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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. 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Its understandable why all the focus this week has been on the?Toronto Maple Leafs Auston Matthews and the?Winnipeg Jets Patrik Laine, the Nos. 1 and 2 selections in June.Matthews, 19, had four goals on his first four shots in a 5-4 overtime loss to the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday. Laine, 18, had a goal and assist in Thursdays 5-4 overtime win against the Carolina Hurricanes. Two of the best young players in the game were showcasing what the future holds for their organizations. But they arent the only two rookies ready to have an immediate impact.I cant speak for other coaches, but Ive always been a real firm believer that talent has no age, New York Rangers coach Alain Vigneault said. When a person has talent, [age] doesnt matter. Its just a matter of getting it out and giving them the opportunity, and putting them in situations where they can be successful. Some can do it. Some cant. The ones who seem to be able to do it are the ones who have that quiet confidence and just go out and play. Talent has no age, and we saw a great example of that [Wednesday] night with the first game between Toronto and Ottawa.In New York, rookie Jimmy Vesey, 23, made his debut for the Rangers on Thursday. He did not register a point in their 5-3 win over the New York Islanders at Madison Square Garden, but the forward proved he belonged in the NHL. He kept his game simple. It was evident he became more comfortable as the game progressed.He had some good reads early in the game and should get better over time, said one Eastern Conference executive who attended the game.Veseys quest to become an NHLer was front and center during the offseason. The Hobey Baker Award winner from Harvard attempted to ignore the outside noise. As a college free agent, Vesey entertained offers from the Maple Leafs,?New York Islanders, Boston Bruins, Chicago Blackhawks, Buffalo Sabres, New Jersey Devils and Pittsburgh Penguins?before deciding to sign with the Rangers in August.Throughout the interview process, he maintained his focus on his training to prepare for his rookie season. A native Bostonian, Vesey spent the summer working out alongside other local NHLers with strength and conditioning coach Brian McDonough at Edge Performance Systems in Foxborough, Massachusetts.Ive been training athletes for 20 years, and the efffort Jimmy gave this offseason was nothing short of spectacular, McDonough said.dddddddddddd His work ethic and intensity in the gym and on the ice were second to none. His attention to detail with his nutrition and tissue work were exemplary as well. He was motivated by this amazing opportunity he has in front of him.Vesey so far has seized that opportunity. Hes been playing on the left wing, along with center Derek Stepan and right winger Mats Zuccarello. The Rangers are in St. Louis to take on the Blues Saturday night.I thought it was good, actually, Vesey said after the game. I thought our line had a lot of chances, a lot of time in the offensive zone. We had a pretty good game, in terms of the first game of the season. I was happy with the effort, especially getting a win for the team.I felt pretty comfortable out there and I was able to hang on to some pucks down low and we had a lot of chances. It was a good Game 1. Its a good feeling to get the first one out of the way and get the win in the first game.Rangers teammate and fellow Boston native?Kevin Hayes?understands what Vesey is dealing with as he makes the transition from the college game to the pros.Hes a longtime friend and its nice to be able to share an NHL moment with him, said Hayes, who played college hockey at Boston College. There will be ups and downs. You can look at it through a microscope game-by-game and a telescope throughout the whole season. Hes definitely going to be up and down, but hes got to be positive. I keep telling him, Youre here for a reason. You made the team for a reason. I think hes going to be a great player here.Veseys family, friends and agents were in town Thursday for his NHL debut. Everyone was pleased with the Rangers victory and the rookies efforts in his first game. It might not have been a gaudy statistical beginning like Matthews or Laines, but his start certainly suggests that Vesey will develop into a sound and productive NHL player.Were like a lot of teams: were putting in young faces in our lineup, Vigneault said.?Were confident theyll be able to do it and were giving them the opportunity in roles [so] they should be successful. Well see what happens. ' ' '