Could Bo reload? That was the question before the 1972 season after losing 4 All-Americans. I’ll give you the answer now: Damn right Bo could reload! But there were a few nervous folks in these parts as we kicked off Bo’s fourth season at the helm. Adding to the anxiety was the prospect of opening the season with a conference game, as the Northwestern Wildcats strolled into town. A few notes: I’m not sure how the passing of Harry Kipke was treated in Ann Arbor. He won a national championship as a player and coach (twice), but his coaching regime ended in a shambles amidst scandal in the late 1930s, opening the door for Fritz Crisler. That’s why his name is on a service drive in the Michigan Stadium parking lot. Speaking of the reception, I wonder if Michigan fans in 1972 had any emotions about having a black quarterback take the reins – did anyone care? I was too young, but I remember the buzz around guys like the Redskins’ Doug Williams and all that. And speaking of breaking barriers, this game marked the first gender-integrated Michigan Marching Band. I did not know that there were no female musicians marching back in the day. Check out James Tobin’s fine piece in Michigan Today for more on this…
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Bearcat Scare Champions | Dr. Sap’s Decals
Steve “Dr. Sap” Sapardanis is a Schembechler-era savant and once again this season he’ll be diligently handing out his postgame helmet stickers after each game. Sap has pored over hours and hours of U-M games over several decades, and in these posts he’s able to tie the present to the past. I encourage you to subscribe to Dr. Sap on YouTube, or follow Sap on Twitter: OFFENSIVE CHAMPION – For the second week in a row, Ty Isaac seemed to give the offense the spark and, more importantly, the consistency it needed to win this game. When the offense sputtered, Isaac seemed to relish the role of carrying the rock. I thought he was finally going to take one to the house in the 4th quarter, but his long run set Michigan up for another score to essentially put the game out of reach. Solid, steady, turnover-free, production from the running back spot is something that Isaac seems to have mastered so far this year. Hopefully he can continue to deliver that kind of play throughout the rest of the season. DEFENSIVE CHAMPION – Tyree Kinnel not only had the pick-six that appeared to (at the time) ice this game early in the 1st quarter, he also had a sack and led the team with 9 tackles. Getting good, smart,…
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The GOAT? Willie Heston #TWIMFbH
I mentioned last week that in the month of September, we don’t often get to travel too far back in time in history because, well, no one used to play football in September. We got a break this time because September 9th happens to be the date of birth and the date of passing of the iconic Point-A-Minute back Willie Heston, arguably the finest ever to suit up for the maize and blue. A couple of notes here: While the NCAA gives Heston 72 touchdowns, John Kryk pored over the records and box scores and says it’s between 69 and 71 – depending on how you interpret the records of two games (Wisconsin in 1902 and American Medical in 1904. No one had really come close until Jim Thorpe suited up in the 1920s. He averaged nearly 2 TDs a game, and no one touched that until Marshall Faulk in the early 1990s. Is he the best Michigan player ever? It’s so hard to compare eras but he’s probably right alongside Tom Harmon for me. Regarding Heston’s lengthy college career, starting San Jose State and and then still having Michigan eligibility. Back then the transfer eligibility rules were looser but in a nutshell, you were allowed to transfer from smaller schools and start over at larger schools. No,…
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Gator Champions | Dr. Sap’s Decals
Yes! Steve “Dr. Sap” Sapardanis is a Schembechler-era savant and once again this season he’ll be diligently handing out his postgame helmet stickers after each game. Lots of folks hand out postgame awards but Sap is different. He’s pored over hours and hours of U-M games over several decades, and in these posts he’s able to tie the present to the past. I encourage you to subscribe to Dr. Sap on YouTube, or follow Sap on Twitter: OFFENSIVE CHAMPION – For those of you who were panicking midway through the 2nd quarter, yours truly included, I harkened back to some sage old advice that Bo Schembechler used to always mention when the going got tough: “It’s time to get back to basics, and play Michigan Football.” How does that happen? You run the football. Ty Isaac did just that against Florida. Not only did he gain 114 yards, but his clutch runs on 3rd down kept drives alive and that seemed to be the spark Michigan needed to get their mojo back. The runs and play-calling were very reminiscent of what Bo & Jerry Hanlon would call on 3rd & long back in the day – draw plays – and Isaac delivered clutch 1st downs when they were desperately needed. DEFENSIVE CHAMPION – There have been some great linebackers…
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Into a Frenzy and Into Meechigan Football’s Val Halla (1995) – TWIMFbH
You thought you could get rid of this? No way man! It’s back –> This Week in Michigan Football History returns for Season VIII with WTKA 1050AM The Ticket’s own Ira Weintraub on the 1s and 2s. To open the 2017 season, we tip toe back 22 years to 1995. A few things here: As usual with the start of the season, it’s tough to go too far back because heck, Michigan didn’t even start the season until October back in the day. So we’ll delve a little deeper as the season progresses, unless I can pull a rabbit out of my hat like I’ll do for September 9th. Second, on Illinois. I noted in this clip that our friends from Champaign can’t stand us – why is that? Anyone? Finally note that #TWIMFbH has a sponsor this year – Hillside Terrace of Ann Arbor. Go live there! Clip: [display_podcast] TWIMFbH can heard on the Keybank Countdown to Kickoff which starts 4 hours prior to kickoff on 1050AM in Ann Arbor on on wtka.com around the world. It’s a must listen if you have the means – Sam, Steve and Ira never disappoint. You can hear the archive of This Week in Michigan Football History clips here. If you have suggestions for future games hit me…
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Maize Helmets (1927) & The Canary Disaster (1928)
Given the buzz around the prospect of your beloved Wolverines opening the season in a maize alternate uniform, you should know it’s not the first time. Readers of this site are aware of the canary disaster of 1928, but here’s a refresher: I first read about all this thanks a tip from Bruce Madej, the legendary U-M SID, who reviewed the Uniform Timeline sent over a ditty from his book, Champions of the West. Within a section of the book talking about Fritz Crisler and the launch of the winged helmet at Michigan in 1938, it gets into a little uniform history— including this spicy meatball: The only change in the typical blue uniforms before 1949 came in 1928. As Michigan planned to play Navy in Baltimore, the Midshipmen refused to wear any other color than their traditional blue. Therefore, Michigan came out in bright yellow jerseys with blue numerals. The team was said to look like canaries, and the uniforms were put away after the 6-6 tie. Here’s the description from the November 8, 1928 Michigan Daily: Fast forward to today, and we can see that Navy did indeed have a uniform that resembled the gear the Wolverines wore back in the 1920s. (But note, FWIW, I think that happened a lot back then). Anyway – Via eBay, here’s…
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Bo’s Best Back – The Final Four
OK, Dr. Sap got us to this point now it’s up to you. Who was Bo’s Best Back? [listen to WTKA 1050AM @michiganinsider Friday 4/7 8am EDT for more] — MVictors (@MVictors) April 5, 2017 Here’s the bracket:
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Bo’s Best Back: Round 3
With the first two rounds in the books, it’s time to turn our attention to Round 3. This time, the criteria used for each pairing will be the best, or signature, run from each running back. When you think of these running backs, what play do you think of? Whose one play is better than the other’s? To make it easier for you and your memory banks, I went deep into the Dr. Sap Archives and captured what I feel is the best play/run for each of our remaining running backs. The links provided will give you a trip down memory lane for sure and bring us one step closer to determining Bo’s Best Back. Here are the brackets: ROUND 3 – BEST / SIGNATURE RUN 1970s BURTON REGION (#1) Rob Lytle vs. (#4) Russell Davis 1976 Rob Lytle 75-yard TD run vs. Michigan State 1976 Russell Davis 85-yard TD run vs. Stanford While Davis’s run was right up there with Tom Harmon’s record-setting jaunt against California in 1940, it did come against the Stanford backups. But should that matter? The run by Lytle is why he was dubbed the “Fremont Flash” by Bob Ufer. Another close one to call, but I gotta go with Lytle. That run against MSU served notice to everyone that Michigan and #41 were a…
