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.
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Tom Harmon says ‘Vote Willie Heston’
Someone dug up some type of campaign pin touting Heisman Trophy winner Tom Harmon and his club's support for "Heston for Judge".
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1986 Ring Saga, Update
Another follow-up to my May 20th eBay Watch post on the 1986 Rose Bowl ring, and the follow-up post that uncovered the likely original owner. Proving once again that while the Michigan football family is vast, it’s a tight group and word gets around pretty quick, here you go: * I was contacted by member of the 1985-6 Wolverines. He called Allen Bishop and they eventually got on a three way call with Garland Rivers and talked about my post, the ring and lord knows what else. * He confirmed that this was Bishop’s ring but the circumstances of how it ended up out of Bishop’s possession and eventually on eBay were not disclosed. * I was informed that former players and coaches can actually order replacement rings from Jostens as all the original specs are on file. A few takeaways here: – I respect Bishop for not wanting to get into details on how the ring ended up on eBay. The possibilities are endless and I know that many players give their rings to family/friends especially if they have rings from other seasons. All in all it’s really none of anyone’s business but Bishop’s as to how it may have got here and if he doesn’t want to disclose that’s cool. – I’m going to send Coach McCartney’s wife…
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eBay Watch: Oh Man, 1986 Rose Bowl Ring
Once again we’ve got a Michigan Rose Bowl ring on eBay adding to the recent auctions of the 1977-78 and 1980-81 versions. This time it’s a beauty from the 1986 season and it commemorates the Rose Bowl appearance [see the auction here]. The game was unfortunately a loss for the Wolverines who fell to 22-15 to Arizona State in Pasadena. Schembechler’s men actually played 13 games that season somehow getting the green light to schedule Hawaii after the close of the Big Ten schedule. A shocking defeat to Minnesota on November 15th was the only other setback that season for the Wolverines who ended up ranked #8 in the AP. The seller is a true beauty himself…see what I mean as you check out this warning to bidders within the item description: If you have zero feedback or less please bypass this auction unless you contact us first, otherwise your bid will unfortunately be cancelled then stomped all over before we catapult it into outer space using our giant intergalactic slingshot. There are too many of you rascals out there who understand with absolute precision how to place a bid but freeze up like a popsicle during the payment process it’s really quite weird. This ring is very nice. A little worn, but the inscription of “The Team” below the…
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eBay Watch: The 1954 Bust
There’s a bevy of legendary former coaches and players descending on Ann Arbor for the 2008 Griese/Hutchinson Champions for Children’s Hearts Celebrity Golf Tournament (Sunday) as well as the Swing to Cure Diabetes (Monday) both at the M Course. This provides a nice opportunity to take a look at another item in the eBay Watch series, this time a signed program from the 1954 post-season football Bust autographed by the team and many of the greatest names in Michigan football history. Check it out: Coach Bennie Oosterbaan’s ’54 Wolverines finished just 6-3, certainly nothing too special but there were some notable wins. Anchored by All Big Ten quarterback Ron Kramer and All American tackle Art Walker, Michigan upset #4 Iowa and #8 Minnesota at home but fell 21-7 in the season finale to Woody Hayes and his #1 Buckeyes. The AP slotted the Wolverines at #15 in the final poll and Dr. StrangeHayes and the Bucks ended up sharing the national title after downing Southern Cal in the Rose Bowl. The 1954 season holds a special place in Buckeye lore. Obviously the national championship cements this distinction but this is in essence the year Woody Hayes deflected his critics and became a legend. I could go on about the ’54 version of ‘The Game’ but since my team lost, I…
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Not again! Another Rose Bowl ring auctioned
Come on former Wolverines, these rings need to stop ending up on the eBay! This one’s priced at $3000 take it or leave it, Coach Bill McCartney’s 1980 ring sold for just over $2000 last year. This one isn’t quite as pretty as the 1980/81 version although it appears as though the top is a likeness of old Michigan stadium, press box and all, although it could be the Rose Bowl as well as there’s no tunnel. On the downside, the designer dropped the ball on one side deciding to go with a cute bear sitting on top of Jan Stenerud’s helmet.
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Harry Kipke and the Fall of 1934
In April 2008, an eBay auction popped up featuring a 1934 Michigan student ticket book. It actually had tear-away coupons for each event inside, most of which remained unused that season. According to the conditions written jacket, the tickets were to be used for athletic events in general but for football “reserved seating” in particular. As a U-M student in the early nineties, I recall we were required to use the coupon books and I thought this was primarily a means to stem the sale of individual games. Apparently, this wasn’t just a recent phenomenon as there was definitely an attempt by the University to crack down on anyone using these tickets beyond the rightful owner. The student was required to sign off on a set of conditions and the fine print within the ticket jacket included a strong warning: “If presented for admission by any person other than the owner the book will be forfeited, taken up at the time of improper presentation and full admission collected.” The owner of these student tickets certainly realized that there would be some challenges on the field in the upcoming season. Kipke lost three All-Americans (Charles Bernard, Francis Wistert, and Ted Petoskey) and a host of other key players. Sound familiar? The 1934 season is probably most recognizable for the presence of…
