Barstool takes over The National, one good deed included

The National Sports Collectors Convention wrapped up its run at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, Illinois, and it turned into a full-on Barstool field trip. Big Cat, BFW, Eddie, and Kate all showed up to dig through boxes, chase autographs, and generally lose their minds over cardboard for a few days straight.

Brandon Walker

@BFW

Mantiquing recap for The National Sports Collectors Convention, day 2.

That's the vibe of the National every year — grown adults treating a convention center like a garage sale for the rarest stuff in sports history. Big Cat got in on it too, posting what he called an all-time snag and, separately, some "fine art" he picked up while wandering the floor. Eddie, meanwhile, took things a step further by getting an item PSA-certified on the spot and immediately started hunting for the right auction house to move it.

Big Cat

@BarstoolBigCat

All time snag at the National

But the story that actually made the rounds wasn't about a big pull — it was about what somebody did after one. Steven Cheah posted about watching an adult bump a kid out of the way to grab a card, calling it a bad look for grown folks even while cosigning that adults are allowed to have fun at these things too. It's a fair gripe. The National draws thousands of people fighting over the same limited drops, and kids get run over in the scrum more than collectors like to admit.

Steven Cheah

@StevenCheah

You can’t bump the kid out of the way. I’m all for adults having fun too, but this is a bad look for grown folk.

BFW saw the post and had the perfect counter. He replied that he'd pulled a Shedeur Sanders autograph numbered to just 10 copies at the National the day before — the kind of hit that can carry real money given how hot Sanders rookie cards have been in the hobby market this year — and instead of keeping it, he tracked down a family in the building and handed it to their 9-year-old kid. He was quick to note it wasn't a direct response to the bump situation, just a story that happened to fit.

Brandon Walker

@BFW

@StevenCheah This reminds me of when I ripped a Shedeur Sanders auto to 10 at The National yesterday and instead of keeping it, I sought out a family and gave it to a 9-year-old kid. Ok this isn’t like that but it did happen.

It's a small moment, but it's the kind of thing that actually sticks at a show like this. The National runs on adrenaline and FOMO — everybody's chasing the same short print, the same low-numbered auto, the same grail — and it's easy for that to turn ugly, as Cheah's tweet showed. BFW giving away a 1-of-10 Sanders auto to a random kid is the opposite instinct, and it's the kind of story that ends up being the one people remember from the whole weekend.

Cheah, for his part, wasn't done. He floated going back for the final day, and got told by a fan that Sunday is when dealers start cutting deals just to avoid hauling everything home. He showed up anyway, this time hunting for a specific 2024 Topps Heritage Pete Crow-Armstrong red ink autograph — proof that even after a full convention of finds, nobody in this crew is walking away without one more card on the list.

Steven Cheah

@StevenCheah

Touched down at The National and am on the hunt for a 2024 Topps Heritage Pete Crow-Armstrong real one red ink auto. Let me know if you’ve seen one there.