CLEVELAND — For so many collectors, receiving an autograph from a favorite athlete is a dream. But at The National Sports Collectors Convention on Friday, the roles were reversed.
Ty Hudson, a 13-year-old from Weatherford, Texas, just outside of Fort Worth, is an avid card collector and sports fan. One of his favorite athletes is 49ers legend Jerry Rice, the NFL's all-time leading receiver, and now, Rice is the owner of a "Ty Hudson" Topps card.
As part of the Make-A-Wish and Fanatics partnership, Hudson had the opportunity to meet Rice and Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin, who gifted Hudson with his own set of cards. Hudson has cystic fibrosis, but doesn't let it affect him from playing shortstop and catcher. His love of baseball led him to collecting cards, and that love then branched into other sports.
Hudson's wish was to attend The National, and receive autographs from legendary athletes such as Rice, Cal Ripken Jr., Michael Irvin and Johnny Bench, to pair with his current favorites of Bryce Harper and Christian McCaffrey.
Make-A-Wish and Fanatics introduced Hudson to these sports icons and arranged a private meeting with Rice, where Hudson wore Rice's Super Bowl XXIV jersey from the 49ers' 55-10 victory over the Broncos in 1990. Rice then signed two jerseys, one a San Francisco jersey and one NFC Pro Bowl shirt, where he penned Hudson as the "GOAT".
But before signing the jerseys, Rice asked Hudson for a special gift of his own, for Hudson to sign his custom cards for him to keep.
"Make sure you put on there, 'To Jerry'" Rice said to Hudson, before showing his new prized collection to everyone in the room. "That is so cool."
Since beginning its partnership with Make-A-Wish in the fall of 2023, Fanatics has granted more than 250 sports-related wishes.
Polite as can be, Hudson kept saying "thank you" to Rubin and Rice, before Rubin gave his thanks to Hudson, for being an inspiration to him and Rice.
Matt Liberman is a video producer and editor for cllct.