Im sure Millen was behind the fan being removed
Anti-Millen signs rev up the crowd
BY SHAWN WINDSOR
[font=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER[/font]
December 5, 2005
<!-- factboxes, main image --><!-- story text --><!-- story text -->Aaron Tobin spent a few minutes on his home computer in Roseville and changed the atmosphere at Ford Field.
Tobin's two-word plea put a charge into a frustrated crowd Sunday afternoon, led to a cat-and-mouse chase between security guards and dozens of fans, and ended with a tackle in the stands. It was the latest sign of just how much that Lions fans want to strangle their favorite football team.
"All I did was make two signs on a computer printout," Tobin said. "They were maybe three feet long. There was nothing obscene about it."
The offending scrawl?
"Fire Millen!"
Matt Millen is the Lions' president and CEO. The team is 4-8 this season (after Sunday's 21-16 loss to Minnesota), 20-56 since Millen was hired almost five years ago.
When Tobin, 44, got to the downtown stadium, he gave one sign to a friend and held the other one for the entire first half. Nothing happened.
But in the third quarter, after a dismal half by the Lions, the crowd began reacting to the sign, chanting "FIRE MIL-LEN." Security guards closed in on Tobin, a lifelong Lions fan sitting in the lower level not far from midfield, and told him to give up the sign or face ejection.
He passed it to another fan. Tobin said security told him he was lucky he wasn't kicked out on the spot. The guards then took off for the fan who had the sign.
But that fan passed it again. And another passed again. And each time security got close, the sign was tossed to another fan. This chase continued for several minutes before it was finally confiscated.
"We are very consistent about this," said Lions executive vice president Tom Lewand. "We don't allow signs and banners in the building."
Lewand said the cost of obstructing views and fan safety was greater than any enjoyment fans might have in holding a sign or getting on television.
"It has nothing to do with the message," he said.
Few signs are seen at Lions games. Fans must undergo a pat-down from security before entering the stadium. However, Lewand said more signs get past the checkpoints late in the season as colder weather leads fans to wear bulkier coats.
Lewand said that although security was trained to look for signs, he was more concerned about keeping alcohol and weapons out of the stadium.
After Tobin's sign was taken -- he said his other sign was gone by halftime -- fans around him pulled out markers and wrote "Fire Millen" on whatever they could find, including brown grocery bags and little pizza boxes.
Some fans in other sections started doing the same thing. In an end zone, a fan took his "We Want Wayne Fontes" sign and scribbled "Fire Millen" on the back. Soon after, security came to remove the sign.
Another "Fire Millen" sign in the vicinity of Tobin was passed around again. And the biggest chase of the day began.
This time, a fan grabbed it and started running through the seats, from section to section. The crowd grew louder as he worked his way around the lower bowl. The Fox TV cameras caught it. Even players began to notice.
Finally, as the unidentified fan got near the main stadium entrance, security caught, tackled and ejected him.
Many fans enjoyed the spectacle, even though many were irked by what they considered an infringement on obscene-free freedom of speech.
Some fans thought security's actions only served to further rile up the crowd. Others, perhaps thinking back to the rowdy fan behavior at the Silverdome, thought security's actions were necessary.
"A couple of fans get irate, the rest get going," said Brandon Alexander of Chesterfield Township, seated not far from Tobin's section.
Lewand said security did the right thing.
"I give a lot of credit to our event staff," he said. "What you condone, you endorse."
Lewand said he would review the dashing-fan incident today, and a decision would be made whether that fan would be admitted to future games. The Lions' final home game is Dec. 18 against Cincinnati.
"I understand the frustration and emotion of the fans," he said.
Tobin wasn't so sure.
"I've never seen the fans more charged," he said.
An unidentified Detroit Lions fan holds a "Fire Millen" sign in the stands while eluding security, during the second half of the Lions' game against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, Dec. 4, 2005, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
Anti-Millen signs rev up the crowd
BY SHAWN WINDSOR
[font=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER[/font]
December 5, 2005
<!-- factboxes, main image --><!-- story text --><!-- story text -->Aaron Tobin spent a few minutes on his home computer in Roseville and changed the atmosphere at Ford Field.
Tobin's two-word plea put a charge into a frustrated crowd Sunday afternoon, led to a cat-and-mouse chase between security guards and dozens of fans, and ended with a tackle in the stands. It was the latest sign of just how much that Lions fans want to strangle their favorite football team.
"All I did was make two signs on a computer printout," Tobin said. "They were maybe three feet long. There was nothing obscene about it."
The offending scrawl?
"Fire Millen!"
Matt Millen is the Lions' president and CEO. The team is 4-8 this season (after Sunday's 21-16 loss to Minnesota), 20-56 since Millen was hired almost five years ago.
When Tobin, 44, got to the downtown stadium, he gave one sign to a friend and held the other one for the entire first half. Nothing happened.
But in the third quarter, after a dismal half by the Lions, the crowd began reacting to the sign, chanting "FIRE MIL-LEN." Security guards closed in on Tobin, a lifelong Lions fan sitting in the lower level not far from midfield, and told him to give up the sign or face ejection.
He passed it to another fan. Tobin said security told him he was lucky he wasn't kicked out on the spot. The guards then took off for the fan who had the sign.
But that fan passed it again. And another passed again. And each time security got close, the sign was tossed to another fan. This chase continued for several minutes before it was finally confiscated.
"We are very consistent about this," said Lions executive vice president Tom Lewand. "We don't allow signs and banners in the building."
Lewand said the cost of obstructing views and fan safety was greater than any enjoyment fans might have in holding a sign or getting on television.
"It has nothing to do with the message," he said.
Few signs are seen at Lions games. Fans must undergo a pat-down from security before entering the stadium. However, Lewand said more signs get past the checkpoints late in the season as colder weather leads fans to wear bulkier coats.
Lewand said that although security was trained to look for signs, he was more concerned about keeping alcohol and weapons out of the stadium.
After Tobin's sign was taken -- he said his other sign was gone by halftime -- fans around him pulled out markers and wrote "Fire Millen" on whatever they could find, including brown grocery bags and little pizza boxes.
Some fans in other sections started doing the same thing. In an end zone, a fan took his "We Want Wayne Fontes" sign and scribbled "Fire Millen" on the back. Soon after, security came to remove the sign.
Another "Fire Millen" sign in the vicinity of Tobin was passed around again. And the biggest chase of the day began.
This time, a fan grabbed it and started running through the seats, from section to section. The crowd grew louder as he worked his way around the lower bowl. The Fox TV cameras caught it. Even players began to notice.
Finally, as the unidentified fan got near the main stadium entrance, security caught, tackled and ejected him.
Many fans enjoyed the spectacle, even though many were irked by what they considered an infringement on obscene-free freedom of speech.
Some fans thought security's actions only served to further rile up the crowd. Others, perhaps thinking back to the rowdy fan behavior at the Silverdome, thought security's actions were necessary.
"A couple of fans get irate, the rest get going," said Brandon Alexander of Chesterfield Township, seated not far from Tobin's section.
Lewand said security did the right thing.
"I give a lot of credit to our event staff," he said. "What you condone, you endorse."
Lewand said he would review the dashing-fan incident today, and a decision would be made whether that fan would be admitted to future games. The Lions' final home game is Dec. 18 against Cincinnati.
"I understand the frustration and emotion of the fans," he said.
Tobin wasn't so sure.
"I've never seen the fans more charged," he said.
An unidentified Detroit Lions fan holds a "Fire Millen" sign in the stands while eluding security, during the second half of the Lions' game against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, Dec. 4, 2005, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
