2012 <strong>Detroit</strong> <strong>Lions</strong> History Book
History Book <strong>Detroit</strong>lions.com Media.<strong>Detroit</strong>lions.com A Brief History of tHe <strong>Lions</strong> <strong>Detroit</strong> welcomed the <strong>Lions</strong> in 1934, but it was not the area’s first look at professional football. in 1920, the <strong>Detroit</strong> Heralds were a charter member of the American Professional Football Association, which was the original name of the present NFL, but the club folded after two years. the <strong>Detroit</strong> Panthers appeared in 1925, but also folded after two seasons. in 1928, the <strong>Detroit</strong> Wolverines were formed, but they failed after just one year. in 1930, the then-10-year-old National Football League added a franchise from Portsmouth, ohio, called the spartans. After four seasons, the team was purchased for $7,952.08 by a group headed by <strong>Detroit</strong> radio executive George A. richards and moved to the Motor City. Playing in the University of <strong>Detroit</strong> stadium before crowds that averaged 16,000, the new <strong>Detroit</strong> <strong>Lions</strong> won the NFL Championship in only their second year (1935). Under the leadership of Coach “Potsy” Clark and stars like Hall of Famer “Dutch” Clark, Ernie Caddel, George Christensen, “Ace” Gutowsky, Glenn Presnell and “ox” Emerson, the early <strong>Lions</strong> established pro football in <strong>Detroit</strong>. in 1940, Chicagoan Fred Mandel bought the club. <strong>Lions</strong>’ stars of that era included Hall of Famers Bill Dudley and Alex Wojciechowicz, John Green, Byron “Whizzer” White, Frank sinkwich and “Camp” Wilson. the team was sold eight years later to a group of local businessmen under the leadership of Edwin J. Anderson. the <strong>Detroit</strong> syndicate controlled the club until 1964, when William Clay Ford became the sole owner for a price of $4.5 million. the <strong>Lions</strong> dominated the NFL in the 1950s with four division titles and three league championships. Under the direction of head coach Buddy Parker, the team won back-to-back world crowns in 1952-53, defeating Cleveland on both occasions. stars of those powerful teams were Hall of Famers Bobby Layne, Jack Christiansen, Doak Walker and Lou Creekmur, as well as Les Bingaman, Cloyce Box, Leon Hart and Bob Hoernschemeyer. the <strong>Detroit</strong>-Cleveland battles of the era were classic confrontations between two giants of the blossoming NFL. since their last title in 1957 under the coaching of George Wilson, the <strong>Lions</strong> have continued searching for the league’s top spot. such performers as Joe schmidt, yale Lary, Dick “Night train” Lane, John Henry Johnson and Lem Barney have been elected to the Hall of Fame. outstanding players such as Wayne Walker, Mike Lucci, Nick Pietrosante, roger Brown, terry Barr, Mel Farr, Charlie sanders, Dexter Bussey, Billy sims and Doug English have also taken their places in the annals of pro football in <strong>Detroit</strong>. in 1967, schmidt began the first of six seasons as head coach of the <strong>Lions</strong>. His 1970 team made the playoffs, (first postseason trip since ’57) but lost in the first round to Dallas by the baseball-like score of 5-0. Prior to the 1975 season, the <strong>Lions</strong> moved into a new, domed stadium in Pontiac, Mich., a suburb located 30 miles north of <strong>Detroit</strong>. the silverdome was, at one time, the world’s largest air-supported domed structure and seated over 80,000 spectators under a fiberglass roof. Monte Clark took control of all football operations as head coach in 1978. Under Clark’s direction, the <strong>Lions</strong> narrowly missed playoff berths in 1980-81, before qualifying in 1982 — the <strong>Lions</strong>’ first playoff appearance since 1970. <strong>Detroit</strong> captured the NFC Central Division crown in 1983, but stumbled in the first round of the playoffs with a 24-23 loss at san Francisco. Darryl rogers took over for Clark in 1985 but was replaced on an interim basis by his defensive coordinator Wayne Fontes in November 1988 after rogers’ teams had posted a combined 18-40 record. Fontes was officially named the franchise’s 18th head coach on December 22, 1988. the <strong>Lions</strong> “restored the roar” in 1991, winning a franchise-record 12 regular season games. riding a tide of emotion after guard Mike Utley’s paralyzing neck injury, <strong>Detroit</strong> defeated Dallas, 38-6, in the <strong>Lions</strong>’ first silverdome playoff contest. the victory gave the <strong>Lions</strong> a berth in the NFC Championship Game, where <strong>Detroit</strong> fell to the eventual super Bowl Champion Washington redskins. the <strong>Lions</strong> finished 10-6 in 1993 en route to capturing the NFC Central Division title, and earned a Wild Card playoff bid in 1994. the 1995 <strong>Lions</strong> featured the NFL’s top-rated offense and won their final seven games to earn a third straight playoff berth. Herman Moore set an NFL record with 123 catches, and he and Brett Perriman became the first teammates to each total over 100 catches in the same season. the receiver tandem also set the NFL record for most receiving yards in a season. Quarterback scott Mitchell set team passing records for yards (4,338), completions (346) and touchdowns (32). in 1996, running back Barry sanders captured his third NFL rushing title with a dramatic 175-yard outburst on the final Monday night of the season in san Francisco. the <strong>Lions</strong>, however, finished a disappointing 5-11 in ’96 and following the season, Fontes was replaced as head coach by former san Diego Chargers’ head coach, Bobby ross. Fontes, who was the head coach for more than eight full seasons, finished his career as the team’s all-time leader among head coaches in both wins (67) and games coached (138). ross was named the 19th head coach in team history January 13, 1997, and led the club back to the playoffs in his inaugural year at the helm with a 9-7 record. that season, sanders, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in August 2004, continued his storybook career by becoming only the third player in league history to record 2,000 yards rushing in a single-season (2,053) and he reeled off an NFL record 14 consecutive 100-yard outings to finish the season. the <strong>Lions</strong> closed out the 1990s reaching the playoffs for the sixth time in the 10-year span, which is a franchise record for playoff appearances during a decade. <strong>Detroit</strong>’s playoff berth in 1999 marked the second time in ross’ first three years as head coach that he led the <strong>Lions</strong> into the postseason. the last <strong>Lions</strong>’ head coach to accomplish that feat was Buddy Parker in 1952-53 during his second and third seasons at the helm. After playing nine games into the 2000 season and compiling a 5-4 record, ross abruptly resigned as head coach November 6 and was immediately replaced by Gary Moeller. Moeller guided the team to a 4-3 record over the last seven games, but narrowly missed the playoffs with a loss to the Chicago Bears in the season finale. Following the season, William Clay Ford named Matt Millen president and CEo, and he assumed control over team operations. on January 25, 2001 Gary Moeller was replaced as head coach by former san Francisco 49ers offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg. on April 1, 2002, <strong>Detroit</strong> relocated the team’s day-to-day operations into the new $36 million Headquarters and training Facility in Allen Park. the new complex features outdoor and indoor practice fields, spacious training and meeting rooms and even the team’s own broadcast studio. A new era in <strong>Lions</strong>’ history dawned as Ford Field, the team’s $500 million downtown <strong>Detroit</strong> stadium, opened its doors in August 2002. the 65,000-seat stadium sparkled as its retro and innovative features glistened in the national spotlight as the premiere sports and entertainment complex. the <strong>Lions</strong> played the first game at Ford Field August 24, 2002 in a preseason tilt against the Pittsburgh steelers. the inaugural regular season game was played between the <strong>Lions</strong> and the Green Bay Packers september 22, 2002. in January 2003, Mornhinweg was fired after two seasons and former san Francisco 49ers Head Coach steve Mariucci was tabbed the new <strong>Lions</strong>’ head coach February 4. For the first time since the <strong>Lions</strong> placed the Leaping Lion logo on the players’ helmets in 1961, <strong>Detroit</strong> announced a major addition to the team’s uniform on April 23, 2003. the <strong>Lions</strong>’ classic uniform was enhanced with black trim on the logo, jerseys and pants, along with black shoes and black facemasks. in April 2005, the team introduced an alternate black jersey that would be worn through 2007. on November 28, 2005, steve Mariucci was relieved of his duties as head coach and defensive coordinator Dick Jauron was named interim head coach for the remaining five games. in 2006, the <strong>Lions</strong> hired rod Marinelli as the team’s 24th head coach, a position he would hold through 2008. in 2008, the <strong>Lions</strong> commemorated the franchise’s 75th season in <strong>Detroit</strong>. Just a handful of NFL teams have been around as long as the <strong>Lions</strong>, a franchise that spans several generations of fans over the years. <strong>Detroit</strong> has called three different stadiums home with nearly 1,400 players seeing action on a given gameday and numerous coaches strolling the sideline. that history is rich with great players who have donned the uniform -- the <strong>Lions</strong> are one of only nine teams to have at least 18 Pro Football Hall of Fame players don their respective uniforms -- and with traditions like the “Honolulu Blue and silver”, the leaping Lion logo, the “roaring 20’s” and the team’s annual thanksgiving tradition. With 78 years now in the rear-view mirror, <strong>Detroit</strong> is surging ahead in a new era of <strong>Lions</strong> football. in 2009, for the first time in team history, the team entered the season with a new president, tom Lewand, a new general manager, Martin Mayhew, and a new head coach, Jim schwartz, hired January 16, 2009. together, they have been the driving force for the team’s success on and off the field. in that same year, the <strong>Lions</strong> introduced a new logo and new
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