Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading and knows that there are many reasons that collectors choose to slab cards. Sometimes it's to enhance the appeal and protect them when selling. Other times it's to protect an investment for the long-term or to protect for sentimental reasons. Or, it might be just for fun or curiosity about a potential grade.

Here's this month's grading diary here on The Buzz ...

STRONG SEASON ... WHAT'S NEXT?
The Card: Juan Soto 2018 Topps 582 Montgomery Club Set 1 -- Rookie Card
The Reason Graded: A big season that came up short of the goal ... but now it's time for a historic payday while still in his mid-20s. Soto's Rookie Cards (2018) aren't all that rare, really, but there's a lot of demand -- but they still might be good buys depending on where he goes next. (Mets? Watch out.) All those thoughts were in mind when I popped this one into a submission earlier this year along with other key names from this small set for Club members. It's not a traditional RC since it's from a small set, but it's still a good Soto to me ... so I slabbed it.
The Grade: CGC 10

Reality Check: Top grade of a small volume works for me. I'm sure there will be more and I'm sure the pops are higher elsewhere, but the range of the grades here shows it might not be the easiest kind of card to grade thanks to that retro stock.

Keep reading for more of this month's pick-ups and new slabs for Buzz.

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What: 2022 Bowman University Best football cards
The Reason: The 2024 NFL Draft of course ... but not just this year's draft class.
Box basics: Two autos per box (eight boxes per case)
First Buzz Preview/Checklist: Click here
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: This year's NFL Draft is upon us with Round 1 last night, two more tonight and then the final four on Saturday. Thanks to NIL deals the last few years, it's rare for a notable player to not have cards these days -- at least players from major schools -- and this officially licensed set that's the focus of The List includes a bunch of guys drafted just last night, including the No. 1 pick, as well as a bunch of guys in the NFL right now who were drafted last year. There will likely be more new pros to come tonight, too, but for simplicity's sake we'll look at last night's names and then the first three rounds of last year on this edition of The List. How many made The List from that alone? Almost 30 players in this one -- from just a 100-card set -- with autographs, parallels and more in play.

Keep reading for The List ...

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there’s a box you’d want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2020 Leaf Metal U.S. Army All-American Bowl football cards (hobby box)
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (both formats)

What's inside this one? Keep reading ...

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Have you seen the latest cool cards from a new release? With so many options for collectors of all kinds arriving every week it's possible you haven't. That's where Buzz comes in -- well at least on one brand you'll see here from time to time in what we're calling Buzz's Pick Six. Simply put, here are six cards from a new arrival that seemed interesting to this collector and we think they might interest you, too.

This week's releases: 2019 Panini Contenders Draft Picks and 2019 Panini Prizm Draft Picks -- a combo since I truly couldn't decide which way to go during this NFL Draft weekend.

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THE TOP GUY ... 
The Card: Kyler Murray 2019 Panini Prizm Contenders Optic Mojo College Ticket autograph (/15)
The Price: $1,250 opening bid (six days remaining)
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This card is perhaps a tad confusing ... it's a Contenders Optic card from Prizm and there's one in Prizm packs, too, but that one is not serial-numbered to 15 according to the checklists. Either way, this is a big pull and it's got on-card ink of the guy who went first in the 2019 NFL Draft last night and also the Heisman winner who is the only player ever taken in the first round of both the MLB and NFL drafts in the same year. There's a lot of attention and storyline here -- especially with the added Josh Rosen drama -- but he might be the biggest name of the bunch drafted so far when it comes to cardboard. (At least until everybody suits up.) This is an actual auction instead of a Buy-It-Now with new-car pricing attached, so we'll see how much demand there is here in a few days.

Keep reading for five more interesting items in this week's roundup ...

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With the first round of the 2018 MLB Draft last night, a new crop of MLB hopefuls now have new collectors seeking their cardboard -- but this year there's a little bit of a challenge involved that could help make for a stronger card crop later.

How? Interestingly, a number of the first-rounders and supplemental picks last night don't actually have cardboard yet. That's certainly not the norm in a world where USA Baseball players not even in high school yet have card appearances and signed certified autograph cards years before MLB might call and where other prep All-Star events spawn card sets of their own.

Here's a Buzz List rundown of who has ink and where ...

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With a victory tonight, University of Alabama Head Football Coach Nick Saban would equal a giant not only in the history of college football but a giant in his school's history.

His Crimson Tide plays in Bryant-Denny Stadium on Paul W. Bryant Drive down the road from the Paul W. Bryant Museum and the Bryant Conference Center -- all reminders of Bear Bryant and his NCAA-record six national championships and 323 career victories. (Saban is at 285.)

Tonight's College Football Playoff National Championship is Saban's sixth title-game appearance in the last nine years and with a win he'll have his sixth season title for his career. Saban had his chance at tying Bryant last season when his undefeated team lost in the final seconds on the final play of the game against Clemson, which Alabama knocked off in a rematch this year to advance to tonight's game against the Georgia Bulldogs. Both of Alabama's postseason foes this year are coached by former Tide assistants, Dabo Swinney at Clemson and Kirby Smart at Georgia, but neither has autographs and football card appearances as easily found as the legend of today, Saban.

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Clemson football fans wanting a closer look at the game now have a new option from Fanatics Authentic.

How? Cup holders crafted from a piece of game-used goal post.

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Jared Goff is your No. 1 pick in the 2016 NFL Draft and Panini America has revealed his first football card online to be found on its Gridiron digital card app soon.

Buzz will add all players drafted to this thread as the first round goes on just so you can see them all in one spot on samples of their real cardboard already available.

Buzz also will offer his take on the player's place, too, in a real-time recap.

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When Panini America's newest football card year kicks off with 2016 Panini Contenders Draft Picks next week, collectors will find five autographs per hobby box and plenty of talent primed for the NFL Draft all in their familiar school colors.

That means plenty of talents from the reigning national champion Alabama Crimson Tide, the top stars from The Ohio State University Buckeyes and plenty of other guys who we'll see donning NFL caps and holding jerseys alongside Roger Goodell soon.

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