<P> The Spartans were initially formed in 1929 in Portsmouth, Ohio, drawing players from defunct independent professional and semi-pro teams in the Ohio - Kentucky - West Virginia tri-state area . They immediately made an impact by twice defeating the Ironton Tanks, a nearby independent professional team who had regularly played NFL member teams since the early 1920s with considerable success . Portsmouth residents agreed to fund the construction of Universal Stadium, a venue comparable to those in neighboring communities along the Ohio River, prompting the NFL to offer league membership in 1930 . Portsmouth became the NFL's second smallest city, ahead of only Green Bay . During the team's first year in the league it compiled a record of 5--6--3 in league contests . In 1931 Dutch Clark an assistant coach at Colorado College was granted a leave of absence and joined the team for the 1931 season leading them to an 11 - 3 record, second in the league behind the rival Green Bay Packers . </P> <P> In 1932 the Spartans played the infamous "iron man" game against the Packers . In that game, Spartan coach Potsy Clark refused to make even a single substitution against the defending NFL champions forcing the same 11 players to play all game . Portsmouth won the game 19--0 and finished the year with a 6 - 2 - 4 record same as the Chicago Bears . The tie prompted what in retrospect became known as the first NFL Playoff Game between the two . The game was originally meant to be played in Wrigley Field but due to blizzard conditions was moved indoors to Chicago Stadium which only allowed for an 80 - yard field . Portsmouth lost the game 0 - 9 and once again fell short of the franchises first world championship, however the resulting interest led to the establishment of Eastern and Western conferences and a championship game being played every year . </P> <P> At the start of the 1933 season the Lions added star runningback Ernie Caddel to the roster but despite a strong 5 - 1 start the team fell apart in the second half of the season finishing 1 - 4 for a final record of 6 - 5 which was only good for the second spot in the Western Conference . After the season the financially struggling Spartans were purchased by a group led by Detroit radio executive George Richards for $7,952.08 and moved to Detroit where they were renamed the Detroit Lions . Richards chose the name as a nod to the Detroit Tigers and because he said the Lion is the monarch of the jungle and he wanted his team to be the monarch of the NFL . </P> <P> At the end of the 1932 season, the Spartans were tied for first place in the league with the Chicago Bears . That prompted what in retrospect became known as the first NFL playoff game . Blizzard conditions in Chicago meant the game was moved from Wrigley Field indoors to Chicago Stadium, which allowed for only an 80 - yard field . The game was won 9 - 0 by the Bears, on a touchdown pass from Bronko Nagurski to Red Grange . The resulting interest led to the establishment of Eastern and Western conferences and a regular championship game beginning in 1933 . </P>

Where did the detroit lions get their name
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