Yost was such a beauty. Above is a 1910 panoramic postcard featuring the Wolverine football squad that season. While we’ve seen various postcards featuring squads from this era, what caught my eye is the special addition to the gathering–the white bulldog mascot at Yost’s feet:
I slung the photo over to my pal John Kryk (Natural Enemies) who, after a laugh, no doubt, wrote me back suggesting ol’ Yost probably put the pooch in the photo to counter the antics of then Notre Dame coach Shorty Longman and his bulldog mascot “Mike”.
Longman was a player on Yost’s point-a-minute squads but even after he took the coaching reins in South Bend, Shorty kept his permanent home in Ann Arbor. In 1909 the Irish defeated Michigan 11-3 in Ann Arbor for their first win in the series. As Kryk wrote in Natural Enemies, apparently after that historic game Shorty outfitted “Mike” with a little jacket that advertised the 11-3 score and was known to parade him around town. Ugh.
Michigan and Notre Dame were scheduled for a rematch in 1910 but the game was abruptly canceled due to contention over the eligibility of two of the Irish players. [Ed. Kryk broke down the whole thing here in an excellent guest post.]
While we don’t know for sure when (in 1910) this photo was taken, it’s safe to say that one way or another Yost included the conspicuous canine as a response to Longman’s “Mike”. And speaking of postcards, here Shorty’s best friend featured in a 1909 Notre Dame postcard:
Related: Teaching Them Modern Football (1887)
