Word on the street is that Bill Martin approached Minnesota about scheduling a non-conference game between Michigan and Minnesota in 2010, in particular, to open the renovated Big House on September 4.  From a diary post on mgoblog by user “rastafari”: I sat with Bill Martin at lunch today. He said that he tried to get Minnesota (as a non-conference game) for the opener in 2010 but they declined. Aside from that he said it will be a BCS school but still yet unknown. Not that a guy named rastafari isn’t a rock of journalistic credibility, but I sought out verification from a slightly more reliable source.   I contacted Minnesota athletic director Joel Maturi and he was (very) kind to speak to me about it: MVictors: Recently word came out that the possibility of a game in 2010 in Ann Arbor was discussed between Minnesota and Michigan officials. Maturi: In the renovated Big House. MVictors: Yes. Did that come up? Maturi: Yes it did. MVictors: Were you interested? Maturi: There are different kinds of scheduling. When you’re Minnesota and you’re trying to improve your program and to be successful, I’m really thankful to coach Brewster for his willingness to play a tougher schedule.  Saying that, we had already scheduled Southern Cal for next year [2010].  I’m not a real brilliant…

Andy Mignery was in studio down at WTKA with Ben Holden and his installment of ‘The Big Show’.    The former M QB/TE was in to promote the Michigan From the Heart golf outing, which supports the efforts of U-M Athletes and their visits to Mott Children’s hospital. The outing is Monday, June 22nd at the Polo Fields GC at noon. They are looking for donors, sponsors, players, or just folks in for dinner.  More info, ask for Dick Lundy at 734-426-1155 or check out their website here.  [Ed: Hey, that conflicts with the MVictors JDRF Fore the Kids outing!  Choose wisely.] Here’s the audio of the portions where Mignery discussed his takes on the football team: [display_podcast] Notes: “You will see a different football team out there” this fall. “We removed a lot of diseases off this team” (through graduation, or being kicked off or those who left. The offensive line has taken “a complete 180.” Mignery thinks we’ll see Nick Sheridan start the first couple games, then Tate Forcier will be inserted. “They’ll put that kid [Forcier] in a position to win.” Mignery feels the biggest game is Notre Dame Sept. 12—mostly because of the test that it will be for Forcier. Said defensive coordinator hasn’t “lost any of his fire.”

“Too Tough”.  Words from the great Glenn E. ‘Bo’ Schembechler, when reviewed the 1997 season schedule that featured games against Colorado, Notre Dame, Iowa, Michigan State, Penn State, Wisconsin and of course Ohio State. As you can guess, this edition of eBay Watch is inspired by the 1997 slate of game and the auction of a pocket schedule for that season currently up for auction: The seller is asking for a minimum bid of $14.99 for this little beauty.  I’d say that’s a little much for a former freebie but we’ll see. If you don’t know how the 1997 season ended up, you probably wouldn’t be reading this site but it looks a little something like this.  So instead of looking back to the end of the season, I’m going to look back to the 1997 preseason. A friend of mine [thanks DH] sent me a copy of The Wolverine 1997 football preview issue, which of course took a look ahead at the upcoming tilt.   The editors wisely chose Mr. Woodson for the cover, with the headline ‘DOUBLE TROUBLE’.  I was a subscriber back then and I remember getting this issue. As mentioned one of the hot topics was the schedule itself.  In the season prior, the opponents on the ‘97 schedule went 83-47, the second-highest opponent winning percentage coming…

A handful of readers know I’m doing a deep dive researching the Little Brown Jug, stemming from some work I did on the fascinating 1909 season for Brian Cook’s upcoming Hail To the Victors 2009.   There will be much more on this in days to come, but the bottom line is that I found peculiar quotes about the origins of the Jug rivalry after the ‘09 Minnesota game and it left me curious.  I decided I wanted to know everything there is to know about the rivalry and the jug itself. I’ve interviewed a bunch of folks, including Ryan Forrey, master potter at The Henry Ford Museum/Greenfield Village.  He’s an expert in pottery from this era and he provided some incredible insight into this piece of pottery. The athletic department was kind enough to invite us to inspect the jug first hand; here’s Forrey getting a good look: I’ve learned quite a bit and I can tell you that many elements in the official Michigan and Minnesota accounts of the jug history are either misleading or in a few instances, just wrong. Again, much more to come.

An excellent piece from John U. Bacon recently and as usual, he’s kind enough to provide the audio as well: [display_podcast]

I guess I’m rooting for LeBron James and the Cavs, probably because they are more interesting to me than the Magic.  The end of last night’s game was wonderful drama, something we’ll see for years to come. But—after Hedo Turkoglu’s beautiful drive and floater that put the Magic up two with one second to go, the Cavs called timeout.  As NBA rules allow and have allowed for years, the Cavs got to throw the ball in a the opposite hash—nearly three quarters up court. I’m not naive to the rationale, but how does that not cross the line of anyone’s sense of fair play?   In what other sport can a team advance the possession three quarters of the playing field by merely calling a time-out?  It’s silly, ridiculous, and unfair.   It’s not in the spirit of the rules of any organized sport I know and it’s wrong.

The latest joint from the great WolverineHistorian, to brighten your Memorial Day weekend: