A Jolly Visitor Reminds Us There’S Poetry In Sports
Pleeease? Just one story? But the game’s on . . . well, OK. Just one.
‘Twas the night before Christmas, And all through the houses, The cynics were sleeping, so were their spouses,
“That’s it,” they had said, at an earlier meal,
“No more sports will we watch, too dirty a deal, Every jock is on drugs, every owner a moron, And each has an ego the size of Lake Huron! Once we loved sports, it was part of us then, But now we will never believe them again, Who needs it?” they’d said, remote control ready, And flicked the TV to something more heady,
Lions Just Bite The Dust In Brush With Greatness
The fans got up early. They drove for miles in the snow. They marched through the stadium turnstiles.
They had come for a brush with greatness.
Members of the media loaded their tape recorders. They sharpened their pencils. They filled the press box with excited whispers.
They had come for a brush with greatness.
The Lions pulled on their helmets. They tucked in their blue and silver jerseys. They trotted out through the Silverdome tunnel.
They had come for a brush with greatness.
YOU CAN’T TELL PLAYERS WITHOUT THE STANDINGS
You can always tell a playoff-bound football player from a non-playoff-bound one. Especially in the last week of the regular season, which is where we are today. For example:The playoff-bound player has called all his relatives and told them their Christmas presents...
CHERRY BOWL IS THE PITS FOR LOCAL FOOTBALL FANDOM
When I arrived at the Cherry Bowl Saturday, I was greeted by several workers. One of them handed me a big envelope.”Is everything in here?” I asked.”Yes,” answered a woman. “Your credential, the stats, and 100 dollars for being nice...
Mr. Rogers’ Secret: Be Kind To Your Neighbors
It’s taken me the entire NFL season, but I’ve finally figured out Darryl Rogers. Sort of.
Remember when he arrived last spring, fresh from the college ranks, a seemingly laid-back, unassuming, you-respect-me- I’ll-respect-you kind of guy?
Yeah. Well. I never trust that type. There has to be more. A fire in the belly. A skeleton in the closet. A Jack Daniel’s in the desk. Something.
SILVER LINING: DOME PLANS ‘BETTER OFFER’ FOR PISTONS
Just between us:Pontiac’s Stadium Authority, which operates the Silverdome, is eager to talk to the Pistons before they commit themselves to a planned new arena in Auburn Hills.”We’ll make them a better offer,” says Clayton Jones, the Dome...
Hayes Has Fighting Chance
Alvin Hayes looks out the window. Then he looks at the clock on the wall. It’s 9 in the morning and he’s waiting for the car to pull up so he can get the hell out of here and back to the real world for a few hours. Rehab centers are better than prison, he figures. But not much. “Like the Army,” he mumbles. They check your every move, give you penalty points if your bed isn’t made right, and, ho, God forbid you get caught hiding anything when they strip-search you. Forget it. You’re dead.
LIONS RELIVE THEIR SEASON IN ITS FINAL TWO MINUTES
He was standing in the doorway to the locker room, his body limp, his head lowered, eyes on the foot which had betrayed him just minutes earlier.He was alone. But then, kickers in pro football are always alone — more painfully so after they miss a kick, and...
LEGEND OF ROGER MARIS OUTLIVED THE MAN HIMSELF
On Saturday afternoons, when the sun warmed our skin, and the chores were done, and we didn’t have to visit some stupid relative, we would play baseball. All of us back in the old neighborhood.There was Barooji, and Sandy, and the twins, Gibby and Gary, and a...Stay Connected
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