July 27, 2025 — The Southpaw Sports Cards Show brought a vibrant collecting community together at the Clovis Rodeo Grounds on Saturday, July 26, offering a wide array of sports cards, collectibles, and more. Will Robeson, owner of Southpaw Sports Cards, reflected on the event, stating, “I think it’s right about the same. We got the same great vendors. We got a great turnout. Tyler Johnson’s been awesome. We got our food truck out here, I got beef, and everything’s been great, man.”
Robeson noted a significant difference from previous events, “People are definitely spending money in there. I think the market was in a bit of a lull earlier in the year, but I mean, it’s on fire right now. People are having a great time in there.”
Among the special guests was former NBA player and current Fresno State assistant men’s basketball coach, Tyler Johnson, whom Robeson praised, “Tyler Johnson, 8-year NBA vet. He used to play Fresno State and now he’s the assistant men’s basketball coach.”
The show saw a strong demand for vendor space. “It was great,” Robeson commented on the sold-out vendor spots. “First time we’ve had a waitlist in a while, and we turned a few people away last minute, but we’ll be doing another one September 13th.”
When asked about the most popular items, Robeson shared, “As much as I hate to say it, it’s Pokemon. Pokemon, Pokemon, Pokemon. That’s the hottest thing ever. Right now and high-end sports cards, high-end sports cards are always selling, but Pokemon is on fire right now.” He attributed Pokemon’s surge to “Nostalgia, lots of new releases and just it’s a mainstream thing now. You see people posting about it, talking about it, and it’s just kind of exploding again.”
Regarding high-end sports cards, Robeson explained, “You’re talking Kobe, the MJs, you know, your great football players, all your stuff’s on the way up, you know, especially the hot new rookies as well.” He emphasized the enduring appeal of legendary players: “those legends are never gonna go out of style. Exactly, yeah, um, all the, all the game-worn stuff, all the autographs, everything’s just on its way up.”
Looking ahead to the next event on September 13th, Robeson hinted at exciting additions: “Well, we’re working on autographed guests. I’ll keep that under wraps for now, but um, yeah, same great stuff, lots of, uh, see you, Zach, um, lots of great vendors selling good stuff, and yeah, great time in the community.”
For those new to the Southpaw Sports Cards Show experience, Robeson described it as “just a great way to spend the afternoon with the family. It’s a, it’s a family-oriented event, um. It’s a great hobby for kids to get into, and you just expect a great time, good vibes, you know, just having a good time.”
On a personal note, Robeson shared his own collecting interests: “I would be, I’d be looking for 49ers cards. I love Frank Gore, all my friends in state guys. Paul Williams, he was out here. I collect a lot of Paul’s cards. Yeah, just, just the guys I grew up watching and, and, you know, all my Fresno State guys.”
Reflecting on the growth of the local card collecting community, Robeson expressed pride in contributing to it. “I grew up going to shows at, you know, Manchester and Fashion Fair and all that and just to think that. As a kid I was doing that and now I’m doing this. It’s pretty cool.” For any skeptics of Clovis’s collecting scene, he asserted, “It’s it’s there’s there’s the collector you wouldn’t even guess what’s out here. I mean the things that I see on a daily basis in my shop, people coming in wanting to buy packs. You know, it’s, yeah, the community here is on fire. People love sports cars and you know TCG, all that stuff.”
Robeson is committed to keeping the shows a local fixture. “100%. I love doing it here at the rodeo grounds. Obviously came here as a kid a lot, been to the rodeo a bunch of times, love doing it here. We’re talking about doing something bigger, but for now this is our home and we love it here.”