They texturize the entire hide at the tannery before it gets to the factory. They don't cut the hide then texturize the individual pieces, that wouldn't make any sense. Do you actually think that's actually what cow hide looks like when it hasn't been textured at all? Cowhide is so thick that nearly all of it is cut into layers, sanded, and textured at the tannery. Look up the different grades of leather. Here is a video showing what full grain leather looks like https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INgdTM97fyY The hide they use to make the football looks nothing like that. There's no imperfections. The texture is completely different than it is on full grain cow leather.