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.
-
-
1948 Rose Bowl and the National Championship debate
How about the 1948 Rose Bowl in Pasadena against USC? The 49-0 win capped off a national championship season where the Wolverines went 10-0 and outscored their opponents 394-53. You may have seen some clips of this version of Fritz Crisler's "Mad Magicians" featuring Bob Chappuis and Bump Elliott on Michigan Football Memories show from PBS. The combination of line shifts and ball movement is jaw-dropping:
-
Michigan Outdoors Man
It’s always great to catch up with former Michigan players. I recently chatted with Captain Michael Tilmann II, defensive back for Coach Moeller from 1991-1993. While his playing career was hampered by two knee surgeries, he went on to found Tilmann Outfitters, a premium vacation and fishing charter service out of beautiful Manistee, Michigan. He’s highly regarded in fishing circles and has hosted several shows on The Outdoor Channel. He was kind enough to speak with me: What are some of your best memories of your playing days? Tilmann: You mean the best memories that I can share?! It’d have to be having Bo come to speak to us before big games such as the Rose Bowls, Notre Dame, and of course against Ohio State. The respect he commanded when he walked into the full team meeting room was unmatched! As far as the games, the highlights were the ’92 and ’93 Rose Bowls, each against Washington. We lost the first with Elvis but won the second with Todd Collins. Here’s a photo from Pasadena on the sideline with Bo: Have you always wanted to be a fisherman?Tilmann: Yes, I’ve always loved to fish and this has been a lifelong dream of mine. That said, I’m proud to say I received my BS in Education. I am a teacher first…
-
Coach Mac Wants his Mojo Back
On November 20 last year I wrote this post on the auction of a 1980 Big Ten Championship (and ’81 Rose Bowl) ring. This beauty eventually sold for a cool $1,990. The ring bears the name “McCartney” and thus it was speculated that this could be the property of former Michigan assistant coach Bill McCartney. This suggestion was dismissed as the seller pointed out that this was merely a salesman’s sample and we all moved on with our happy lives. Until last night. Turns out McCartney’s grandson TC McCartney is a freshman quarterback for Coach Miles [recruitniks: Yes, TC considered Michigan so take a cold shower]. After returning from the BCS Championship in New Orleans, Coach Mac’s better half was looking for some LSU Championship news and found MVictors (naturally). More specifically, she found the story on the ring and it prompted her to give us an excellent saga along with a plea: We just got back from watching our grandson’s team, LSU win the National Championship. I was browsing about looking for anything National Championship or LSU when I came upon this site. Oh my goodness, my husband’s 1980 Rose Bowl ring! How in the world did it get there? When one of our son’s was in high school his Dad let him wear the ring to impress somebody…
-
eBay Watch: M Men sell their Rose Bowl rings?
After all my dogging of former Ohio State players for selling their precious charm pants (which they receive if they beat Michigan) on eBay, look what just showed up in the memorabilia auctions. It’s a 1980 Big Ten and Rose Bowl ring. Often the OSU gold pants auctions hide the name of the original owner; in this case the name is in giant letters on the side of the massive ring: Did this beauty belong to coach Bill McCartney, architect of the McCartney’s Monsters defense as Ufer described them, who was an assistant under Bo Schembechler on that great team? There were no other McCartney’s on the 1980 squad. Did Coach McCartney voluntarily sell his ring? Maybe not. The auction specifies that this is a “RARE salesman sample with all proper markings inside the ring”. Whew…perhaps the integrity of the Michigan coaching staff is preserved! McCartney left Michigan a year later to take over the Colorado head coaching position. He led the Buffaloes to a national championship in 1990 and retired following the 1994 season. Sample or real, this is quite a piece of Michigan history will significant ties to the present. Check out some of the names on the 1980 team and staff: Assistant coaches: Lloyd Carr, Jerry Hanlon, Bill McCartney, Les Miles, Gary Moeller Players: Mike Trgovac, Butch…
-
Bargain Bin for Bo?
I saw this outside Borders in Ann Arbor last night. On the bargain bin was a paperback copy of the book ‘Tradition’ by Bo Schembechler with Dan Ewald. While its 222 pages lack a lot of written content, the photos are exceptional. And inside the back cover they included a copy of the outstanding Michigan Memories documentary on DVD (“expanded and revised”). So what? It was $4.99! It lists for $40.18 on Amazon.com. Memo to all you latte-sucking Ann Arborites: go pick up a copy! Need more convincing? Check out this incredible shot of the 1902 Wolverines at the Rose Bowl on a trolley ride. Check out coach Fielding Yost at the bottom with his hand on the trolley. The grin on the coach is worth the five spot alone (Click to see full size):
-
Pasadena-Strange Surroundings for Bucks
Quick trivia question: Who’s been to more Rose Bowls in the last 22 years, Michigan State or Ohio State? Answer: It’s a tie, they’ve each been to one…Check it out In the Buckeye’s case this is largely due to a combination of John Cooper’s inability to take down the Wolverines in the 90s, and most recently Ohio State’s success after the BCS was instituted in 1998. Anyway you slice it is still a little bizarre that Iowa has visited Pasadena more often than the Bucks during this stretch. In the same 22-year span Michigan has been to the Granddaddy nine times winning three.
-
Victors Steal Another One
In a matter of a few moments the Wolverines turned around what was almost certainly a program-defining win for new Spartan coach Mark Dantonio. Michigan couldn’t move the ball and was being run over by MSU backs Caulcrick & Ringer. With just a few minutes left and down 2 scores Henne and the offense picked away at the loose coverage and scored two touchdowns, the last an amazing catch by 86 that pulled Michigan ahead for good. It was stunning to watch. A few takes: Most Painful? In some ways I feel this hurt MSU fans worse than the 2004 comeback, probably because a) of the emphasis Dantonio put on this game, b) this game was in East Lansing in front of a loud crowd, almost desperate for this win, and finally c) recent history of difficult games like the 2004 stunning loss in Ann Arbor, last year’s Notre Dame collapse and the two tough overtime games this year. Speaking of 2004, didn’t Manningham’s catch look wildly familiar?: Mountaineer Flair I’m starting to get a kick out of all these tools wearing Appalachian State gear. I saw a few items coming into the game and it was definitely on the minds of many Spartans. I don’t care what people wear to a game, but to have made a conscious decision…
