Being part of a largely Wayne State-centric family in Dearborn caused me to grow up as a Detroit professional sports fan. One of the most formative moments of my sports fandom as a kid was finding out that Barry Sanders had retired on the eve of training camp. The other was being in attendance for a devastating 2007 Lions loss against the Dallas Cowboys that eliminated the Lions from playoff contention. I sat with my brother in the stands, silently, for a half hour after that game ended. There's nothing quite like being a Lions fan.