our game, Flyers coach Dave Hakstol said of the turnovers.VandeVelde

By now its a weekly routine: Big NFL stars like Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown, Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. and Panthers quarterback Cam Newton take the field wearing custom-designed cleats.But the big names arent the only ones wearing the custom footwear. A growing number of players are wearing one-of-a-kind cleats -- usually just in pregame warm-ups but sometimes in games -- and many of them are getting the customized gear from an unlikely source: a sneaker shop in Buffalo, whose co-owner and cleat artist have ridden their custom designs all the way to a partnership with Nike.The shop, which is called Fabes Sole High, opened in 2014. Were big on exclusivity -- things that are expensive and rare, things you wouldnt find at Foot Locker, said the shops co-owner, Napoleon Polo Kerber, whos 26. Athletes would come to our store for that, so we already had that customer base.Shortly after the shop opened, Kerber met up with a 31-year-old local artist named Nicholas Avery, who got into customized footwear by painting his own sneakers for fun. A couple of designs that Id done were displayed at a different shop in Buffalo, he said. I wasnt really affiliated with them, but they just thought it would be cool to showcase those designs. Then, I started getting requests, and I ran into the guys at Fabes Sole High and we talked about working together.Things started slowly. The first athlete to request customized cleats from them was a college player -- Mississippi quarterback Chad Kelly, whos from Buffalo and requested a custom pair last year. But their big break came when Bills running back LeSean McCoy asked for a pair. Then, other Bills players saw what he was wearing and wanted their own pairs, and then theyd tell their friends on other teams, guys they went to college with, and it kind of took off from there, Kerber said.Things have picked up this season, as word of Fabes Sole High has spread. Players whove worn the shops custom designs have included the following:? Dolphins cornerback Bobby McCain. Avery turned the Nike swoosh on McCains cleats into a stylized dolphin.? Colts wide receiver Donte Moncrief. Avery again modified the Nike logo, this time taking the subtle approach of adding white dots to the swoosh to mimic the similar markings on the Colts horseshoe logo.? Texans wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins. Hopkins got a pair of NASA-themed cleats, complete the NASA logo on the insole and moon craters on the exterior. ? Giants wide receiver Sterling Shepard. Wheres Waldo? Right on Shepards cleats. ? Bills cornerback Kevon Seymour. Seymour went with a Sonic the Hedgehog theme for his custom cleats.Other Fabes Sole High customers have included Titans tight end Delanie Walker and Bills quarterback Cardale Jones, among others. The NFL often frowns on custom footwear being worn in games, so most of these players have worn their Fabes Sole High cleats only for pregame activities. But some have managed to get them into games. The guys who police this stuff for the league, theyll tell the players during pregame, You cant wear that during the game, but they usually dont check after that, Kerber said. So some guys, like Cardale Jones, have switched to regular cleats for the first half and then worn their custom designs during the second half.Kerber handles most of the communication with the players, but Avery executes the designs. Ill start by roughing the shoe up with a sanding pen, so itll hold the paint better, Avery said. Then I use whats called an adhesion promoter, which is usually used for automotive paint jobs, which also helps the paint to adhere. I use Angelus paint, which is designed for leather. Its made to flex without cracking. I mostly use an airbrush, but Ill use do small details by hand. And then I use a heat gun to cook the paint onto the shoe. The whole process takes about 20 hours. The player usually provides the cleats, and the price for the paint job is generally in the $400 range.Avery said the players usually leave the designs up to him. They might specify what color they want, but otherwise they leave it pretty wide open for me to do whatever I think looks good, so theres a surprise factor, he said. I dont do any mock-ups or preliminary versions for their approval because the designs usually evolve as Im working on them, so the final version would look different anyway.But a few players have taken a more active role in the design concepts for their cleats. Cardinals cornerback Marcus Cooper, for example, requested a pair that celebrated the upcoming birth of his daughter, so he provided Avery with photos to use, including a sonogram image.Players arent the only ones whove taken notice of Fabes Sole Highs work. With the NFL allowing players to wear custom cleats to support charitable endeavors during the games played on Dec. 4, Kerber and Avery have temporarily relocated to Oregon, where theyve been working with Nike to create footwear designs for many of the players affiliated with the sportswear giant. ESPN.com will provide previews of those designs soon -- stay tuned.Paul Lukas writes about uniforms for ESPN.com. If you like this column, youll probably like his Uni Watch Blog, plus you can follow him on Twitter and Facebook. Want to learn about his Uni Watch Membership Program, be added to his mailing list so youll always know when a new column has been posted or just ask him a question? Contact him here. Marshall Faulk Rams Jersey . -- The goal posts lying flat on the field, Arizonas fans lingered on the field, congregating around the locker room entrance nearly 30 minutes after rushing out of the stands. Kurt Warner Rams Jersey . "I was fortunate to play many years at this level with a great organization and unbelievable teammates," said Hejduk in a statement. http://www.ramsrookiestore.com/Rams-Kurt-Warner-Jersey/ . The Hall of Fame defenceman told Landsberg that he believes fighting still has a place in todays game, but thinks staged fighting needs be outlawed. Torry Holt Jersey . Burris threw two TD passes, including a key 15-yard fourth-quarter strike to Bakari Grant that effectively countered a Toronto comeback bid and led Hamilton to a 33-19 victory. Tyler Higbee Womens Jersey .Y. - Nelson Mandela will be honoured by the New York Yankees with a plaque in Monument Park. PHILADELPHIA -- Just as they hoped they would, Henrik Lundqvist and the Rangers bounced back from a dismal performance.Matt Puempel scored in his first game with the Rangers, and Henrik Lundqvist made 40 saves to help New York defeat the Philadelphia Flyers 3-2 on Friday.Derek Stepan and Kevin Hayes also netted goals for the Rangers, who rebounded from Wednesdays 6-1 home drubbing against Pittsburgh. Lundqvist was lifted after allowing four goals on seven shots in the second period of that one, but he responded with a strong performance against the Flyers to improve to 32-13-4 in his career against Philadelphia.You just regroup and everybody tried to hold everybody accountable to play their absolute best, Lundqvist said. When we dont play that well, we want to come back with a better performance. Thats what we were looking for.It was a good game for us and a good game for me.Shayne Gostibehere and Chris VandeVelde scored in the third period for Philadelphia, which threatened throughout the final period. The Flyers opened a three-game homestand with a third loss in the last four games.Stepan gave New York a 1-0 lead in the first period when he beat Steve Mason with a wrist shot from the slot. J.T. Miller set up the goal with an assist from behind the net after a turnover by Philadelphias Scott Laughton, playing in his second game since being recalled from Lehigh Valley of the AHL.Youre not going to have your `A stuff every night, and the next game is so important, Stepan said.Stepan has 28 points (nine goals, 19 assists) in 30 career games vs. Philadelphia.Puempel, claimed off waivers from Ottawa on Monday, gave the Rangers a 2-0 advantage 1:34 later with his first goal of the season.Good for the kid, Rangers coach Alain Vigneault said. Its got to help his confidence and it was without a doubt helpful for our team.A 2011 first-round pick of the Senators, Puempel went without a point in 13 games with Ottawa this season and had just four goals and two assists in 52 career games. But he showed a deft scoring touch when he skated past Philadelphias Andrew MacDonald, settled a bouuncing backhand pass from Jimmy Vesey and buried the puck past Mason from close range.ddddddddddddUnbelievable, he said. I couldnt be happier right now.The first period featured a pair of fights and physical play that is typical of the rivalry.Philadelphias Travis Konecny took on Brandon Pirri after Pirri boarded Brandon Manning. Konecny drew an instigation minor in addition to a fighting major to erase a Flyers power-play opportunity.Chris Kreider got the better of Manning in a fight with 1.8 seconds left in the period.Hayes extended New Yorks lead to 3-0 in the second period after another bad Philadelphia turnover in its zone. Mark Streit sent the puck from behind the net to the blue line right on the stick of New Yorks Nick Holden. Holden passed to a wide-open Hayes in the slot, and Hayes re-directed the puck over Masons left shoulder for his 10th goal of the season.We have to get them out of our game, Flyers coach Dave Hakstol said of the turnovers.VandeVelde got the Flyers on the board early in the third period. MacDonald sent the puck in front and it caromed off VandeVeldes skate past Lundqvist. The play was reviewed but officials allowed the goal.Gostisbeheres slap shot from the slot with 2:04 left made it 3-2. But Philadelphia couldnt get anything else past Lundqvist.One of his best saves came midway through the second period when he used his mask to deny Claude Giroux from close range on a 2-on-1 break.He played an incredible game, Stepan said of Lundqvist.Game notes Laughton is replacing Sean Couturier, who is out four to six weeks with a lower body injury after being hurt in Tuesdays game at Florida. . The Rangers went ahead in the all-time series that has been played 340 times. New York has 152 wins to Philadelphias 151. There have been 37 ties. Friday was the first of four meetings between the teams. . Giroux hasnt scored a goal in seven straight games.UP NEXTRangers: Host Ottawa on Sunday night.Flyers: Host Calgary on Sunday night. ' ' '