Who sang the national anthem, halftime show for Commanders-Lions Divisional Round game?

The Detroit Lions are set to face the sixth-seeded Washington Commanders in the NFC Divisional Round at Ford Field on Saturday night. 

The Commanders pulled off a last-second upset against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the wild-card round, and they’re coming into Ford Field with few expectations and nothing to lose. Detroit knows how dangerous a team like that can be — after all, that’s exactly who the Lions were last season.

The Lions were ravaged by injuries throughout the season, but they put together a patchwork defensive unit and battled through a difficult NFC North that finished with a league-best .622 winning percentage. 

Detroit has been haunted by the curse of Bobby Layne for 67 years, but they’ve never been in better position to end their championship drought. The Lions clinched the NFC’s top seed for the first time in franchise history, earning them a much-needed bye week during the wild-card round. Perhaps more importantly, the Lions are guaranteed home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.

The Lions have been haunted by the curse of Bobby Layne for 67 years, but they’ve never been in better position to end their championship drought. If Detroit punches their ticket to Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans, they’ll have the opportunity to do it in front of their home crowd. 

Who is singing the Divisional Round national anthem before Commanders-Lions?

Detroit’s long-suffering fanbase has stood by the team, and they will be celebrated for their loyalty during the team’s playoff run. Caleb Carroll, a 23-year-old Detroit native, will sing the national anthem before the divisional round tilt on Saturday. 

Carroll first rose to prominence after performing “America the Beautiful” at the U.S. Open in New York City, according to his website.

He has performed the national anthem at Ford Field multiple times since then, including on Thanksgiving Day during the 2020 season.  He most recently sang the national anthem during the team’s season opener against the Los Angeles Rams, which resulted in a 26-20 overtime victory. 

Who is performing the Divisional Round halftime show at the Commanders-Lions game?

Lions fan Theo “Gridiron” Spight and his band will perform the halftime show at Ford Field during the divisional round. Spight has roots in gospel and soul music, but he has been leading the tradition of singing the team’s fight song, “Gridiron Heroes,” after each touchdown since the early 2000s, per ESPN. The song was written for the team by former Lions director of entertainment Graham T. Overgard in the late 1930s. 

Spight, a Detroit native, began his singing career at Unity Baptist Church. He was asked to perform the fight song at home games after his audition for the 2004 WDIV Super Singer contest caught the attention of a Lions’ executive, according to Spight’s website. 

Spight previously performed during the team’s divisional round victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last season. 

Former NBA player LiAngelo Ball was spotted testing the sound system at Ford Field by Washington Post reporter Nicki Jhabvala, which has led to speculation that he could perform during halftime.

Ball signed a record deal with Universal Music Group after the meteoric rise of his viral rap song, “Tweaker.”