The story of the origins of the Little Brown Jug rivalry is being retold and again this week. I’ve maintained for the past few years that the idea that Yost wrote a letter to Minnesota asking that the jug be returned is not only silly, there’s plenty of evidence to backup that it’s just false. To those just tuning in this week for some jug knowledge here’s the basic breakdown of what really happened, and further, why the idea that Yost wrote a letter to get the crock back is far-fetched at best.
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A Remembrance of Bill Daley
Michigan 1943 consensus All American fullback Bill Daley passed away on October 19, 2015 at 96 years old in Edina, Minnesota. He was a bruising and fast FB, HB and DB at 6 feet 2 inches and 206 pounds (big in those days). He led the 1943 Wolverines to Coach Fritz Crisler's first Big Ten Conference championship and a final AP 3rd place National ranking.
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The Little Brown Jug: Myths and Misconceptions of College Football’s OG Rivalry Trophy
There are still many misconceptions about the history of the Little Brown Jug and the Michigan-Minnesota rivalry that persist today. Here’s at five common myths..along with a discussion of the reality.
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Sights & Sounds: Michigan State 27, Michigan 23 (2015)
For posterity, a few sights and sounds all prior to the Apuntcalypse. If you are a sick bastard here are my drive by drive notes. If you are a really sick bastard here’s where Saturday’s ending ranks amongst the numerous nut punches in Wolverine history.
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2015 Michigan / Michigan State Possession Notes
Filed under FWIW – my possession by possession notes from the game
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Yost Returns to Bust the Galloping Ghost (1925) | This Week in Michigan Football History
Lesson: Don’t mess with Michigan, its football team, or in particular, Fielding Yost or Benny Friedman. You’ll pay. Just the great Red Grange about what happened in 1925…or better yet listen to Saturday’s BEAT STATE edition of This Week in Michigan Football History: More on that 1925 game against Red Grange here. You can listen to all 6 years of This Week In Michigan Football History here. And don’t forget to catch the whole KeyBank Countdown to Kickoff on WTKA 1050AM starting 4 hours before each game, and of course, live in the Bud Light Victors Lounge tomorrow starting at 11:30am. Follow MVictors on Twitter /script: 1925 was a special year in Wolverine football lore as it featured the return, after taking a season off, of Fielding Yost as head coach. His timing couldn’t be better and he led his beloved Meeechigan with one of the finest, arguably THE best, squads in his brilliant tenure in Ann Arbor. The 1925 season opened with 39-0 and 63-0 drubbings of Michigan State and Indiana leading to this day in Michigan Football History – a trip to Madison Wisconsin to face the Badgers 90 years ago today. The Badgers were headed by George Little, a former Yost assistant, who coincidently served as the Wolverine head coach in 1924. Wolverine quarterback Benny Friedman wasn’t…
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The National Football Foundation – Michigan Chapter – Wants YOU!
By Steve “Dr. Sap” Sapardanis A couple of months ago I crossed off an item on my Bucket List when I became a member of the National Football Foundation. For those of you not familiar with the NFF, they are the organization that oversees the College Football Hall of Fame. Why did I want to become a member of the NFF? Simply put, I was tired of seeing other players get voted into the College Football Hall of Fame instead of some of the all-time greats of Michigan. So instead of sitting around and complaining, I did something about it. I am now a voting member, and while there are some great Michigan players and coaches enshrined (see below), there are several other deserving M-Men that need to get their due. According to the Bentley Historical Library, there have been 128 first team All-Americans at U-M. But only 25 players have been inducted so far! While it was great to see Rob Lytle finally get recognized for his achievements last Saturday, you might ask why did it take almost 40 years for #41 to get inducted into the CFB HOF? Part of the reason is that the Michigan Chapter of the NFF has experienced a drop-off of membership due to elderly attrition. We need to pick up the torch…
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Sights & Sounds: Zero Tolerance (Michigan 38, Northwestern 0) 2015
Fans & pundits grasp to find historical context at times like these, but no matter what you come up with doesn’t really help you explain or understand what’s going on. It’s head shaking. Michigan is destroying these teams. This game felt over when Michigan went up 14-0 just a few minutes in. It was certainly all but done at 21-0. Teams aren’t even getting decent looks at field goals right now. All this said – State looks better than any of these teams we’ve crushed. Connor Cook is an outstanding QB. Despite this, at this point, it’ll be a big letdown if Michigan doesn’t win. Sights and Sounds: Opening Kickoffs – The last Wolverine to take the opening ball to the house was Coach Wheatley against Houston in 1992. Coincidentally the big board showed a few highlights from Tom Harmon’s performance at Cal in 1940 – and Old 98 took the first kickoff back in that game as well. Sadly #1000SSS didn’t show this highlight, Harmon’s TD run where the final “defender” was Harold Brennan, a drunk Cal fan. More on that epic run & incident here. TDs in 3 Phases: via #1000SSS, the holy trinity achieved: • The last time U-M posted touchdowns on offense, defense and special teams was 2003 against Indiana. Steve Breaston scored on a 69-yard…
