With current odds on Harbaugh to Michigan lingering between 99% and 105%, time to repost this sharp take from yrs truly back in 2007: Hey at least I backed off a billion, man. Bo on Coach HarbaughThat was post was in 2007, after Harbaugh took over at Stanford and a few months after his comments about his academic experience at Michigan that resulted in some unfriendly fire between he, Mike Hart, and Lloyd Carr. That’s probably one of those things people around here like to say wouldn’t have happened had Bo still been around, and that’s tough to argue. Speaking of Bo, on the eve of the 100th game between Ohio State and U-M in 2003 he was asked about the idea of Harbaugh’s coaching future. Harbs was apparently discussed for an opening at Eastern Michigan and here are Bo’s comments via mgoblue.com:
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Bo’s $.02
Via the Dr. Sap Archives!
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A Retroverted Michigan Block M (1920)
At glance, the design on this vintage Michigan fob/pendant seem too out of ordinary. On its face you’ve got a thick maize Block M, flanked by blue enamel sitting above the U-M seal:
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Cousin Harbs in Mom Jeans
Yikes. This late (I mean a show-on-life-support late) episode of Saved By the Bell featured a guest appearance by the dude you can’t stop talking about: H/T: Buddy at Stunt3
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Origins of “Michigan Man”
The term Michigan Man hasn’t been this hot since Bo dropped his epic blast at outgoing coach Bill Frieder. We know the use of the term goes way back, certainly before Bo used it so famously. Heck, we know that Bo dropped this on Mark Messner during a last-ditch recruiting trip in the mid-1980s: Bo walks over, just hands me a tape and says [Messner in perfect Bo voice]: “You’re a Michigan man and you belong at Michigan.” And got back in the car. I don’t know if there will ever be a true “source” of Michigan Man because as I understand it, it’s piggybacking on the concept of the ‘Harvard Man’, which I believe was simply extracted from England and the ‘Oxford Man’ or ‘Cambridge Man’, for instance. The Great Gatsby, chapter 7: “And you found he was an Oxford man,” said Jordan helpfully.“An Oxford man!” He was incredulous. “Like hell he is! He wears a pink suit.”“Nevertheless he’s an Oxford man.”“Oxford, New Mexico,” snorted Tom contemptuously, “or something like that.” Anyway, I did a quick search to find the phrase and nabbed a century-plus old source of it being used in the context of a U-M grad in a coaching position. Vanderbilt was coached by a former M player, assistant and Yost’s brother-in-law Dan McGugin. Frank “Shorty” Longman…
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Worshipping the Varsity Man
Check out the latest edition of Michigan Today for James Tobin’s piece on the Yost’s fight to build Michigan Stadium. It narrows in on a few folks that represented the opposition to not only the new stadium but the culture of football itself during the period. We’re talking the mid-1920s during the first major football arms race (when giant stadiums were popping up all over the place), and some struggled with the newfound popularity (and off-field revelry) that followed the growth of the sport. A few choice quotes – starting with Robert C. Angell, one of the leaders of the opposition: As for the players themselves, Angell said, only a few did more in class than maintain their eligibility. Nearly all their time and energy went to the sport. “Their diplomas cover a multitude of intellectual sins.” But the athletes were only “a few drops in the bucket of university life.” What harm could football possibly do to the thousands of other students who simply showed up to cheer? Well, said Angell, every autumn, football became a kind of addiction for students, “many but mildly, some seriously.” The sport seized “a monopoly of undergraduate conversation… A scientific theory or a piece of fine poetry has not a chance to squeeze in edgewise. “Around the dinner table, in one another’s rooms,…
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Taming Biff and Bennie
Partnering with Shashi Mara and MaraWatch was such a natural fit for me because that’s really what Shashi has been doing with his line of M luxury watches err, timepieces [when they are that nice you call them timepieces]. Over at Zingerman’s Coffee House earlier this year Mara tipped me off that he was extending out his catalog to add new products. Please welcome Biff and Bennie, new epic cufflinks as part of his collection: Fine-tuned M historians know that Biff and Bennie were the names of the living mascots that Yost brought to Ann Arbor in the 1920s, and the nasty duo was an attraction during the 1927 Michigan Stadium dedication against Ohio State. Check out more here, including the design process that pushes 3D printing technology to maize and blue glory. Want? Go to www.marawatch.com/collection to see the sets Writing Instruments (not mere pens!)Another addition to the collection are these premium devices – available for delivery immediately, order directly via phone (734) 436-8138. According to Shashi, there are fewer than a dozen available in each style (silver/gold), with the classic Point-A-Minute era gridiron design: Well done Shashi, keep it coming.
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Dr. Sap’s Decals | Leaving the Snake Pit and 2014 Behind
Steve “Dr. Sap” Sapardanis bids adieu to a painful 2014 with a final offering of decals to a handful of seniors. But before that, did you catch ESPN’s GameDay on Saturday? It included a nice piece on the rivalry and the Michigan banner, including a short clip of the Buckeyes tearing down the coveted slice of canvas in ‘73 synchronized with Bob Ufer’s epic audio description of that dastardly deed. Guess who put that together and shipped it off to ESPN? That’s right..Dr. Sap himself! Here’s a low res version of the full clip Sap provided to our friends in Bristol: Those painful dekes: OFFENSIVE CHAMPION DEVIN GARDNER? – We watched a gutty and gutting end to New 98’s career on Saturday. In between the first pass/interception of the game and the fumble that gave OSU the clinching score, Gardner played his heart out and did all he could to help UM win. Problem is, he also helped OSU win. Take away those free 14 points and we have an even ballgame. I don’t want to remember Gardner for his interception and fumble. I want to remember him for his courage for keeping UM in the game. I want to remember him for his compassion when he went over and consoled J.T. Barrett when he broke his ankle. Instead, I…
