1999 in Michigan

Decades:	1970s; 1980s; 1990s; 2000s; 2010s;
See also:	History of Michigan; Historical outline of Michigan; List of years in Michigan; 1999 in the United States;

List of events

This article reviews 1999 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.

Office holders

Largest public companies

In April 2000, the Detroit Free Press released its first annual "The Free Press 50" list of the largest Michigan-based public companies based on 1999 revenues. The top 20 companies are shown below.^[1] Although it had substnatial operations in Michigan, Daimler-Chrysler was not included on the list because it was based in Germany.^[1]

Rank	Company	Headquarters	Business	1999 revenue (in millions)	1999 profit (in millions)
1	General Motors	Detroit	Autos	$176,558	$6,002
2	Ford Motor Company	Dearborn	Autos	$162,558	$7,237
3	KMart Holding Corp.	Troy	Retailer	$35,925	$403
4	Delphi Autmotive Systems	Troy	Auto supplier	$29,192	$1,083
5	Dow Chemical Company	Midland	Chemicals	$18,929	$1,331
6	Lear Corporation	Southfield	Auto supplier	$12,428	$257
7	Whirlpool Corporation	Benton Harbor	Appliances	$10,511	$347
8	Kellogg Co.	Battle Creek	Food	$6,984	$338
9	Federal-Mogul	Southfield	Auto supplier	$6,487	$243
10	Masco Corp.	Taylor	Building products	$6,307	$569
11	CMS Energy	Dearborn	Utility	$6,103	$339
12	DTE Energy	Detroit	Utility	$4,728	$483
13	Meritor Automotive Services	Troy	Auto supplier	$4,450	$194
14	Kelly Services	Troy	Staffing	$4,269	$85
15	Comerica	Detroit	Financial services	$3,389	$673
16	Pulte Corp.	Bloomfield Hills	Home builders	$3,730	$178
17	Steelcase	Grand Rapids	Office furniture	$3,316	$184
18	Borders Group	Ann Arbor	Books, music, video	$2,999	$90
19	American Axle	Detroit	Auto supplier	$2,953	$115
20	SPX Corporation	Muskegon	Machine tools	$2,712	$101

Sports

Baseball

1999 Detroit Tigers season - In their second and final year under manager Larry Parrish, the Tigers compiled a 69–92 record and finished in third place of the American League Central. The team's statstical leaders included Dean Palmer (38 home runs, 100 RBIs), Luis Polonia (.324 batting average), Juan Encarnación (33 stolen bases), Dave Mlicki (14 wins, 119 strikeouts), and Doug Brocail (2.52 earned run average.^[2]

American football

1999 Detroit Lions season - In their third year under head coach Bobby Ross, the Lions compiled an 8–8 record and finished third in the NFC Central. The team's statistical leaders included Gus Frerotte (2,117 passing yards), Greg Hill (542 rushing yards), Germane Crowell (1,338 receiving yards), and Jason Hanson (106 points scored).^[3]
1999 Michigan Wolverines football team - In their fifth year under head coach Lloyd Carr, the Wolverines compiled a 10–2 record and defeated Alabama in the 2000 Orange Bowl. The team's statistical leaders included Tom Brady (2,217 passing yards), Anthony Thomas (1,257 rushing yards, 96 points), and David Terrell (888 receiving yards).^[4]
1999 Michigan State Spartans football team - In their fifth and final year under Nick Saban, the Spartans compiled a 10–2 record, defeated Florida in the 2000 Florida Citrus Bowl, and were ranked No. 7 in the final AP and coaches polls. The team's statistical leaders included Bill Burke (1,957 passing yards), Lloyd Clemons (854 rushing yards), Plaxico Burress (957 receiving yards), and Paul Edinger (104 points scored).^[5]

Basketball

1998–99 Detroit Pistons season - Led by head coach Alvin Gentry, the Pistons compiled a 29–21 (.580) record.^[6]
2000 Detroit Shock season - The team compiled a 15–17 (.469) record.^[7]
1998–99 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team - In their fourth season under Tom Izzo, the Spartans compiled a 33–6 record and advanced to the Final Four, losing to No. 1 Duke.^[8]
1998–99 Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team - Led by Brian Ellerbe, the Wolverines compiled a 12–13 record, but all wins were later vacted.^[9]
1999 Michigan State riot - A student riot followed Michigan State's loss to Duke in the Final Four on March 27, 1999, with 132 arrests.

Ice hockey

1998–99 Detroit Red Wings season - Led by coach Scotty Bowman, the Red Wings compiled a 43–32–7 record. the team's statistical leaders included Brendan Shanahan (31 goals), Igor Larionov (49 assists), Steve Yzerman (74 points), and Chris Osgood (34 wins in goal, 2.42 goals against average).^[10]

Other

Chronology of events

January 17 - Death of Samantha Reid
February 18 - Crowley's department stores, opened in 1909, filed for bankrutcy
March 27 -
1999 Michigan State riot: student riot followed Michigan State's loss to Duke in the Final Four with 132 arrests.
June 29 - last day of vehicle assembly plant operations at Buick City
October 22 - Naseem Hamed vs. César Soto: featherweight championship boxing match at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit

Births

January 12 - Xavier Tillman, basketball power forward, in Grand Rapids, Michigan
January 29 - Meghan Beaubien, softball pitcher for U-M (2018–2022), Big Ten Pitcher of the Year, in Newport, Michigan
February 19 - Donovan People-Jones, wide receiver for U-M (2017–19), Detoit Lions (2923–24), in Detroit
March 28 - Anavia Battle, sprinter in 100m and 200m, in Inkster, Michigan
May 24 - Myth, on-line gamer (Fortnite Battle Royale), in Dearborn, Michigan
May 30 - Sean Giambrone, actor (The Goldbergs, Kim Possible), in St. Joseph, Michigan
August 11 - Cayden Primeau, NHL goalie, in Farmington Hills, Michigan
September 29 - Taylor Manson, 400m runner and gold medalist, East Lansing
November 23 - Jake Moody, placekicker U-M (2018–22), NFL (2023–35), in Commerce, Michigan

Deaths

March 12 - Bob Hollway, Michigan end (1947–49), Detroit Lions assistant coach (1971–72), at age 73
April 28 - Donald E. Stewart, screenwriter (Missing, The Hunt for Red October), at age 69
July 20 - Watson Spoelstra, sportswriter for The Detroit News (1945–1973), at age 89
September 22 - George C. Scott, actor and graduate of Redford High School, at age 71
October 9 - Milt Jackson, jazz vibraphonist, at age 76

References

^ a b "The Free Press 50". Detroit Free Press. April 24, 2000. pp. 1F–9F – via Newspapers.com.
^ "1999 Detroit Tigers Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 26, 2025.
^ "1999 Detroit Lions Rosters, Stats, Schedule, Team Draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 26, 2025.
^ "1999 Michigan Wolverines Schedule and Results". SR/College Foootball. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 26, 2025.
^ "1999 Michigan State Spartans Schedule and Results". SR/College Foootball. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 26, 2025.
^ "1999-00 Detroit Pistons Roster and Stats". Basketball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 26, 2025.
^ "1999 Detroit Shock Stats". Basketball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 26, 2025.
^ "1998-99 Michigan State Spartans Men's Roster and Stats". SR/College Basketball. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 26, 2025.
^ "1998-99 Michigan Wolverines Men's Roster and Stats". SR/College Basketball. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 26, 2025.
^ "1998-99 Detroit Red Wings Roster and Statistics". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 26, 2025.

[fp50-1] "The Free Press 50". Detroit Free Press. April 24, 2000. pp. 1F–9F – via Newspapers.com.

[2] "1999 Detroit Tigers Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 26, 2025.

[3] "1999 Detroit Lions Rosters, Stats, Schedule, Team Draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 26, 2025.

[4] "1999 Michigan Wolverines Schedule and Results". SR/College Foootball. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 26, 2025.

[5] "1999 Michigan State Spartans Schedule and Results". SR/College Foootball. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 26, 2025.

[6] "1999-00 Detroit Pistons Roster and Stats". Basketball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 26, 2025.

[7] "1999 Detroit Shock Stats". Basketball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 26, 2025.

[8] "1998-99 Michigan State Spartans Men's Roster and Stats". SR/College Basketball. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 26, 2025.

[9] "1998-99 Michigan Wolverines Men's Roster and Stats". SR/College Basketball. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 26, 2025.

[10] "1998-99 Detroit Red Wings Roster and Statistics". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 26, 2025.