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SU N DAY, F E B RUA RY 1 2 , 2 0 17
THE GRAND RAPIDS PRESS
MIKE ILITCH: JULY 20, 1929-FEB. 10, 2017
Ilitch always had passion for sports
ILITCH
FROM B1
Ansar Khan akhan1@mlive.com D E T R O I T — Before Mike Ilitch made his fortune in pizza, he had a passion for sports. Ilitch, the founder of Little Caesars Pizza and the owner of the Detroit Red Wings and Detroit Tigers, died Friday. He was 87. Ilitch loved baseball and the Detroit Tigers. After spending four years in the U.S. Marine Corps following his graduation from Detroit’s Cooley High School, Ilitch spent four seasons as a minor-league infielder with the Tigers, New York Yankees and Washington Senators organizations from 1952-55. He never reached the major leagues but longed to own the Tigers after turning Little Caesars, which he founded in 1959 with wife Marian, into one of the most successful pizza chains in the country. After a failed attempt to purchase the Tigers from John Fetzer, Ilitch realized his dream, buying the franchise from Tom Monaghan in 1992. By then, Ilitch had owned the Detroit Red Wings for 10 years and gained a reputation as an aggressive owner who was committed to winning at any expense. He was rewarded with four Stanley Cup championships from 1997-2008. Detroit was far from Hockeytown when Ilitch purchased the Red Wings from Bruce Norris in 1982 for $8 million (they are now worth $625 million, according to Forbes.com). The once-proud Original Six franchise that boasted Gordie Howe and Ted Lindsay was one of the worst-run organizations in hockey in the 1970s, regularly playing in front of sparse crowds at Olympia Stadium and Joe Louis Arena when it opened in 1979. Ilitch felt compelled to give away a car at every home game to attract crowds in those days. Soon, his team would be playing in front of sellout crowds every game, and there was no need to raffle any cars. Ilitch’s mandate to Jimmy Devellano, his first Red Wings general manager, was to get him the best players possible. The first player Devellano selected in his initial draft in 1983 was Steve Yzerman, who would become the franchise cornerstone for two decades and the longest-serving captain in NHL history. Devellano signed a slew of college free agents in the 1980s and spirited Jacques Demers away from the St. Louis Blues to coach the team in 1986. They experienced immediate success, reaching the Western Conference
Mike Ilitch, Detroit Red Wings and Tigers owner, Little Caesars founder and entrepreneur, died Friday. He was 87. Above, Ilitch raises the Stanley Cup after the Red Wings won the championship after the 1997-98 season. Below, Ilitch holds a news conference for the Detroit Tigers in 1994. AP files
finals in consecutive seasons in 1987 and ’88, putting Detroit back on the hockey map. After several years of playoff disappointments, Ilitch hired Scotty Bowman, the NHL’s all-time winningest coach, in 1993. Two years later, the club reached the Cup final for the first time since 1966, getting swept by the New Jersey Devils. In 1997, the Red Wings ended a 42-year championship drought by sweeping the
Philadelphia Flyers in the finals. During the postgame celebration following Game 4 at The Joe, Yzerman handed the Stanley Cup to Ilitch. Ilitch was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2003 and the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame in 2004. He won the Lester Patrick Trophy for outstanding service to hockey in 1991. Ilitch’s dream of winning a World Series wasn’t realized, but after many lean years before and after he took the reins, the Tigers finally turned the corner in 2006 under manager Jim Leyland. He took the Tigers to the World Series in 2006 and 2012, where they lost both times, to the St. Louis Cardinals and San Francisco Giants, respectively. But like the Red Wings, the Tigers became a draw for top talent because of Ilitch’s spending. He brought in players such as Ivan Rodriguez, Magglio Ordonez, Miguel Cabrera, Gary Sheffield and Prince Fielder through free agency or trade.
SPARTANS
WOLVERINES
U-M’s Walton coming on strong in final year Brendan F. Quinn bquinn@mlive.com A N N A R B O R — It fe el s
longer than four years ago. Derrick Walton Jr. was still a freshman from Chandler Park Academy in Detroit when he walked into Breslin Center on Jan. 25, 2014. He was making his own name, proving himself as Michigan’s point guard. That night ended with No. 21 Michigan beating No. 3 Michigan State 80-75. Walton outplayed senior Keit h Appl i ng w it h a n inspired 19-point performance.
Now, he’s a senior. Seven reg ular-season games remain in his career. Walton has played 113 contests at Michigan. He’s scored 1,224 points. He’s handed out 399 assists. The numbers a re t he nu mb er s , but Wa lton’s career has been far more complicated than that. A foot injury derailed much of Walton’s time at U-M. The expectations never wavered, though. Walton always was supposed to be Michigan’s next great point guard. It was an idea that sat just over the horizon line, until
the past three weeks. Walton is averaging almost 20 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game in the past seven games. What’s clicked? “It’s tough to put my finger on it,” Michigan coach John Beilein said. “All I know is that that young man has worked so hard.” So much of Walton’s college career had been confounding. His sophomore year was a wash with the foot injury. He was limited to eight league games before he was shut down for the season. As a junior, Walton shot only 35.5 percent on two-
point baskets. Questions wafted from Walton’s foot to his game. Those days have passed. As a senior, Walton has found himself. Through 11 league games, he’s shooting 48.9 percent inside the arc and 44.4 percent from outside. “I don’t mea n to be cocky or full of myself, but I know I’m a really good player,” he said. “That’s my main thing, getting back to believing in myself, believing in my ability and my talent. That’s served me well. I hope I can encourage guys to do the same thing.”
SPARTANS
Turnover-prone MSU looks to learn lessons Brendan F. Quinn bquinn@mlive.com EAST LANSING — Leading up to Saturday night’s game a g a i n s t Iow a , M ich i g a n State spent an entire film session re-watching every turnover from its previous five games. That’s 72, total, or 14.4 per game. The lion’s share came Tuesday when 21 turnovers undid the Spartans in an 86-57 loss at Michigan. In a two-hour window, what was
had abandoned them. He bought the Tigers in 1992, when the franchise was a wreck, playing in a cherished dungeon where free agents dared not roam, with a minorleague system adjudged the worst in baseball. The new owner endured years of losing with both franchises. But he understood the core tenet of sports franchise ownership: The primary job is to monitor the front office and demand some level of fiscal responsibility, then be willing to scrap that and write a big check when opportunity strikes, which Ilitch did when his financial extravagance could position the Red Wings and Tigers to win. The Red Wings won the Stanley Cup under Ilitch in 1997, 1998, 2002 and 2008, when his ownership commitment to winning was forged. He never saw the Tigers win it all on his watch, which was the former minor-league shortstop’s dream, though he did see them play in the World Series twice. He never saw the final product of what will become Little Caesars Arena, the newest downtown jewel, with financing he structured. His vision lives on in all of it, for decades to come. The fates of the Tigers and Red Wings will be determined in the weeks ahead. Ilitch’s wife, Marian, is owner of MotorCity Casino, and Major League Baseball expressly prohibits any team owner or official from holding ownership or operating stake in a casino. But for now, Detroit mourns the loss of an icon. The Red Wings and Tigers are staples of Detroit, and Ilitch offered them a steady hand in ownership, for 35 years and 25 years, respectively. He wanted to be a Tiger, turning two on the infield, but ended up a mogul pitching “Pizza! Pizza!” and the two-for-one special that proved a concoction of dough, sauce and cheese didn’t have to break a family budget. Ilitch reinvested in the city where he grew up, where he attended Cooley High School and starred on the sports teams before toughening up four years in the Marine Corps. His first pizza parlor was on the city’s west side. Ilitch’s riches were created of his own sweat-equity willingess to work in the flour dust alongside his employees. He operated his business soundly, and it grew locally first, then regionally, then nationally, then internationally. He poured his efforts and energy right back into his home base, right back into the place from which he came. Ilitch was of Detroit. He let the world know it, even when that wasn’t in vogue. The city benefited from his presence, and he built champions in the place he championed. In the end, everybody won.
a festering issue became an overwhelming problem. The turnovers were a microcosm of a night that coach Tom Izzo deemed “mind-boggling.” In the aftermath, the Spartans (14-10, 6-5 Big Ten) were left to figure out the best way to move forward. Izzo used the loss to a dd r e s s s ome n a g g i n g dilemmas. “I took a couple of young guys that needed to learn from it and had film sessions
and meetings,” Izzo said. Taking care of the ball has become paramount. Michigan State’s turnover troubles, which had actually improved in recent weeks, have come early and often of late. Of those aforementioned 72 turnovers in the last five games, 42 came in the first half. Cassius Winston committed six turnovers against Michigan, a performance that Izzo called “inexcusable.”
Cooper faces assault and battery charge Michigan State junior defensive lineman Demetrius Cooper is facing a misdemeanor charge of assault and battery after he allegedly spit on a parking officer. Cooper has plead not guilty to the charge and had a pre-trial hearing Thursday.
MSU FROM B1
that it is investigating a sexual assault complaint made in January against three student-athletes. A school spokesperson confirmed on Friday that those athletes are members of the football team. The three have all been su sp ende d f rom tea m activities and removed from on-campus housing pending the conclusion of
Sports calendar SUN
MON
DETROIT PISTONS
at Toronto 6 p.m. FSD
at Milwaukee 8 p.m. FSD
DETROIT RED WINGS
at Minnesota 3 p.m. NBC
MICHIGAN BASKETBALL
at Indiana 1 p.m. CBS
Update Online: Saturday night’s game against Iowa ended after the deadline for this edition. Go to mlive.com/ spartans for coverage.
“He’s too good of a player to do that,” Izzo said. Winston remains MSU’s most potent point guard opt ion, but t here’s no greater tether to the bench than being turnover prone.
the investigations. The criminal investigation is one of three investigations related to the complaint, along with a Title IX investigation and an investigation by an outside law firm of “football program staff members’ compliance with university policy in connection with the allegations,” according to the school. In addition to the three football players, a football team staff members also has been suspended while the investigation is ongoing.
MICHIGAN STATE BASKETBALL
TUE
WED
THUR
vs. Dallas 7:30 p.m. FSD
vs. St. Louis 8 p.m. NBCSN
vs. Wisconsin 7 p.m. ESPN
vs. Ohio St. 9 p.m. ESPN