Burn Ban in Effect. All outdoor burning is prohibited in Franklin County.
Sports card enthusiasts, mark your calendars for the East Texas Card Show, Oct. 10 (CountryFest), from 10-4 at The Glove Factory, literally just a short way down the hill from Big Dawg Sports. This card show, sponsored by Big Dawg Sports, brings together dealers and collectors with multiple vendor tables to browse. Expect to find lots of trading cards, including sports cards, Pokémon, and one-of-a-kind pieces of memorabilia. If you have never been to a big show, just show up with cash (many vendors prefer it), a list of cards you're looking for, and any cards you want to sell or trade. A phone for checking values, plus top-loaders or penny sleeves for protecting purchases, is also useful. The regular Saturday trade night will be 4-7 at Big Dawg Sports on the square following the show at the Glove Factory.
Missy and Ronnie Davis retired from busy careers working with the Texas Rangers, the Mavericks, the STARS, and the Dallas Cowboys, plus owning the Dallas Sidekicks, an indoor soccer team. Starting a card shop in Mt. Vernon, Texas, was NOT on the radar. For the first time since they had met in the ticket sales office of the Texas Rangers some 30 years earlier, they were enjoying slow mornings and days free of duties and commitments.
But when Missy asked Ronnie if he could choose any place to move, where would he go? Ronnie said he would choose Mt. Vernon. Why? The same reason many have returned to the small community with a big lake – good people. Ronnie had spent a lot of time in Mt. Vernon growing up. His dad, Clifford Davis, played football here with Don Meredith while his mom, Sandy Williams, twirled for Winnsboro High School. Ronnie often came to see his aunts, Carolyn Teague and Lisa Lowry, and play hide-and-seek at Lowry’s Furniture Store with his cousins. He is one of the few who might remember going out to the newly formed Lake Cypress to go down the water slide. He is also a first cousin to the “Davis” girls – Diane, Jeanne, and the rest!
After settling in at Mt. Vernon, a friend suggested he and Missy should start a sports card shop. He thought if they put the same energy and effort into a card shop as they had their other sports work, they would do well. They decided to give it a try. Before they moved to Mt. Vernon, Missy and Ronnie had a dog named Buster who had been a constant companion for 18 years. The Big Dawg logo honors Buster (and some may even have referred to Ronnie as Big Dawg through the years), so Big Dawg Sports was born.
“Build it, and they will come.” Dallas Cowboys Hall of Famer Randy White helped boost interest in the shop with a meet-and-greet autograph session in July, 2025. They continued hosting trade nights every other week with a few tables and a few buyers/sellers but quickly grew to weekly trade nights with additional tables and bigger crowds. They moved to their current location on the north side of the square in 2025 to accommodate the growing numbers.
“Kids open a pack of cards and experience the thrill of flipping through the cards looking for the ‘million dollar’ card that everybody wants. Then they start the process of deciding to keep them, sell them, trade them, or get them graded,” Ronnie said. “It’s great for building problem-solving skills.”
Collectors of all ages gather around tables making trades, talking sports and cards, parents joining in, and friendships forming.
“Hunter Long is good at it. He has that golden touch that knows when and where to sell,” Ronnie said. “On any Saturday night there might be 15 kids like Hunter making deals.” (Hunter started shopping the card store even before the doors ever opened!)
One trade night, Michael Kopech, Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher, made a surprise visit. Kopech, a graduate of Mt. Pleasant High School, said he has visited lots of sports stores all across the United States, and Big Dawg was one of the best he had seen.
When you visit Big Dawg, you will probably run into Ronnie, Billy Wilson, or Todd Daniel. They deal with the public side of the business. Working behind the scenes and keeping everything running smoothly and efficiently, you will find Missy Davis. She owns the store and keeps all the books, orders all the cards, deals with insurance, and generally keeps the guys running the front in line.
Some might say working around sports teams all your life is a dream come true. But it is not without its obstacles. One obstacle Ronnie encountered was choosing between joining the bar/club nighttime atmosphere, making business contacts and advancing his career, or staying true to his Christian faith.
“You have to make a stand at some point,” Ronnie said. “They said the only way I could advance my career was to join in the nightlife. I told them I was fine where I was.”
In addition to the sports store, Ronnie also serves as commissioner of “The Arena League,” a football league with teams scattered from Louisiana to Wisconsin.
So what are the future plans for Big Dawg Sports? According to Ronnie, it’s to stay open Wednesday through Saturday and to keep having weekly trade nights along with two big shows per year.
“Our physical store is a treasure trove of sports cards, Pokémon, and memorabilia. Whether you are chasing a vintage rookie, ripping a fresh pack, or just want to talk hobby with people who get it, this is the place,” Ronnie said. “Everybody gets a seat at the table.”
