Thanksgiving football!? Forget about the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys. Like football in general, it all started in the college game and your beloved Wolverines had a big hand in this tradition.
-
-
Inspiring ‘The Victors’ (1898) – This Week in Michigan Football History
While rarely discussed these days, the Chicago game in 1898 is without a doubt one of the most memorable match-ups in Wolverine lore. It also had the most far-reaching impact as it was this win that inspired 'The Victors'. Today our undisputed rival is clearly the Buckeyes. But back in 1898 it was was AA Stagg and his Chicago Maroons.
-
The Righteous Red Ribbon (Michigan vs. Chicago 1898)
Spotted this on eBay and had to pass it along: it’s what appears to be an official’s ribbon to the epic Michigan-Chicago game of 1898, the game that inspired U-M student Louis Elbel to compose The Victors (see above). Bidding is justifiably up over $400 right now – get some. While we’re on the topic of the famous 12-11 victory, a resurrected postscript: Michigan was undoubtedly the Champions of the West in 1898, but looking back do our beloved Wolverines have a claim to the national championship that season? It seems silly discussing this so many decades years later but there is a recent precedent for such action. In 2004 Southern Cal looked back at its history and claimed the 1939 national championship. And in August of 2012, our Little Brown Jug-toting buddies Minnesota announced that it claimed a share of the 1904 national championship. While Harvard and Princeton each take credit for the 1898 crown based on different measurements – Does Michigan, who went undefeated and outscored opponents 205 to 26, have an argument to join them?
