Two Lions Legends Get Their Due
Two former Detroit Lions have been nominated for the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame, and honestly, it’s about damn time.
Kevin Glover and Thomas “Pepper” Johnson are among the nominees in the Professional category. For a franchise that has spent decades getting disrespected in conversations about NFL history, seeing our guys get recognition feels good.
Glover was drafted by the Lions in 1985 and during his 15 years in the NFL at center, earned three Pro Bowl nods and four All-Pro accolades. He played 13 years in Detroit and was a key part of the rushing attack led by Barry Sanders. You know, back when we actually had something resembling a functional offense.
Born in Detroit, Pepper landed on the State of Michigan high school all-decade team for the 1980s thanks to a standout football career at MacKenzie High School. The Ohio State linebacker earned All-American honors as a senior in 1985. He won two Super Bowls with the New York Giants between 1986 and 1992 until returning home to the Motor City to play for the Lions in 1996.
Your Vote Actually Matters Here
The Michigan Sports Hall of Fame lets fans vote on nominees using a 1-10 scale. Voting is open now and closes Friday, June 12. These guys earned their stripes in this city and deserve every vote they can get.
Both players represented this franchise during some lean years, but they showed up and did their jobs with professionalism. In a league that too often forgets about Detroit, this is our chance to make sure they don’t forget about our players.
Quick Hits From Around Allen Park
The new Lions offensive coordinator’s scheme might be perfect for Jahmyr Gibbs. At least that’s what some YouTube breakdown suggests, and honestly, we’ll take any reason for optimism about our new coordinator.
Faygo dropped a fun new ad featuring Gibbs racing against Grand Prix driver Nolan Allaer. Because nothing says Detroit like our running back going head-to-head with a race car driver in a pop commercial.
Happy birthday to linebacker Derrick Barnes. Another year older, another year of hoping this defense can finally put it all together.
Think Glover and Pepper deserve their Michigan Sports Hall of Fame spots, or are we just being homers again? Drop your vote and your take below.
Kevin Glover was the real deal, man. Those were different times but he was a pro every single day. I remember watching him work with Barry in the backfield and thinking we had something special going. Good to see the guys who actually showed up and did their job get recognized finally.
About time honestly. These dudes put in work for the Lions when it wasn’t easy and didn’t get the national respect they deserved. With Campbell and Holmes building something real now, it feels right that we’re also getting our past players their flowers. Voting for both of them for sure.
I mean yeah they deserve it, but let’s not act like a Michigan Sports Hall of Fame nomination is some huge validation either. Good for them getting recognized, but I’m way more interested in what this new coordinator can actually do with Gibbs than throwing votes at a state hall of fame. Hoping the optimism about the offense is legit this time around.
This is the kind of stuff that reminds me why I stuck with this team through everything. Seeing our guys finally get their due feels different now that we actually have leadership that respects the Lions legacy instead of tearing it down. Glover and Pepper earned every bit of this.