A step ahead of the NCAA? Trading card says Newton never played for Auburn
Is it possible Cam Newton's season at Auburn didn't exist?
No national championship; no Heisman Trophy; no scandal-ridden fall?
Could it all have been made up? Was it a dream that every college football fan had at the exact same time? Is the NCAA in preparation to wipe the 2010 slate clean?
Well, that what Topps wants you to think with its new limited-edition football trading card.
The Cam Newton Red Zone Rookie Autographs card, which was unveiled Thursday on YouTube and went for $499 at auction, shows Newton on the front in a Carolina Panthers uniform and then lists his collegiate stats on the back.
The problem? There's no mention of Auburn. The card lists Newton's collegiate career as follows: A member of the Florida Gators in 2007, 2008, a year stint with Blinn College in 2009, and then back to the Gators in 2010.
If this is true, was the Blinn College year his demotion to the minors before he was called up again?
Topps' printing gaffe is sure to delight all of those who thought Cam Newton should have been declared ineligible for his father soliciting money for his son's athletic talent. On the flip side, if you're a Florida fan, you're definitely dreaming of what might have been a year ago.
The card is No. 25 of a 100-card lot, which makes it rare. The printing error makes it irreplaceable.
My question is this: On the back of the card, it says the autographs, which appear on the front of the card, are authentic and witnessed by a Topps representative. Did Newton never pick up the card and read the back? If it were my first NFL rookie card, I'd a) want a copy; and b) check out the entire card, front and back.
Or maybe Newton knows something about the pending NCAA investigation that we don't.
- - -
Curtsy to War Eagle Reader.
Graham Watson is on Twitter: Follow her @Yahoo_Graham.
Other popular stories on Yahoo! Sports:
• Grading early NFL moves at quarterback
• Will NCAA care Coach K committed a violation?
• The lingering questions around Jimmer Fredette
• LeBron James' stunt double lands 'Lingerie' gig
