Detroit Free Press

MINNEAPOLIS -- Four years ago, Greg McMurtry sat at the family kitchen table in Brockton, Mass., across from a football coach named Bo Schembechler."Would you like to wear No. 1?" Bo asked. "If you come to Michigan, I'm gonna give you that number.""OK," said McMurtry. "Great. Sure."

"You fooled 'em all, Chief. Damn! You fooled 'em all!"

What was once a series has become a war. Every basket for a purpose now. Every rebound for a cause. The innocence of these play-off games has come crashing down like a piano from a 10th- floor window, and you need only visit any sports bar in this country today to know what we are talking about.Detroit-Boston.Game 6.Look out."Lemme tell you something," someone will say about this NBA Eastern Conference play-off game (at 9 tonight at the Silverdome). "Those Pistons really showed me something. They're a hell of a team. They're gonna win this thing."

What was once a series has become a war. Every basket for a purpose now. Every rebound for a cause. The innocence of these play-off games has come crashing down like a piano from a 10th- floor window, and you need only visit any sports bar in this country today to know what we are talking about.Detroit-Boston.Game 6.Look out."Lemme tell you something," someone will say about this NBA Eastern Conference play-off game (at 9 tonight at the Silverdome). "Those Pistons really showed me something. They're a hell of a team. They're gonna win this thing."

I am glad the Lions have a new coach. And I hope he does well. But in order to save his job for next year, Wayne Fontes must improve morale, sharpen up the offense and win games.Plus, he must establish a coaching personality. As a defensive co-ordinator, Fontes was known as a nice guy who was liked by his players.Good. But head coaching is a different animal. You need a style. You need a gig. You need . . . an act.But which act to choose?

I am glad the Lions have a new coach. And I hope he does well. But in order to save his job for next year, Wayne Fontes must improve morale, sharpen up the offense and win games.Plus, he must establish a coaching personality. As a defensive co-ordinator, Fontes was known as a nice guy who was liked by his players.Good. But head coaching is a different animal. You need a style. You need a gig. You need . . . an act.But which act to choose?