An interesting nugget of Michigan football lore. It starts with a story Willie Heston told radio show host Bill Flemming on WUOM's 'Hello Alumni' show in 1951. Heston explains the influence of a California teacher and U-M alumna named "Miss Daniels" on his decision to attend and play football in Ann Arbor for Yost. Check it out:
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Toasting Yost | October 19, 1940
In 1940 "The Toast to Yost from Coast to Coast" was held at Waterman Gymnasium. Fielding H. Yost was honored by a host of dignitaries - (Willie Heston, Tom Harmon and Louis Elbel to name a few) in an event that was broadcast on NBC radio around the country. The Bentley Library has the original recording of that tribute. It's a tad choppy in spots but well worth a listen if you have the means. The highlight for me is certainly hearing the voice of Yost as he addresses the audience.
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Vintage Rose Bowl Cheer (1902)
Here’s a pic currently for sale from the turn of the last century at the inaugural Rose Bowl and more specifically, from the actual “Floral” Parade prior to the game. Funny, it looks like Willie Heston and crew are decked in their game uniforms and presumably taking the wagon directly from the parade route to the game!:
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Why Michigan (really) Bought The Little Brown Jug in 1903
During a 2011 press conference, Michigan’s Ryan Van Bergen talked about The Little Brown Jug and joked, “I don’t think you’d want to drink any water out of that.” True, but even if you wanted to take a drink you’d be hard-pressed to make that happen. When I did my jug research a couple of years ago it was easy to notice that the top is sealed off: There used to be a cap and some ribbons affixed to the top, but at some point, they were removed (and from the looks of it, torn off). I asked Jon Falk about it –he’s not sure when exactly that happened. It’ll take a flathead screwdriver and some pliers to get that top off. You have to want it. Why Michigan Bought A JugSo obviously at one point, this jug did carry water for the team, but the truth of how and why it ended up on the U-M sideline in 1903 has shifted a bit over the decades. In the early days of the Jug rivalry, it was widely believed that Michigan brought the jug & water from Ann Arbor, and further, some suggested it was because Yost feared the Gophers would attempt to spike/poison their water. Of course, years later Tommy Roberts revealed that he simply bought the jug in Minneapolis before…
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Michigan Calls Cal & Stanford Chicken | Scheduling the First Rose Bowl (1901)
While most Michigan fans know that the Wolverines played in the first Rose Bowl in 1902, one detail that's misunderstood is that U-M actually had scheduled the trip out west BEFORE the season. Here's how it all played out - it's pretty cool stuff:
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Maize & Blue Sweatervest Hoodoo! (1904)
Originally posted in 2014, bumped given the mention of Yost's "noisy yellow and blue sweater vest" ahead of Saturday's maize for the Washington game.
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The Poison Water Myth
The next nugget of Jug Lore gets into why U-M bought the jug in the first place. Did Michigan and Fielding H. Yost actually fear that Minnesota might taint or poison the Wolverine water supply? Is that really why they bought the jug – to control the source of Willie Heston’s water? Let’s examine this: If you dig this videos, like/subscribe/share/comment. As always, get all of your Little Brown Jug Lore here…
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The Life and Career of Fielding H. Yost
A video of my complete guest lecture at U-M course EDUC 212: The History of Intercollegiate Athletics. The topic is the career of Fielding H. Yost. In Part I we cover his early life and coaching career before Michigan, and just into his first season in Ann Arbor. Part II gets into his coaching and AD career, and legacy.
