A Day in the Cardistry Cave with Herman Moore

Some days in this hobby feel routine. Others feel like something out of a childhood dream.

The day Herman Moore came over to the Cardistry Cave was the latter.

For anyone who grew up watching football in the 90s, Herman Moore was larger than life. A Detroit Lions legend. A four-time Pro Bowler and three-time First-Team All-Pro. The kind of player you remember not just for the stats, but for how he made you feel watching the game.

So when we started talking about him coming over to spend the day working on a project together, it already felt surreal before he even arrived.

But what unfolded that day was even better than I imagined.

Herman’s intention for visiting was twofold. First, we wanted to collaborate on a collection of custom cards featuring him and incorporating game-used relics from his own jerseys and gloves. The goal was to build something meaningful around his career. Not just another signed item, but pieces that actually tell a story.

The second part of the visit was something bigger. We began exploring what a deeper partnership could look like. Herman believes in what we’re building here. He sees the creativity, the craftsmanship, and the storytelling behind these pieces, and he wanted to help open doors. Not just for one project, but for what this could become long term.

Before we got too deep into that, though, we had a moment I won’t forget.

We were down in the Cardistry Cave, and I tossed him a few passes. Nothing crazy. Just a few routes, a few throws. But even that felt surreal. When you grow up watching someone dominate on Sundays, then find yourself throwing them the ball in your own space, it hits you in a way that’s hard to explain.

From there, we got to work.

There is something different about designing a piece when the person whose story you’re telling is sitting right next to you. We went through his jerseys and gloves, talked about what moments stood out most in his career, and started shaping what these cards could look like.

It was collaborative in the best way.

Ideas flowed. We joked around. We talked football. We talked about the hobby and where it’s going. We talked about what makes something meaningful, not just valuable.

What caught me off guard, though, was how many times Herman stopped to say something I didn’t expect.

He kept telling me what an honor it was for him to be connecting with me.

That didn’t register at first.

I’m sitting there thinking about what this moment means to me, and he’s expressing appreciation for what we’ve built here. It was humbling in a way I wasn’t prepared for.

After we wrapped up in the Cardistry Cave, we went out and grabbed lunch together. Sitting across from him, he looked me in the eyes and started walking through almost every part of the process we had just gone through, complimenting it in detail.

The design.

The thought behind the relic placement.

The craftsmanship.

The intention behind telling a story through the card.

It wasn’t surface-level. It was thoughtful and sincere.

His kindness, sincerity, and generosity in both word and action were unlike anything I’ve experienced from someone in his position. This is a professional athlete who could choose to work with anyone he wants. There are plenty of people and companies in this space that would line up for that opportunity.

But he’s choosing to work with us.

That means something.

And since that day, what we talked about has already started to take shape.

Herman and I are now collaborating on an extension of Reclaim Customs called Reclaim CoLab. The vision is to create meaningful, story-driven pieces for athletes and celebrities, working directly with them to build something that represents who they are and what they’ve accomplished.

The first step in that direction is something we’re incredibly excited about.

These pieces will be introduced through Herman’s brand new eBay Live show, “Hanging with Herman.” Our first episode is happening this Friday in the early evening. I’ll be joining as a guest alongside NFL Hall-of-Famer Cris Carter, with other athletes and personalities set to join in future episodes.

To see something that started as a conversation in the Cardistry Cave already moving into something like this is hard to put into words.

But no matter where this goes from here, that first day will always stick with me.

Throwing him passes in the basement.

Sitting side by side designing cards from relics tied to his career.

Hearing him talk about what this could become.

For a kid who grew up watching Herman Moore on Sundays, it felt like stepping into something I never could have planned.

And realizing that it’s just getting started.

Herman Moore and Eric Wagenmaker in the Cardistry Cave