longtime

for Booth Newspapers and MLive.com, died this morning, according to his fiancee, Diane Wolan.

Kowalski, 51, was found unresponsive at his home and was taken to DMC Huron Valley-Sinai Hospital in Commerce Township in Oakland County, where he was pronounced dead.

An institution on the Lions football beat and known as "Killer Kowalski," Kowalski started his Lions reporting at the Oakland Press, with one of his biggest stories being the 1982 Super Bowl in Detroit. He started covering the Lions for Booth Newspapers in 1997 and later became a key contributor to MLive.com.

He was known for his straightforward, pull-no-punches style covering the often troubled franchise for its long-suffering fan base. On a personal level, friends talk about his sense of humor and stubbornness.

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Kowalski's bread and butter was Booth Newspapers and MLive.com, and he filed

earlier today. He built a multimedia reputation and was also beloved by fans for his pieces in The Sporting News and as the Lions insider for Sports Radio 1130 AM Detroit (WDFN) and as a regular on Fox 2 Detroit. His WDFN drive time show was syndicated in Grand Rapids on WMAX 96.1 FM.

Ansar Khan said Kowalski helped him as a cub sports reporter when both were working at The Oakland Press in th 1980s. Kowalski was later instrumental in getting Khan his job as the Red Wings reporter for Booth Newspapers in the '90s.

"He was synonymous with that beat, that team," Khan said. "He always knew that team inside and out. It's almost unheard of for one person to cover a beat for that long, especially considering the record of that team. He covered them through all the bad times, with an enthusiasm that never waned. He had an incredible work ethic."



Kowalski made a seamless transition to the demands of online reporting, embracing its immediacy and interaction with readers, and understanding the deep passion of Lions fans. His content was regularly among the most read on the site, and he would often answer reader questions in emails and online chats.



Bill Emkow, executive editor at MLive.com and a sports junkie, said, "My heart broke this morning when I heard the news. I love Tom Kowalski. He was my friend. I trusted him, and I know he trusted me.

"He is the first reporter that bought into what we were doing with MLive.com. I needed someone to buy into what we were doing online, and he was the huge star for Booth. I don't know why he listened to me, but he helped make MLive what you know it as today."

Press Sports Editor Mary Ullmer, who was to attend a Detroit Tigers baseball game with Kowalski this evening, said she and his colleagues are "stunned and saddened to hear of Tom's sudden passing.



"Tom and I developed a wonderful working relationship through the years," Ullmer said. "We had a simple understanding: He was the Lions and NFL expert, I was the boss. While we certainly bumped heads along the way, there was no question we had a mutual respect for one another.

"We were looking forward to working with him on another great season of Lions coverage, and particularly so with this year's team. Our thoughts and prayers are with his fiancee, Diane, and his family at this time.