon to be bad form to sell a signature which a player gave you for free.  Personally, I keep all my free signatures for my personal collection or I give them to friends and family if they’re duplicates which I already own.  Think of free signings as a way to supplement your collection.  You could collect exclusively free sigs if you wanted.  But if so, you may never end up with that Randy Moss or Wes Welker piece you’ve been eyeing.

So free sigs - training camp, right?  Yeah, we already know about that, thanks anyway, Den.  Ah, but the opportunity for free signatures does not rise and fall solely with the coming and passing of the summer months. 

Outside of training camp, free signing events fall mainly into one of two categories:  charitable events and promotional events.  In both cases the appearances are not typically heavily promoted or announced very far in advance of the event, so you’ve got to be on the lookout for them.  Hopefully, this blog will be one of your best sources for that and shortly I’ll be telling you about an event which will feature four former Patriots alumni and will be 100% free!

Promotional events are usually sponsored by companies and businesses which will hire a player to appear in order to generate publicity and foot traffic for their respective business.  For example the Reebok store at Patriots Place recently hosted Laurence Maroney for a free signing and when the Circuit City at Patriots Place held their grand opening Matt Light was on hand to sign for free.  It’s usually the big chains that can afford to sponsor such an event, especially if they’re affiliated with the Patriots in some way - your Lowe’s, your Bass Pro Shops, your Bob’s Discount Furniture Stores.  The opening of the retail stores at the megaopolis which is Patriots Place will be a cache of such event in the future.  Keep your eyes on Grand Openings and Anniversary Celebrations in the future.

Charitable events are also something which the players love to be involved in.  Nearly every player I’ve ever met has supported or been affiliated with one charitable cause or another.  Most of the current players have even started their own foundations to support and publicize their own personal causes.  Most players consider themselves to be blessed to be paid so well to do something which they enjoy as much as they do for a living and giving back to the community is one of their major commitments.  Heading out to a charitable event is a win-win-win situation:  the players enjoy it, the charities raise funds, and you’ll feel great not only for scoring that free Vince Wilfork sig, but for helping a good cause as well.  I highly recomend attending a charitable event which a player will be attending -the atmosphere is truly special and thoroughly enjoyable.

So here’s your first big payday:  How would you like to meet four former Patriots alumni and support a great cause simultaneously?  Sounds good?  Well, head on down to Gillette Stadium on Tuesday Dec. 16th anytime between 12:00 PM and 7:00 PM because the Red Cross and Bob’s Discount Furniture Stores will be hosting a blood drive at the Fidelity Clubhouse which will feature food, music, games and prizes and the appearance of four former New England Patriots Players:  Scott Zolak, Joe Andruzzi, Jon Williams and Roland James.  As long as you don’t mind giving a little blood (which is something we all need to do more of - well here’s our motivation!)  you should have an opportunity to meet these great guys.  Here’s a brief bio on each of the blood drive’s guests:

Scott Zolak spent seven seasons with the Patriots as a backup quarterback and won his first start as a Pat over the Indianapolis Colts.  His final start as a Patriot was also memorable when Scott replaced an injured Drew Bledsoe and lead the team to a win over the San Francisco 49ers and clinched a playoff spot in doing so.  Scott also played in Superbowl XXI in his sole year with the Miami Dolphins.  Scott is a frequent televsion and radio analyst and offers some of the best insight and analysis around.

Joe Andruzzi is a three-time Superbowl winner with the New England Patriots.  The Offensive tackle, whose three brothers are New York City firefighters, is well-remembered for paying for 100 NYC firefighters to attend a Patriots-Jets game.

Jon Williams was the team’s running back in 1984 and was a National Champion with Penn State having played under Joe Paterno.

Roland James was a fantastic cornerback who was a part of the 1985 AFC Championship team.  Roland spent his entire ten-year career as a New England Patriot and recorded the game-ending interception on the last play of the infamous 
“Snowplow Game” over Miami to secure the 3-0 victory.  On a personal note, I worked with Roland just last week at my “Night of Legends” signing event in Warwick, RI and can tell you he is phenomonal person and all-around great guy.

Please come on down to the Fidelity Clubhouse on Tuesday and enjoy this great event while supporting this extremely important cause.  I expect it to be a lot of fun and hope to see some fellow PatFans on the 16th.

But Den, I don’t have any 8×10 photos of Scott Zolak hanging around…  Well, my friends, neither do I honestly.  So what to have signed then?  Anything with a Pats logo will make for a special and unique piece - an old media guide, a pennant, cap, or T-shirt is fine.  Personally, I love to get signatures on mini-helmets (you can check out my mini-helmet collection on the “Mini-Helmet Collecting” page of our website at www.neplayerpromotions.com).  They make for fantastic display pieces and show off a signature very well - I recommend blue over black sharpie, for what it’s worth.  As a dealer I always have some minis of both the “Pat Patriot” throwback and Flying Elvis variety on hand, but if you’re a hard-core collector like me I would definately advise keeping a small supply of each around - you never know when one of these events may come up.  And yes, I can help you secure some if needed.  And please remember not to overdo it when getting a free signature - I will typically ask for two pieces, a solo item and a multi-signed item from everyone in attendance.  And as always, please defer to the kids when getting your autograph.

Free stuff - good times, right?  Well check out this bonus tidbit then:  How would you like to get a free photograph of you and/or your loved one ON THE FIELD AT GILLETTE WITH THE STADIUM IN THE BACKGROUND!  Very cool!  Well this Saturday and Sunday just swing on down to Foxboro and you can make this happen.  On December 13th and 14th from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM stop by Patriots Place and show your same day receipt for $25 or more from any of the Patriots Place stores or restaurants or bring a new or slightly used child’s coat to benefit the Cradles to Crayons organization and you will be able to have your photo professionally taken on the field at the Razor.  You will recieve a 4×6 print with the stadium as an awesome backdrop.  How cool is this?  Don’t miss this rare opportunity.

And if you really want to make the 16th an all-day autograph-hunting affair (I don’t know, maybe you have that day off from work!) you can head on down to Dave’s Marketplace on 1000 Division St. in East Greenwich, Rhode Island between 6:00 and 7:00 PM to pick up a free Jarvis Green signature as well.  Just bring along a non-perishable food item for their food drive.  Or head on down to the American Nutrition Center on 718 Broadway in Everett, MA for a Jerod Mayo signing from 6:00 to 8:00 PM being hosted by Your Sports Memorabilia Store (details at www.yoursportsmemorabiliastore.com).  And make a note autograph hounds, Tuesdays are typically VERY busy days in the autograph world because it’s an off-day for players.  Game on Sunday, film on Monday, Tuesdays off and back to practice on Wednesday.  You may want to remember that.  Hey, switch your schedule if you can to keep Tuesdays open - at least during the football season!

Well, if you’ve made it this far, my friends, I wish to sincerely thank you for reading my first attempt at blogging for PatsFans.com - I hope you enjoyed it.  I welcome all of your comments, critiques, suggestions and feedback.  Please feel free to leave a comment or to contact me via a PM here at PatsFans.com or by e-mail at dennisboyer@neplayerpromotions.com. I promise I will respond to all messages.

I look forward to hearing from you and will be keeping you current on all signing news, both free and commercial, in the future.

Thanks, take care & Go Pats!

-Den