from Mark Snyder of the Detroit Free Press,

The team estimated 1.4 million fans came downtown for the event, while the Detroit Police Department simply sized up the crowd at more than a million. Fans started gathering on Woodward Avenue early in the morning, with lines extending north of the I-75 bridge. The parade ended with thousands spilling into Hart Plaza for a 1:15 p.m. rally that lasted a half-hour.

The human mass stood seven or eight deep in most spots, with not a chunk of sidewalk to be seen along the route. Fans young and old flooded the avenue’s sidewalks with red and white.

They came from across Michigan, Ontario and the surrounding states, skipping work, missing school and just spending a day thanking their heroes for the enjoyment of the past season, and the two-month playoff run, in particular.

read on and the title of this post happened to be Babcock’s favorite word of the day!