A young boy, an Upper Peninsula bar and an epiphany: this is a story of a Detroit Lions fan.

On a trip to Curtis, Mich. a young man found perspective on his beloved football team, the Detroit Lions. Following a day of snowmobiling the young man found himself sitting at the bar sandwiched between his father and his uncle. The boy was wide-eyed with excitement and his voice was filled with the unmistakable tenor of hope. He drove his point home with much fervor. “Dad, Dad, we are looking good this year. We could go all the way. Finally we have a quarterback, Scott Mitchell!”

The father, who was only a casual fan, listened to the child and appreciated his excitement more than he did the boy’s words. The uncle listened while he sipped his draft beer. As the boy went on, adding in statistics and commenting on the Lions schedule, the young man became more and more convinced as he heard his own words.

The bar was nearly empty. The three snowmobilers sat alone at one end. The bartender was not too interested in the conversation or the nearly empty drinks that sat on the well-worn bar tattooed with “Jim was here.”

At the other end of the bar sat a man, who was clearly a local. He wore the typical fur stocking cap, an oversized jacket and winter boots untied at the bottom. His white beard was unkempt and a bit yellowed from years of smoking.

As the boy continued to speak the old man turned, looking at the group sitting at the opposite end of the bar. The old man, not caring if he interrupted, spouted out, “I’ve been saying that since 1973!”

He then looked away from the two men with the overly excited boy and sipped his beer as if nothing had happened.

The boy didn’t know what to make of that old man perched on a bar stool drinking in solitude. His rough exterior, the yellow beard and wrinkles of experience in the old man’s face would later become a symbol of the struggle that it is to be a Detroit Lions fan.

Was this my fate, the boy wondered. Will I someday be a bitter old man, living in the U.P. drinking by myself on a Wednesday night? The words that old man spoke would echo in the boys mind for many years.
How many fans have spent the offseason getting excited about the Lions to only become disappointed and upset? How many years have the fans forked over top dollar for the new NFL licensed jersey? How many games have the fans sold out in the Silverdome and now Ford Field?

As the Lions became media darlings this past year that old man surfaced in many of us. The 0-16 season hurts us. It robbed us of the enjoyment we get from football. Fans began to adopt other teams to get by. Many of us started to follow the great University of Michigan players who had gone professional, and some even became Green Bay Packers fans.

No, we would not fall victim. As the hype built we fought against it. As Nick Fairley fell to us in the draft, we held our breath. Another year of anticipating, weekly, the exact moment of the meltdown that would lead to the another loss was nearly debilitating. That old man lived on in the mind of the young man. Soured hope manifested itself on the comments following MLive and ESPN articles. He did not want to believe, he couldn’t.

But then it happened. A road win to open the season. A 48-3 dismantling of the Chiefs at home. Then two come-from-behind wins that forced that old man to shave and even go out and buy some new Lions gear. We had arrived.

Monday Night Football, an American institution. A nearly dreamlike matchup against the Chicago Bears. The fans have not forgotten about the winning touchdown catch by Calvin Johnson that was overturned because, well…

We will just say that I am confident that the locker room and a particularly explosive and record breaking tandem of the Detroit Lions have an axe to grind. Monday is the night when Lions fans will be repaid. Respect and redemption, not only for the team but for the fans. I will be there, and so will my old Barry Sanders jersey that has endured all these years as well.

Joseph can be reached at josephpa@umflint.edu