Dan Keener
I have been a Detroit Lions fan starting back in the early 1980’s when I discovered football. Although I grew up in Northwest Ohio and was surrounded by friends and family that were all Cleveland Browns fans, I ended up gravitating to the Lions as they were found on CBS affiliate WTOL Channel 11, which was within the Lions blackout and broadcast area. So, while my family and friends were watching Brian Sipe and Clay Matthews of the Browns, I grew up watching the likes of Eric Hipple, Billy Sims, Keith Dorney, Doug English, Jimmy Williams, Bruce McNorton and Eddie Murray grace the rock-hard rug at the Silverdome. Since then, my loyalty to the NFL and The Detroit Lions have never waned, regardless of how well (not very often) or how bad (too often) the Lions end their season.
Fast forward to approximately 1993, when I stumbled onto a group of Detroit Lions fans through a Listserv and found several individuals that I have had the privilege of calling friends now for well over 25 years. The members of The Grey Manes all have come from that original group of anonymous internet Lions fans, and yet here we are, in our latter years, finally putting to print out thoughts about the team that we all love (and sometimes hate.)