Our weekly lesson starts way back in 1955 on this Saturday 67 years ago, when the #6 Army cadets visited Ann Arbor to take on coach Bennie Oosterbaan’s second-ranked Wolverines. There was an elephant in the room—Michigan had yet to defeat the fabled West Point squad in five previous tries in our storied history. We quickly turned to the legend, who was actually dinged up early in this game: Michigan’s Ron Kramer. Here’s the story:
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Go Blue! Beat the Hoosiers! You’ll hear this live on the WTKA 1050AM KeyBank Countdown to Kickoff Saturday morning!
Here’s the full script:
Bennie O’s men would not be denied on this day, as witnessed by the 97,000 who packed the Big House. Thankfully the Cadets came down with a brutal case of fumbilitis and the Maize and Blue prevailed 26-2. The cadets put that greasy pigskin on the ground an amazing 9 times, eight of which were recovered by Michigan.
Thanks to that victory and in Ira’s dream scenario, the voters had seen enough and the Wolverines displaced undefeated Maryland as the #1 team in the land. The dominant win over Army was made even more surprising when you add that Michigan played nearly the entire game without its All-American Ron Kramer, who was dinged up early in the game.
Kramer was the brand of an athlete not seen in Ann Arbor since his coach, Bennie Oosterbaan, dazzled the athletic campus in the mid-1920s. Number 87 played anywhere and everywhere including offensive & defensive end, running back, quarterback, kicker, and receiver, often all within the same game.
Off the gridiron, Kramer set Michigan’s all-time scoring record in basketball and he excelled in the high jump for the track team. After leaving Michigan he served in the Air Force and later joined the Green Bay Packers where he starred at tight end for coach Vince Lombardi. He was twice named All-Pro and won back-to-back titles with the Packers. While he had a fine pro football career, he is most fondly remembered for his days in Ann Arbor. Like Oosterbaan before him, Kramer ended his career as a 9-time letterman in Ann Arbor.
Legendary equipment manager Henry Hatch retired his #87 jersey number following his senior season and today he has a permanent place amongst the Legends enshrined in the Towsley Family Museum in Schembechler Hall.
Later Kramer continued a tradition of delivering apples to the U-M football locker room on Wednesdays during the season, and General Bo affectionately referred to him as “Kramer of Michigan.” When he passed away in September 2010, the football squad honored him by wearing a #87 helmet sticker and the Michigan family mourned the passing of a true ‘Michigan Man’.
So today, have a toast to the great Ron Kramer and Go Blue, Beat the Hoosiers – for more check out MVictors.com and WTKA.com – for the KeyBank Countdown to Kickoff this is Professor Greg Dooley.
