Lomas Brown: Lions Sent One-Armed Staffer in a 'Hooptie' for Me
After the Detroit Lions hand in their card to inform the NFL of their selection at No. 6 in this year's draft, the whirlwind begins for a young college prospect entering one of the most watched professional sports in the United States.
Several interviews await those drafted in the first round of the draft.
Then, the team will pick up its prospect in style, as the media will have its first in-person opportunity to learn more about the player selected to improve the team.
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Last year, first-round picks Aidan Hutchinson and Jameson Williams were flown to Detroit in a private jet, along with their friends and family.
The scene was completely different back in 1985, when the Lions made Lomas Brown the No. 6 pick in the draft.
YouTube and social media were not around to capture the scene when Brown was picked up.
In a recent interview, Brown shared with Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press how he was welcomed to Detroit for the first time.
“So, we walk to the parking lot, and in the parking lot, he came to pick me up in his car. And, it was a straight hooptie. It was rusted out at the bottom. I forgot what make and model it was, but it was a hooptie," Brown told Birkett.
Brown was certainly surprised by the car being in the state that it was in, especially since he was a top draft pick.
"I’m like, 'Oh my God.' I’m saying to myself, ‘Man, I’m the sixth pick in the draft, and they send a one-armed equipment guy to come pick me up in this hooptie, man.’ And, I’m telling you, I froze from that. Cause again, it was rusted out at the bottom. I froze from the airport all the way out to the Pontiac Silverdome, and that was my first experience with the Lions.”
Brown went on to play for 11 seasons in Detroit, and eventually earned a Super Bowl ring with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The former offensive lineman now serves as the game analyst on the team's flagship radio station.
