When Sheila Ford Hamp graduated from college, she badly wanted a job in the NFL.
Her father, William Clay Ford, owned the Detroit Lions, she grew up attending games and being around the team, and she knew then-NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle from her dad’s dealings in the league.
“I went to see him and he literally could not think of anything for a female to do way back then,” Ford Hamp said. “And so, things have changed a lot and I think it’s terrific.”
[ Ford Hamp takes over as Lions owner, but major changes are not in store ]
On Tuesday, Ford Hamp, 68, officially replaced her mother, Martha Firestone Ford, as chairman and principal owner of the Lions, fulfilling the organization’s long-established but closely-guarded succession plan.