Tuesday, August 27, 2002

Ex-Lions QB beats out Kitna, will lead Bengals
The Cincinnati Bengals chose Gus Frerotte as their starting quarterback Monday.

LIONS NOTEBOOK: Crowell will miss at least 5 games
Germane Crowell, one of the receivers Lions president Matt Millen was counting on when he released Johnnie Morton last spring, will miss at least the first five games to continue his recovery from last year's knee injury.

Mungro dodges Mornhinweg's first cuts
On the day all free-agent rookies dread, James Mungro did what all free-agent rookies do: He worried.

Monday, August 26, 2002

DREW SHARP: Ford Field lifts fans, downtown
Symbolic as well as soothing, a ray of sunshine pierced the enclosed grayness of yet another dismal Lions performance. Heads turned in amazement, particularly those that were probably too young to remember the open-air experience that was once downtown Detroit football.

Many problems beset 0-3 Lions
Marty Mornhinweg doesn't sound panicked, but he sounds like he is getting close.

MOTOR CITY JOURNAL: Milestone weekend shows hope for Detroit
The air was misty, and the steam pouring out of manhole covers made Woodward Avenue look like the set of a film noir. Someone screamed. It was 9:40 Friday night.

Smooth debut for football stadium
Several local businessmen and community leaders told Bill Ford Jr. that constructing a new Lions' home in downtown Detroit was a misconceived idea.

Sunday, August 25, 2002

DREW SHARP: Boos return as former quarterback takes field

A meaningless exhibition game served as the forum for a classless exhibition.

Lions' fans embarrassed themselves Saturday with their bush-league treatment of Charlie Batch, making his initial return as a former Lions quarterback. Batch is trying to earn a spot on Pittsburgh's roster and as scheduling fate would have it, his first trip back coincided with the ceremonial opening of Ford Field.

Many expected a mixed reaction when Batch first took the field. He wasn't terribly blessed athletically and his NFL future might be nothing more than a backup. But there's no questioning the man's toughness. And you would think the fans would somehow find the high road through their frustration and give a little appreciation to a guy who couldn't meet expectations but nonetheless never backed down or backed away when he was hurt.

Instead, the crowd verbally nailed him when he entered the game in the closing moments of the first half. The jeering increased when the public address announcer officially introduced him.

The tacky display proved once again why so many Lions fans deserve the garbage they receive disguised as competitive football. It's dressed up a lot nicer with Ford Field, a splendid facility that should set the new standard for domed stadiums, but the smell remains the same. And these people continue to buy it up, annually clinging to the fervent hope that the Lions are the proverbial blind squirrel and that either Mike McMahon or Joey Harrington is that long sought-out acorn.

Booing is the fans' only form of retaliation and highly paid professional athletes have to endure the verbal slings from critics. It comes with the turf.

But this crowd wasn't booing - they were blaming Batch.

It's obviously Batch's fault that this organization has been in a steady downward trajectory for the last four years. It's obviously his fault that the previous regime couldn't develop an offensive line to keep him off his backside. It's obviously his fault that Barry Sanders walked away in the prime of his career. It's obviously his fault that ownership brought in a novice to run the football operation, leaving everyone wondering if anybody possesses the slightest clue.

``It was no big deal to me,'' said Batch who directed Pittsburgh to a game-clinching fourth-quarter scoring drive, finishing it with a one-yard touchdown dive. ``They're rooting for the home team. And I'm the visiting quarterback so that's the type of greeting you can expect.''

I don't recall the crowd serenading starting Steelers quarterback Tommy Maddox in a similar fashion.

Obviously, Batch opted for the high road. What's the use in bothering yourself with what's far behind you? He's free. He's accessible to these unusual concepts unheard of in these parts in recent years, like an elusive running back out of the backfield. Batch dumped a short pass to Amos Zereoue who juked and jived his way 39 yards for a touchdown.

You could understand Batch's confusion when he returned to the Steelers' sideline, unaware until that very moment that the NFL actually does authorize the use of speed for its teams' offenses.

``What happened to me here is just part of the business,'' said Batch. ``It's a revolving door with teams in this league. I don't hold grudges and I don't have regrets. I'm moving on with my career and I'm trying to win a job with the Steelers. I was more concerned with trying to impress Coach (Bill) Cowher than I was trying to impress the fans here.''

McMahon heard the catcalls.

``They did it to Scott Mitchell too when he came back,'' said McMahon. ``That's just the way it is with the home fans. It's the nature of the business that people are always going to be looking for something that they think is better.''

Who knows that better than McMahon? The countdown has already begun as to when he'll bear the brunt of fan impatience over the inevitability of Harrington's ascension into the starting lineup. It's good that McMahon heard the venom, providing him a glimpse of what he can expect should dreadful Lion quarterbacking history repeat itself and, like Batch, he's mercifully released from football purgatory.

You can reach Drew Sharp at 313-223-4055 or at dsharp@freepress.com.

Fans are pleased with Lions’ new digs

Fans walking through the turnstiles of the brand-spanking new Ford Field on Saturday morning had looks of disbelief on their collective faces.

``Wow!'' said Detroiter Sharron Robinson, who attended the Lions-Steelers game with husband Reggie Robinson. ``I've seen it on TV, but you really don't get a real prospective of it until you see it right here. There is so much room compared to the Silverdome.''

Saturday's game was the first pro football game played in downtown Detroit since Thanksgiving Day 1974. After that the Lions fled the city for the drudgery Pontiac Silverdome.

From the brick wall of the old Hudson's warehouse incorporated into the stadium to the glass atrium and innovative FieldTurf, fans seemingly couldn't get enough of the gorgeous new building.

Other than some parking problems, fans voiced their pleasure with the new $500 million facility, which many football insiders are already calling the crowned jewel of the NFL.

Tom Ozog, 33, bought a pair of upper deck tickets when they went on sale through the Lions' Web site. He brought his four-year old son, Nicholas, to his first pro game. A few hours before kick-off, the two sat in the front row behind the Lions bench, just taking in the incredible atmosphere as dad admired the architectural design.

``This place is absolutely beautiful,'' said Ozog, of Canton. ``I love the large truces, because it makes you feel like you're in a different kind of building, yet a football game is going to played inside.

``The comments I was hearing from people in the street was that it looks like an office building. That's the beauty of it; it adds some character to it. It's not just another generic dome like you see in other cities.''

Ford Field is the 38th domed-stadium built in the world and the fourth to open this year, following similar facilities in Seoul, Korea; Saitama, Japan; and Houston, where the expansion Texans call home. Ford Field is one of six domes in the NFL this season.

Ford Field is filled with far more amenities ever available at the Lions former den. Fans now have choices other than hot dogs and beer for stadium fare.

In the Club Level, fans can choose from gourmet pizza and Tuscany roasted sirloin sandwiches for a reasonable $7.50 each. Desserts include deep-dish cheesecake, for $4.50, and ``That's S'More Cake,'' made of cinnamon shortcake and midnight cake layered with marshmallow, ganache and homemade chocolate sauce for $4.75.

The Lions opened an official merchandising store located inside the stadium off the Adams Street entrance called ``The Roar & More.''

Everything from t-shirts, hard hats, large spongy Lions claws and replica jerseys, where flying off the racks. The lines for two cash registers were longer than most beer lines, but fans couldn't resist buying blue and silver items, including Mark Pemton, 24, of Port Huron, who forked out a few bucks for a pair of Lions' claws. ``I don't even know what they cost me,'' he said, ``but I had to have them anyway. Everything has been great so far and the people that work here have been very friendly. The only problem has been the parking and no tailgating.''

Because neighboring Eastern Market is busy on Saturdays with vendors and farmers selling produce, tailgating was prohibited for the inaugural game. But Eastern Market will be made available to tailgaters starting with Thursday night's final preseason tune-up game against Buffalo.

Besides the obvious amenities that make the fans' experience enjoyable, Ford Field is more accessible to wheelchair-bound fans like Kyle Desmond of Coldwater.

``At the Silverdome, people used to stand up in front of you,'' said Desmond, a 17-year old junior at Quincy High School. ``Here they have accessible spots all over the place and when people get wild and stand up now they won't be in the way. At the Silverdome they had them in the corners of the end zones.''

Unlike the Silverdome, where unruly fan conduct was a regular staple of the landscape, the first Ford Field crowd was on its best behavior.

Other than the pigeons that roosted in the roof's rafters and the condensation (caused by the air conditioning) dripping from ductwork above -- causing the relocation of some fans -- everything ran smoothly.

Contact BILL ROOSE at 313-223-4413 or roose@freepress.com.

Ford Field debut ends with Lions’ loss

New season, new stadium.

Same Lions, same result.

But at least the Lions young quarterbacks kept it interesting for awhile -- with touchdown passes as well as interceptions -- as the Lions dropped their third consecutive exhibition game 34-22 to Pittsburgh in the first game ever at Ford Field.

Both quarterbacks -- starter Mike McMahon and rookie Joey Harrington -- had their moments. Good and bad.

McMahon threw the first touchdown pass at Ford Field -- a one-yarder to running back James Stewart that helped the Lions take an early 10-0 lead -- but couldn't get them to the end zone again in the first half.

Harrington threw a 33-yard touchdown pass wide receiver Scotty Anderson late in the third quarter, but only after throwing an interception that cost the Lions a scoring chance from the Steelers eight-yard line.

The rest of the scoring came from kicker Jason Hanson, who connected on field goals from 37, 36 and 57 yards but missed on attempts of 51 and 38 yards.

McMahon completed 11 of 22 passes for 132 yards and Harrington was 13-for-25 and 218 yards, but they were out-gunned by Steelers' Tommy Maddox and Charlie Batch.

Maddox, the backup to injured Pittsburgh starter Kordell Stewart, completed nine of 13 for 150 yards, including a 29-yard touchdown pass to rookie Antwaan Randle El and a 19-yarder to tight end Mark Bruener.

Batch, the former Lions quarterback dumped three months ago, connected with running back Amos Zereoue on a 39-yard touchdown pass and scored the Steelers' final touchdown on a one-yard run.

Running back Jerome Bettis, a native Detroiter, also scored on a one-yard run for Pittsburgh.

The loss left the Lions with an 0-3 record going into the final exhibition game Thursday against the Buffalo Bills, also at Ford Field.

They are 3-20 in all games -- regular season and exhibitions -- since owner William Clay Ford turned the team over to linebacker-turned-broadcaster Matt Millen and coach Marty Mornhinweg was obviously not happy with the Lions first game in their new downtown stadium.

``That stadium is sure a nice stadium,'' Mornhinweg said. ``Our football team needs a little work.

``We were in a pretty good fistfight there in the first half. Offensively, we left some points out on the field, a bunch of them it appeared. Defensively, we've got to get our defense off the field on third down.''

Mornhinweg indicated he was particularily concerned with the Lions inability to cover the Steelers receivers, catching passes from quarterbacks who are not known as extremely accurate throwers.

``We played a lot of man coverage against these guys and they have some extremely fast and quick receivers,'' Mornhinweg said. ``And we got exposed just a little bit but we continued to play that man coverage because, simply, we've got to get some evaluations done. And they beat us up just a little bit.''

McMahon moved the Lions nicely on the first possession, taking them 74 yards on eight plays, including a 39-yard completion to Bill Schroeder, to set up the scoring pass to Stewart.

Maddox was sacked by defensive tackle Luther Elliss and fumbled on the Steelers' second play. Defensive end Robert Porcher recovered at the Steelers' 16, setting up Hanson's first field goal and a 10-0 lead after 5:57 of the game.

The game slowly unraveled for the Lions after that, however. Schroeder and Az-Zahir Hakim, their high-profile receivers signed during the offseason, had costly drops. Rookie running back James Mungro, who led the team in rushing with 42 yards on nine carries, lost a fumble at the Steelers' 20 early in the third quarter.

Saturday, August 24, 2002

DOME DEBUT

LIONS VS. STEELERS

WORDS OF WISDOM

PROBABLE STARTERS

QUERIES

DREW SHARP: No choice: Ford Field next hope for Detroit
Is it wise for Detroit to pin its latest downtown revival hopes on the mercurial nature of sports?

Finally, fans will get to experience new stadium
But the hometown fans will get their first live look at both products when the Lions open the gates to Ford Field for their home exhibition opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers at 12:30 p.m. today.

HOW TO REACH FORD FIELD