Another post-worthy mention coming out of Adam Rittenberg’s ESPN Big Ten Blog: Dan from Minneapolis writes: Adam, you pointed out the unique nature of first time coaches in the UM – MSU rivalry. I also wanted to point out uniqueness about first time coaches in the UM – OSU rivalry. Aside from Cooper, going back to WW Hayes, first time coaches have WON their first meeting in the series. Correct me if I am wrong but that is quite impressive Adam Rittenberg writes: You’re correct, first-time coaches have fared well in the Michigan-Ohio State series, perhaps because the games typically are played later in the season when coaches have a better feel for their teams. Woody Hayes lost his first meeting with Michigan, 7-0, in 1951, but Earle Bruce beat the Wolverines in 1979 and Jim Tressel did the same in 2001. The Buckeyes went through four coaches during the 1940s who went 1-2-1 against Michigan. Michigan hasn’t had a coach lose his first game against Ohio State since Harry Kipke in 1929. Kipke’s first game, interestingly enough, was played midway through the season on Oct. 19. Rich Rodriguez will have a tough task to keep Michigan’s run alive, but it helps that the game is at the end of the season. Next, Dave Dye of the Detroit News drops…
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Making the Buckeyes Sick in 1907
Check out this century-old postcard depicting the faces of each member of Fielding Yost's 1907 Michigan football squad. The original owner scribbled this note on the front, "10/25/07 These are the boys who will make O.S.U. look sick on Saturday."
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Tom Harmon Goes for Schlitz Gusto
I love this ad from LIFE Magazine in the days leading up to the 1964 Tokyo Summer Olympics featuring Michigan Heisman Trophy winner Tom Harmon. Old 98 is featured as an NBC broadcaster who likes his Schlitz beer with a little extra gusto.
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Michigan vs. Lehigh Program (1896)
A likely one-of-a-kind piece of Michigan football history popped up this week on eBay: a program from the Michigan vs. Lehigh game held October 31, 1896, in Detroit. It’s incredible and you can see the full auction here. The item is owned by Brian who runs umichfootball.com, a site dedicated to Michigan Memorabilia. Definitely check it out. Brian bought this beauty from an antiques dealer in Michigan and he’s listing it for a cool $4,000. I’d love to know how much he paid for it! Whether someone buys it this week or not, he must be making out pretty good here. As for the game itself, the Victors-to-be prevailed 40-0. Chicago Tribune described the game as such: Michigan was nervous in the first half, and three times lost the ball on fumbles, once when it was but three yards from the Lehigh goal. After the men got warmed up, however, they played without blunder and had the Lehigh line practically at their mercy. You can read the full Tribune article here, as usual, there’s always something special about these ancient sports articles. Michigan had an exceptional season in 1896 as Michigan’s win against Lehigh continued an undefeated run. The week later the Wolverines edged Minnesota (pre-Little Brown Jug) 6-4. Home wins over Oberlin and Wittenberg set up a showdown with…
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Dave Brown 34th Wolverine Enshrined into College Football Hall of Fame
Congratulations to the late Dave Brown who joined 19 other coaches and players into the College Football Hall of Fame today. The two-time (’73-’74) All-American defensive back was inducted alongside JoPa and Doug Flutie. But you wouldn’t know about it because there is minimal local coverage [Freep] including no mention on mgoblue.com? What’s the deal? It’s not like the athletic department isn’t on top of things: there’s a mention of Dan Deirdorf winning an award for broadcasting. Brown is the 34th individual with Michigan ties to be inducted. I don’t have any memories of Brown since I was a wee lad when he took the field, but it’s clear he had some skills in the defensive backfield (9 career interceptions) and was a fine punt returner (11.1 career average). He co-captained the great 1974 squad that finished 10-1 and 3rd in the final AP poll. The lone loss that season was the 12-10 defeat at the hand of the Buckeyes. Here’s his full bio on his new college football hall of fame page: Dave Brown was the leader of one of the most successful and yet frustrating periods in Michigan football history. The Wolverines posted a 30-2-1 record, tied for three Big Ten conference titles and never went to a bowl game. The defensive units on which Brown played were…
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eBay Watch: Righteous Docs
I mentioned last time that the memorabilia auction action has picked up a bit. There’s been so many one-of-a-kind items lately that I feel an obligation to get them out there. Here you go, apologies for the dump: 1. Bo and Woody’s Notes. An incredible item. The seller claims the following: In 1969, the University of Wisconsin requested that all Big 10 coaches send to them a sampling of plays and words of wisdom that they kept in the athletic department for 35 years. They auctioned off all of it a few years ago and I was given chance to pick up 2 of the items.. Here’s a look at what Bo submitted: his eleven thoughts on “Basic Offensive Thinking”: Woody Hayes diagrammed a few plays which are also included in the auction. Again, from the description: The Ohio State University coach Woody Hayes diagram of 4 plays a Trap, 14 pass, 14 sweep and 98 Jet Pass(all hand diagramed by Woody). He also has notes on here like “”QB Look deep as you come out” Funny thing is that he chose 2 passes which was 2 more than he would be willing to run. Here’s a link to the auction. It was bid up to just under $1,000 but did not meet the seller’s reserve. 2. Game Contract between…
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Woody Hayes’s message to you Poindexters
I’m mostly interested in Michigan-related memorabilia but of late there have been a few Buckeye beauties. Check this out. Up for bid on eBay is a collection of old letters from the great Woody Hayes. Here’s my favorite: It’s a missive crafted by Dr. Strangehayes himself with a recipe for success in this tough world: I LOVE THIS! With all respect for the late Buckeye legend and Bo’s mentor, old Woody was a true beauty. For students at Ohio State Woody’s advice might be spot on: don’t rest on the laurels of a degree from Columbus. If you love this as much as I do, here’s a pdf copy that’ll print nicely.
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Biggie Munn's stuff
I'm not sure what I'd do if someone started selling the personal effects of legendary Michigan coaches Fielding Yost or Fritz Crisler. Perhaps my head would explode. I stumbled upon someone selling a few items that were previously owned by arguably the greatest Michigan State football coach of all-time: Biggie Munn.
