2001 in Michigan

This article reviews 2001 in Michigan, including the state's office holders, largest public companies, performance of sports teams, a chronology of the state's top news and sports stories, and notable Michigan-related births and deaths.

Decades:

Office holders

Largest public companies

In April 2002, the Detroit Free Press released its annual "The Free Press 50" list of the largest Michigan-based public companies based on 2001 revenues. The top 20 companies are shown below.

Sports

Baseball

2001 Detroit Tigers season - In their second season under manager Phil Garner, the Tigers compiled a 66–96 record.^[1]

American football

2001 Detroit Lions season - In their first season under head coach Marty Mornhinweg, and their last season in the Pontiac Silverdome, the Lions compiled a 2–14 record and finished last in the NFC Central.^[2]
2001 Michigan Wolverines football team - In their seventh season under head coach Lloyd Carr, the Wolverines compiled an 8–4 record, ending with a 45–17 loss to Tennessee in the 2002 Florida Citrus Bowl.^[3]
2001 Michigan State Spartans football team - In their second season under head coach Bobby Williams, the Spartans compiled a 7–5 record.^[4]
2001 Grand Valley State Lakers football team - In their 11th season under head coach Brian Kelly, the Lakers compiled a 13–1 record, their only loss coming by a 17-14 score against North Dakota in the NCAA Division II Champonship Game.^[5]

Basketball

2000–01 Detroit Pistons season - In their first and only season under head coach George Irvine, the Pistons compiled a 32–50 record and finished fifth in the NBA Central Division.^[6]
2001 Detroit Shock season - The Shock compiled a 10–22 record.^[7]
2000–01 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team - In their sixth season under head coach Tom Izzo, the Spartans compiled a 28–5 record and advanced to the Final Four where they lost to Arizona.^[8]
2000–01 Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team - In their fourth and final season under head coach Brian Ellerbe, the Wolverines compiled a 10–18 record.^[9]

Ice hockey

2000–01 Detroit Red Wings season - .In their eighth season under head coach Scotty Bowman, the Red Wings compiled a 49–20–9–4 record and were upset in the first round of the playoffs by the seventh-seeded Los Angeles Kings.^[10]

Other

Chronology of events

Births

June 14 - Sreeleela, actress in Telugu cineman, in Detroit
August 16 - Lew Nichols III, football running back, led NCAA Division I FBS with 1,710 rushing yards in 2021, in Detroit
August 29 - Teejayx6, rapper and originator of scam rap, in Detroit
October 3 - SoFaygo, rapper, singer and songwriter, in Grand Rapids, Michigan
December 20 - Isabelle Kadzban, soccer player, Chile national team, in Grand Rapids, Michigan

Deaths

January 7 - Lowell Perry, U-M football (1950-52), chairman of EEOC (1975-76), at age 69
January 14 - Dennis Fitzgerald, U-M football MVP (1960), football coach (1964-1999), at age 64
January 16 - Leonard Woodcock, UAW president (1970-77), Ambassador to China (1979-81), at age 89
February 15 - Burt Kennedy, screenwriter and director known for his Westerns, at age 78
February 23 - Anthony Giacalone, at Detroit "capo" with whom Jimmy Hoffa was scheduled to meet on the day he disappeared, age 82
February 24 - Claude Shannon, "father of information theory" who laid the foundations of the Information Age, at age 84
March 13 - Walter Dukes, Detroit Pistons (1957-63), Harlem Globetrotters (1953-55), at age 70
April 10 - Andy Farkas, football fullback University of Detroit and Detroit Lions, NFL scoring leader with Redskins in 1939, at age 84
April 20 - Richard H. Austin, Michigan Secretary of State (1971-1995), at age 87
April 23 - Robert J. Huber, US Congress (1973-75), at age 76
April 25 - Gwen Frostic, artist and author, at age 94
May 12 - Ollie Cline, Detroit Lions fullback (1950-53), at age 75
May 17 - Ike Brown, Detroit Tigers utility player (1969-74), at age 59
May 20 - Bill Hewlett, co-founder of Hewlett-Packard, at age 87
June 21 - John Lee Hooker, blues singer, guitarist, songwriter ("Boogie Chillen", "Crawling King Snake", "Boom Boom", "Dimples"), at age 83 or 88
June 24 - William H. Sewell, sociologist and University of Wisconsin president, at age 91
June 30 - Joe Henderson, jazz tenor saxophonist, at age 64
July 3 - Lelord Kordel, nutritionist, author, and adviser to Hollywood stars, promoted low-carbohydrate diet, jailed for making false claims, at age 92
July 6 - Heinz Prechter, popularized the sunroof for American cars, at age 59
July 12 - Charleszetta Waddles, minister and founder of the Mother Waddles Perpetual Mission that provided food and services to the poor of Detroit, at age 88
July 17 - Elon "Chief" Hogsett, Detroit Tigers pitcher (1929-36), at age 97
August 25 - Aaliyah, singer, actress, model, at age 22
September 6 - Frank Christensen, Detroit Lions fullback (1934-37), at age 91
September 11 - Todd Beamer, Flint native and UA Flight 93 passenger who attempted to regain control from hijackers, at age 32
September 28 - James H. Brickley, Michigan Supreme Court (1982-1999), Michigan lieutenant governor (1971-74, 1979-82), President of Eastern Michigan University (1975-78), at age 72
October 3 - Homer Elias, Detroit Lions guard (1978-84), at age 46
October 9 - William A. Ryan, Michigan House of Representatives (1958-82), Speaker (1969-74), at age 82
November 16 - Tommy Flanagan, jazz pianist and composer, at age 71
November 27 - Mary S. Coleman, Michigan Supreme Court (1973-82), at age 87
December 18 - Jim Letherer, civil rights activist, walked on one leg in Selma to Montgomery march and March Against Fear, at age 67
December 25 - Billy Wells, halfback for Michigan State (1954 Rose Bowl MVP) and in the NFL (1954-50), at age 70
December 31 - Marie Hartwig, University of Michigan physical education professor and first associate athletic director for women, at age 95

Top stories

Office holders

State office holders

Federal office holders

Mayors of major cities