Speaking into a mic on a stage in Ford Field and imagining the place jammed with fans, Dan Campbell nearly ran out of air.
"I cannot wait until September 12," he said. "I will be crawling out of my skin."
Campbell was on a panel Thursday alongside Lions GM Brad Holmes and president Rod Wood as part of the 25th annual Lions Kickoff Luncheon sponsored by the Detroit Economic Club. He was talking about the way he's been received by the fanbase since taking over as head coach, "the amount of people that come up to me whether I’m at Starbucks or Shell getting gas (to say), 'Good luck, Coach. Go give them hell.'"
"It's been outstanding," he said.
And now he was thinking about the season opener against the 49ers, when the Lions are prepared to welcome 65,000-plus fans inside Ford Field for the first time in two years. Campbell felt the place half-full for Detroit's preseason opener against the Bills. He can't wait to feel it at max capacity.
"Look, I came from New Orleans and the SuperDome is pretty impactful," said Campbell, who was assistant head coach for the Saints the past five seasons. "It’s loud. And Ford Field can be every bit of that. Not every stadium can be that way, but I know this place can be that and then some.
"Just Buffalo alone, that taste. When we’re going for a two-point conversion in the fourth and we can’t hear on offense – we’ll work on when we should be loud – but it was awesome. It was unbelievable. Our fans were kicking it and our players felt it. Man, that’s energy, that’s juice and we appreciate it."
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Campbell, who played for the Lions from 2006-08, knows how high the decibels can rise in Ford Field. And he knows they'll rise even higher if he turns the Lions into a winning team, if he takes them to the playoffs, if he leads them places they've never been. In quiet moments alone, Campbell said he's thought about, dreamed about, being the head coach who brings the franchise and its fans the success they've always yearned for.
"Look, if you haven’t thought about that, then you’re not where you’re supposed to be. Yeah, I have, because you gotta have an endgame, a vision of where you want to go, and work backwards from there. So, yes I have. I belong here, I know I belong here. This city embodies what I’m about, which is grit, and that’s what our team is going to be," Campbell said.
For now, full capacity for the season-opener -- and every game after that -- is the aim. But Wood acknowledged plans can change in the face of COVID-19, and the Lions are now encouraging fans inside Ford Field to wear masks.
"We’re not going to get ahead of state and local officials," he said. "So if right now we’re at mask-recommended, we’ll do that. If we get mandates beyond that, we’ll follow that as well. But right now we're going to hopefully welcome 65,000-plus here on September 12 and keep the stadium loud, safe and beat the 49ers."