![Detroit’s Ford Field Turns 20; Some Great Events but 92 Losses](https://townsquare.media/site/690/files/2022/08/attachment-GettyImages-1431357.jpg?w=980&q=75)
Detroit’s Ford Field Turns 20; Some Great Events but 92 Losses
So this may surprise you, too. Ford Field in Detroit is celebrating its 20th anniversary today. And this leads to another rabbit hole and it's amazing what you'll find out. But my first reaction was "wow, it's been twenty years?"
The first Lions game was one that didn't count, a pre-season game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Yes, a loss, 34-22. The first regular season game was game three, a loss to the Green Bay Packers. Joey Harrington made his first start and promptly threw four interceptions in the 37-31 loss. The Lions' first season at Ford Field resulted in a 3-13 record. Last season, their record was 3-13-1, perfect bookends for the two decades.
So I did a little ciphering, and over the past twenty years, the Lions' won-loss record at Ford Field is 68-92. Even if you removed the winless season, you'd still be under .500.
The building has hosted a Super Bowl, a Final Four, and countless other events.
But here's some of the rabbit hole stuff I found: Everyone remembers the Lions played at Tiger Stadium before moving out to Pontiac and the Silverdome. But not in 1940. Apparently, the new Lions' owner, Fred Mandel, and Detroit Tigers owner Walter Briggs didn't see eye to eye on a lease or much of anything else, so Mandel took his Lions to the University of Detroit stadium for the entire 1940 season. And one of the images Bing displayed for the 1940 Lions was of future Supreme Court Justice Byron "Whizzer" White.
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In case you're wondering, the first concert at Ford Field was The Rolling Stones on October 12th. But you'll be shocked at the opening act. Gwen Stefani and No Doubt. No kidding.
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