Over 120 Autographed Footballs Up for Bids for Super Bowl XL Countdown at Three Metro Detroit Taubman Shopping Centers

BLOOMFIELD HILLS, Mich., Jan. 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Super Bowl fun kicks off a month early at three metro Detroit Taubman shopping centers.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20060105/DETH006-a http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20060105/DETH006-b) (Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20051005/TAUBMANLOGO )

Fairlane Town Center (Dearborn), Great Lakes Crossing (Auburn Hills) and Twelve Oaks Mall (Novi) hope to score big with shoppers Jan. 5 when they launch a monthlong Celebrity Football Auction featuring plaster footballs decorated and autographed by athletes from all 32 NFL teams -- and by a host of national and local sports media and football-related personalities, past and present. [A complete list of the individuals and teams who have decorated and autographed footballs is printed at the end of this press release.]

The three malls and their owner/manager Taubman Centers Inc. put a full year of planning into the auction, which was the first event officially sanctioned by The Detroit Super Bowl XL Host Committee.

One-third of the footballs will be on display at each participating shopping center and on eBay at http://www.celebrityfootballauction.com/ . Once shoppers have checked out the colorful football artworks, they can have a ball -- whether or not they submit the winning offer -- by bidding for their favorites in an online eBay auction, which begins at 6 p.m. on Jan. 27 and continues until 6 p.m. on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 5.

Net proceeds from the Celebrity Football Auction benefit "Detroit's NFL/Youth Education Town - Boys & Girls Club." Since 1993, the NFL has established a Youth Education Town (YET) in each Super Bowl Host city. The aim of these facilities is to positively affect youth in underserved neighborhoods by providing a state-of-the art site for enriching educational and recreational programs. The 30,000 square-foot, state-of-the-art facility will be owned and operated by Boys & Girls Clubs of Southeastern Michigan.

Football 101

All three shopping centers will also host free "Football 101" presentations on the following schedule:

* Great Lakes Crossing on Jan. 28 from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. (District 7 in front of Star Theatres)

* Fairlane Town Center on Jan. 28 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. (Center Court) * Twelve Oaks Mall on Jan. 29 from noon to 2 p.m. (Center Court)

Each of the interactive programs will feature a football clinic provided by the Detroit Lions staff and team mascot Roary; Super Bowl entertaining tips from Carla Schwartz, Style magazine editor; and an appearance by Shannon O'Toole, author of "Wedded to the Game: The Real Lives of NFL Women."

Taubman Centers Inc., a real estate investment trust, currently owns and/or manages 22 super regional shopping centers in 11 states. Taubman Centers is headquartered in Bloomfield Hills, Mich.

The Detroit Super Bowl XL Host Committee has established the Sanctioned Event Program to engage the community in Super Bowl. This form of community outreach allows local residents the opportunity to enjoy Super Bowl related programming while at the same time provides financial benefits to local charities. Sanctioned Events are promoted through various Host Committee channels.

The Detroit Super Bowl XL Host Committee (http://www.sbxl.org/ ) is a private, self-funded non-profit organization serving as the official liaison between the National Football League and the metro Detroit community to prepare for Super Bowl XL in 2006. Coordinating efforts with the hospitality, government and corporate officials, the host committee was formed as part of the bid process specified by the NFL and crafted to suit metro Detroit's needs.

TAUBMAN CENTERS CELEBRITY FOOTBALL AUCTION PARTICIPANTS NFL TEAMS Paul Tagliabue (NFL Commissioner) Kurt Warner (Arizona Cardinals) Keith Brooking & Alge Crumpler (Atlanta Falcons) Brian Billick (Baltimore Ravens) Deion Sanders (Baltimore Ravens) Mike Mularkey (Buffalo Bills) Willis McGahee (Buffalo Bills) John Fox (Carolina Panthers) Jake Delhomme & Steve Smith (Carolina Panthers) Lovie Smith (Chicago Bears) Joe Odom, Roberto Garza and Olin Kreutz (Chicago Bears) Marvin Lewis and Carson Palmer (Cincinnati Bengals) Marvin Lewis and Carson Palmer (Cincinnati Bengals) Romeo Crennel (Cleveland Browns) Phil Dawson (Cleveland Browns) Bill Parcells (Dallas Cowboys) Roy Williams (Dallas Cowboys) Jake Plummer (Denver Broncos) Mike Anderson (Denver Broncos) Steve Mariucci (Detroit Lions) Cory Schlesinger (Detroit Lions) Bubba Franks (Green Bay Packers) Khabeer Gbaja-Biamila (Green Bay Packers) Dom Capers (Houston Texans) Domanick Davis (Houston Texans) Tony Dungy (Indianapolis Colts) Tony Dungy (Indianapolis Colts) Jack Del Rio (Jacksonville Jaguars) Wayne Weaver (Jacksonville Jaguars) Dick Vermeil, Trent Green and Larry Johnson (Kansas City Chiefs) Dick Vermeil, Dante Hall and Sammy Knight (Kansas City Chiefs) Nick Saban (Miami Dolphins) Jason Taylor (Miami Dolphins) Mike Tice (Minnesota Vikings) Matt Birk (Minnesota Vikings) Bill Belichick (New England Patriots) David Givens (New England Patriots) Jim Haslett, Joe Horn (New Orleans Saints) Jim Haslett, Joe Horn (New Orleans Saints) Tom Coughlin (New York Giants) Eli Manning (New York Giants) Herm Edwards (New York Jets) Jonathan Vilma (New York Jets) Derrick Burgess (Oakland Raiders) Robert Gallery (Oakland Raiders) Andy Reid (Philadelphia Eagles) Brian Dawkins (Philadelphia Eagles) Kendall Simmons (Pittsburgh Steelers) Kendall Simmons (Pittsburgh Steelers) Mike Martz (Saint Louis Rams) Isaac Bruce (Saint Louis Rams) Drew Brees (San Diego Chargers) LaDainian Tomlinson (San Diego Chargers) Mike Nolan (San Francisco 49ers) Julian Peterson (San Francisco 49ers) Mike Holmgren (Seattle Seahawks) Matt Hasselbeck (Seattle Seahawks) Jon Gruden (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) Derrick Brooks (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) Andre Wollfolk (Tennessee Titans) Ryan Boschetti, Carlos Rogers, Jason Campbell, Ryan Clark, Ladell Betts, Chris Cooley, Rock Cartwright, Santana Moss, Randy Thomas, Chris Samuels, Derrick Frost and Clinton Portis (Washington Redskins) Ryan Boschetti, Carlos Rogers, Jason Campbell, Ryan Clark, Ladell Betts, Chris Cooley, Rock Cartwright, Santana Moss, Randy Thomas, Chris Samuels, Derrick Frost and Clinton Portis (Washington Redskins) SPORTS MEDIA Art Regner Bernie Smilovitz Bob Papa Bob Wojnowski Brad Sham Craig Bolerjack Curt Menefee Dan Dierdorf Dan Miller Dave Sims Dick Enberg Dick Stockton and Leslie Visser Don Criqui Don Shane, Robbie Timons, Frank Turner, Diana Lewis, Jerry Hodak, Stephen Clark, Bo Schembechler Eric Pate Harry Kalas Howie Long, James Brown, Jimmy Johnson and Terry Bradshaw Ian Eagle Jeff Lesson Jennifer Hammond Jim Nantz Joe Theismann John Riggins Kenny Albert Mark Snyder Mark Wilson Marv Albert Merril Hoge Mike Hall Mike Mayock Michael Rosenberg Mike Stone Mitch Albom Pat Caputo Paul Maguire Peter King Rob Parker Sean Baligian Sterling Sharpe Steve Courtney Steve Sabol Steve Tasker Terry Foster Tom Jackson Tom Leyden Vic Faust WDFN Ball w/ on-air talent and Lions' signatures Woody Woodriffe FORMER NFL PLAYERS AND COACHES Barry Sanders Bart Starr Bob Griese Don Shula Earl Morrall Gale Sayers Garo Yepremian Ken Stabler Larry Csonka Lem Barney Len Dawson