Football Finds x Scissortail Shirts
Welcome back to The Football Finds Blog. Today, we’re shining a light on Gage M, better known online as @scissortail_shirts on Instagram and @scissortailshirts elsewhere. A collector rooted in sentiment, culture, and community, Gage’s collection tells a story far bigger than football shirts alone. For him, kits are memory holders, personal milestones, and expressions of local pride.
Like many collectors, Gage’s journey began with a single shirt that meant everything. For his birthday in 2013, his mom and grandmother gifted him the Seattle Sounders 2013 away kit. They may not have been deeply familiar with football, but they knew the Sounders were his favourite club, and that made all the difference. He can’t fit into the shirt anymore, but that doesn’t matter. It remains one of his most cherished pieces, a reminder of both family support and the early joy football brought into his life.
For a while, Gage owned shirts here and there, but the idea of collecting didn’t fully take shape until much later. During the pandemic, his partner Katy gifted him a clothing rack and encouraged him to start filling it with shirts. That simple gesture became a turning point. What started as storage quickly became motivation, transforming a casual interest into a growing, intentional collection. Katy, along with Gage’s grandmother, also played a huge role in encouraging him to share his collection publicly, leading to the creation of his social media accounts.
When asked to pick a favourite shirt, Gage’s answer is immediate and deeply personal. It’s the FC Tulsa Indigenous Peoples third kit. Designed around the scissortail flycatcher, Oklahoma’s state bird and the inspiration behind his online name, the shirt features traditional Native American ribbon artwork that reflects the tribes of the region. For Gage, this kit represents everything he loves about football shirt design: creativity, respect for local culture, and meaningful storytelling. It’s not just a beautiful shirt, it’s a powerful one.
That philosophy carries through his entire collection. Gage is drawn to shirts that blend bold, creative design with genuine ties to a club’s local identity and community. When those elements come together seamlessly, the result is a shirt he’ll always appreciate. It’s not about hype or rarity for rarity’s sake, it’s about intention.
Another standout he wishes to one day include in his collection is the 2017 Gold Cup U.S. Men’s National Team shirt. Beyond being his favourite USMNT kit ever, it’s tied to a vivid memory of sitting on his grandparents’ living room floor, watching Jordan Morris score the tournament-winning goal against Jamaica. The shirt perfectly captures what football shirts mean to Gage: a fusion of aesthetics and emotion, where design and memory are inseparable.
When it comes to advice for other collectors, Gage keeps it grounded and reassuring. Your collection is your collection. Everyone has different tastes, preferences, and reasons for collecting, and no one should feel shamed for the shirts they love. Collect what brings you joy, whether that’s tied to personal memories, local pride, or simply a design that speaks to you.
Gage M’s collection is a reminder that football shirts are more than just kits worn on matchday. They’re stories, relationships, and moments frozen in fabric. From a Sounders shirt gifted with love, to a Tulsa kit rich in cultural meaning, his journey embodies what Football Finds is all about, collecting with heart, purpose, and an appreciation for the stories behind every shirt.