This week we talk about the origins of one of Michigan’s greatest traditions: The M GO BLUE banner. It all started on November 10, 1962:
Listen to this on air during the WTKA 1050AM Keybank Countdown to Kickoff starting at 11:30am on Saturday before the Rutgers game. Go Blue.
script:
This week we head back to this day in 1962, as head coach Bump Elliott and his struggling Wolverines were about to get an unexpected boost as they faced Illinois in Ann Arbor.
Team 83 had but just a single victory in 6 tries so far and were shut out 3 times. They clearly needed a lift, and they got it from an unlikely source – head Michigan hockey coach Al Renfrew and his wife Marge.
According to Meechigan historian John U. Bacon, in an effort to raise the spirits of Bump’s men, Marge sewed a maize ‘M’ on a large sheet and presented it at the Friday practice. The players liked it so coach Coach Elliott agreed to have it propped up in the stadium tunnel before the game played on this day 56 years ago.
After Bump’s men prevailed 14-10 over the Illini– the banner, needless to say, was here to stay. According to Bacon, it moved to midfield the following season where it has become one of the greatest traditions in college football.
In a football program with deep-running traditions, perhaps no one ritual ties together so many of the elements that make Michigan football special.
Consider that in those few moments as the banner is raised, you see a confluence of so many traditions: The Stadium, the Winged Helmets, The Marching Band, The Victors, Over 100,000 fans, the Coaches, the Players, and over 100,000 fans ALL focused on that moment and the coveted Go Blue Banner.
Is it any wonder that since this day 56 years ago that Meechigan football teams have captured a stunning 22 Big Ten championships?
