Mariucci leads Lions' rebuilding effort

[The_Philster]

Detroit has 22 players, including five signed from other teams, on its roster who were drafted in Rounds 1-3. The Lions also have 17 undrafted free agents. And the point is: It takes all kinds to turn around a franchise.

After rejuvenating San Francisco following a salary-cap mandated purge, first-year Detroit head coach Steve Mariucci has a firm grasp on what lies ahead. Mooch was cut loose from the 49ers after the 2002 season, ending a 60-43 tenure that included four postseason berths. Mariucci was 25-7 in his first two years with the Niners, but after having to cut several players -- including future hall of famer Jerry Rice -- San Francisco slipped to 4-12 and 6-10 in 1999-2000. However, the 49ers rebounded with back-to-back playoff campaigns before the coach was dumped after losing in the Divisional playoffs to Tampa Bay last season....
more (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/football/2003/preview/news/2003/07/09/lions_rebuild/)

[Michael82]

Five months into his new job -- and a week before launching his first training camp with the Lions -- Steve Mariucci is starting to feel at home.

No slipups since April, when he misspoke and welcomed rookie quarterback Curt Anes to the San Francisco 49ers.

He doesn't wake up at his new Bloomfield Township home thinking about the drive to Santa Clara for practice.

"I'm still getting to learn the fastest way to get home," he said Wednesday. "There are about six different routes.

"We're moving in. We're still just getting out of boxes, setting up the phone. I just figured out last night how to get my voice mail out of my phone system.

"I learned that I had to pay for the garbage pickup before the cans showed up. It's all these things you've got to learn. I don't have any garbage cans yet but they're billing me for the service," he said, laughing.

All things considered, however, Mariucci is adjusting nicely. But the biggest adjustment -- the move from 10-6 San Francisco to the 3-13 Lions -- is yet to come.
CLICK FOR MORE.... (http://www.freep.com/sports/lions/lions17_20030717.htm)

[The_Philster]

As training camp dawns, head coach cites team's hunger
ALLEN PARK -- The names have changed. Jeff Garcia, Garrison Hearst and Bryant Young have become Joey Harrington, James Stewart and Robert Porcher.

The geography is different, too. In six years as head coach of the San Francisco 49ers, Steve Mariucci's home stadium was a 16-play drive from the Pacific Ocean. Ford Field's backdrop is the Detroit River. Last year, it might have taken the Lions' offense a whole season to get that far.

The challenges also are different. In San Francisco, winning the Super Bowl was the goal at the start of every training camp for a franchise that has five Lombardi Trophies on display in its headquarters facility...
more (http://www.detnews.com/2003/lions/0307/20/c01-222081.htm)

[BillsFever]

ALLEN PARK, Mich. (AP) -- The Detroit Lions have many improvements to make but for the first time in a while, they have a coach almost any team in the NFL would want: Steve Mariucci.

Detroit's new coach has some believing that he can turn around a franchise with one winning season in five years and one playoff victory since winning the NFL title in 1957.

``I hope I can make a difference,'' Mariucci said Saturday night after the team reported for training camp. ``But I need a lot of help.''

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=ap-lionscamp&prov=ap&type=lgns

[The_Philster]

ALLEN PARK--The change in the air, the optimism surrounding Lions camp, is because of one man only: Steve Mariucci.

And the best part about Mariucci, the Lions' new head coach, is that he's not overstated, not built on hype. You don't have to be sold on him. Instead, he exudes a quiet, strong confidence. It comes across to his players, his staff and just about anyone who comes into contact with this man from Michigan's Upper Peninsula.

Calling him a Pied Piper might be too strong, if not corny. Still, the point is that he's a clear-cut leader.

Normally, when the coach of a team is the focus, not the players, it usually means you have a bad team. See Alan Trammell and the Tigers. It's the oldest trick in professional sports. This is different, though....
more (http://www.detnews.com/2003/lions/0307/30/e01-231718.htm)

[The_Philster]

ALLEN PARK -- Robert Porcher was heading for the airport last February when he got a call from the Detroit Lions about an important meeting.

Steve Mariucci, the team's new coach, wanted to talk to the three-time Pro Bowl defensive end right away.

"I told them I was late for my plane," Porcher says. "They said, 'Just get back here. Coach Mariucci needs you.' So I changed my flight. I'm sure glad I did."

It was a meeting that left the 12-year veteran eager to start the new season. After a few hours with Mariucci, Porcher decided life would be much better following two miserable seasons in which the Lions went 5-27 under Marty Mornhinweg.

In the six months since he was hired, Mariucci has engendered that kind of enthusiasm....
more (http://www.detnews.com/2003/lions/0308/02/sports-234045.htm)

[The_Philster]

ALLEN PARK -- At some point in every special-teams meeting, Brad Banta will feel Coach Steve Mariucci's presence. Even if Mariucci doesn't speak a word, which is usually the case, Banta will know that his boss is in the meeting room.

"He doesn't say much at all," Banta said. "He just observes."

Banta is starting his 10th pro season, and his third with the Lions, as a long-snapper and backup tight end. The Lions are Banta's third team, and he has played for six head coaches, most of whom gave special teams a cursory glance.

Mariucci is different.

"He's always there, whenever the meeting starts," Banta said....
more (http://www.detnews.com/2003/lions/0308/03/d01-234680.htm)

[The_Philster]

DETROIT--By nature, people who follow the Lions are the most optimistic football fans around.

Yes, they always believe the upcoming season will be magical for their team. And that's even before they consider the roster, the coach or if the schedule is tough or not. And it kind of makes sense when you consider that the Lions have won one playoff game since 1957. Without hope, these fans would have nothing to cling to.

It was different, however, at Ford Field on Sunday. Sure, there was a buzz along with that same new-season optimism that routinely flows this time of the summer. But this time around, you got the sense that fans honestly believed that better times are coming -- and sooner than later.

"How could not great things be done here behind this great coach?" said Marc Steel of Canton....

more (http://www.detnews.com/2003/lions/0308/04/d01-235168.htm)