Detroit Free Press

ELVIS KEPT HIS HEAD, WILL KEEP HIS HELMET

ELVIS KEPT HIS HEAD, WILL KEEP HIS HELMET

HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. -- The helmet will not go easily. He has had it since arriving at Michigan, five years, five autumns, same helmet, same face mask. Every spring he would hand it to the equipment man for safe-keeping, and every fall he would make sure to get it back. Once, after a practice in his junior year, an excited fan tried to grab his chin strap, yank it off as he ran past. Elvis Grbac made the save."It was down to its last snap," he says, clearly relieved. "I got it just in time."
HEY, WICHITA, IT’S STILL A FREE COUNTRY

HEY, WICHITA, IT’S STILL A FREE COUNTRY

Let's talk about terrorism. Not the kind that puts bombs under car hoods; that is terrorism we associate with foreign countries. No. Let's talk about a terrorism that is taking place right here, right now, in the heartland of America.Kansas.Wichita, to be exact. In the past four weeks, Wichita has become a battleground. The jails are stuffed. A judge requires 24-hour police protection. And workers inside an abortion clinic stay days at a time, sleeping on cots, afraid if they leave they will not be allowed back in.
MURRAY CAN MAKE BIG SAVE: KEEP HANLON

MURRAY CAN MAKE BIG SAVE: KEEP HANLON

I don't usually go to bat for professional athletes. I figure they are strong enough, rich enough or lucky enough to take care of themselves. But once in awhile, an athlete comes along and hits a tough spot and, well, I don't know. Something stirs inside you.
HAS THE NFL DRAFT GONE TOTALLY DAFT?

HAS THE NFL DRAFT GONE TOTALLY DAFT?

Well now, wasn't that a fun little NFL draft? The No. 1 pick bolted to Canada, the No. 6 pick never went to college, and Todd Marinovich went in the first round to the LA Raiders, where his cocaine possession charge will be laughed at as kid stuff.Wait. Did I mention the Lions? Amazing. They went into Sunday with one first-round pick and came out with two. They needed a receiver and a defensivelineman -- and they got a receiver and a defensive lineman. I am not prepared for this. I must take a Maalox and sit down.
WE CALLED HIM A HERO, BUT DID WE KNOW HIM?

WE CALLED HIM A HERO, BUT DID WE KNOW HIM?

At the moment of truth, he ran away, avoided the tackle, as if there were some end zone he could reach and be safe -- safe from the handcuffs, the police, the cameras, the courts, the blood of the victims they say he killed, maybe even safe from the death penalty. The police were right behind him, 11 squad cars, like an opposing football team, and they chased patiently along the Southern California highway, even as spectators stopped their cars, some waving signs saying "GO JUICE." This is what the man who dashed through airports had become. O.J.
TAMPA TURNING INTO RECURRING NIGHTMARE

TAMPA TURNING INTO RECURRING NIGHTMARE

TAMPA, Fla. -- There is fertilizer, there is horse manure, and then there is the game the Lions played Sunday. Did I say played? I meant dis-played. They dis-played punts, they dis- played returns, they dis-played snap counts. They even sent 12 men on the field and couldn't do anything. This was after Tampa Bay sent 10 men on the field and couldn't do anything.Why not send the Little Rascals out there? Then we'd have a fair fight.

Mitch Albom writes about running an orphanage in impoverished Port-au-Prince, Haiti, his kids, their hardships, laughs and challenges, and the life lessons he’s learned there every day.

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