PRO FOOTBALL : NFL PLAYOFF NOTES : NFC
The spirit of Mike Utley was with the Detroit Lions right to the end of the game.
One by one, as they trudged off the field at RFK Stadium, the defeated Lions gave the “thumbs-up†sign that Utley used to galvanize the club.
And Redskin fans began giving the sign back to the Lions.
“I was really touched by that,†said rookie guard Roman Fortin, who is Utley’s best friend on the team. “It just shows that the spirit Mike has shown has had an effect on everybody.â€
Utley was paralyzed from the chest down Nov. 17 while blocking on a touchdown play against the Rams. He is undergoing rehabilitation at a clinic near Denver.
“Mike brought us together and he kept us together,†Lion Coach Wayne Fontes said. “His spirit got us here today. We got beat by a better football team. But that doesn’t take away from what Mike did.â€
Go beyond the scoreboard
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