The Card Album

With over 525 player alumni and staff from the University of Miami Football program represented, I believe my Hurricanes card collection is the most expansive in existence. It includes players that have been inducted into Hall of Fames through practice squad members and those that merely committed and walked away before the season began. Also represented are head coaches, assistants, and other staff members of the program. Along with traditional football cards, I also count similar flat collectables like pocket schedules and ticket stubs.

The Card Album is my personal collection showcase. I originally designed my first website, CardMagnet.info, from scratch in Microsoft FrontPage and used tables to organize things. The site was updated regularly 2009 to 2021. I’m proud to say that I had regular viewers from around the world, and my content was frequently in the top results on Google’s web and image results. The time came to put some new tools and ideas to use, and so TheCardAlbum.com was born.

Ray Lewis Jr. (born May 15, 1975) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker with the Baltimore Ravens for his entire 17-year career in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Miami Hurricanes, and earned All-America honors. Lewis was drafted by the Ravens in the first round of the 1996 NFL Draft, and upon his retirement following the 2012 season, was the last remaining active player from the team’s inaugural season. Lewis immediately became a leader on defense and led the team in tackles as a rookie, the first of 14 times he led the Ravens in tackles.

Lewis enrolled in the University of Miami, where he was a member of the Miami Hurricanes football team.^[20] As a freshman, he was an immediate contributor and became a starter for the Hurricanes’ final five games. He compiled 81 tackles, two sacks, two tackles for loss, and four pass deflections en route to being named to the freshman All-American team.^[21]

In his sophomore season, Lewis earned first-team All-American and All-Big East honors. Lewis led the Big East with 153 tackles and also contributed nine tackles for a loss, two sacks, and an interception for a Hurricanes team that had the nation’s top-ranked defense and finished No. 6 in both the writers’ and coaches’ polls.^[22][23]

Lewis’s junior campaign was even more successful, as he was again named to the All-American^[24] and All-Big East teams, and finished as runner-up for the Butkus Award, given to the top linebacker in college football.^[25] Lewis finished his junior season with 160 tackles, the second highest in University of Miami team history after Ed Weisacosky’s 164 in 1965. Lewis also totaled eight tackles for loss, two sacks, two interceptions, a forced fumble, four pass deflections, and one touchdown. Against the West Virginia Mountaineers, Lewis contributed 15 tackles.^[26]

Lewis led the Big East in tackles his last two seasons and accumulated the fifth most in Miami history despite playing only three seasons.

After the 1995 season, Lewis decided to forgo his final year of college eligibility and enter the NFL draft. The Baltimore Ravens, who were entering their inaugural season, selected Lewis 26th overall in the first round of the 1996 NFL Draft.^[27] Lewis was the Ravens’ second ever draft pick behind offensive tackle Jonathan Ogden who was selected #4 overall the same year. Lewis eventually earned his undergraduate degree in Arts and Science in 2004 at the University of Maryland University College.^[28]