On this day in 1979…still gives me the chills. Via the great WolverineHistorian: While it was somewhat of a self-fulfilling prophecy I suppose, I love that in all the madness Ufer recognized that play in the context of Michigan football history when he offers that it will be remembered for another 100 years (’79 of course was the 100th anniversary of the program). We can safely say that’s true of course, looking back 35 years later and it’s probably more to do with Ufer’s call than the play itself. Follow MVictors on Twitter More on Bob Ufer
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Ufer Returns Saturday!
God bless your maize and blue fedora-covered ears, old Ufe returns Saturday! Continuing an awesome tradition, starting at 9am Saturday WTKA 1050AM will air another game from the Bob Ufer radio archives, this time the battle between the #11 ranked Michigan men and #16-ranked Michigan State at Spartan Stadium played on October 6, 1979. A huge thanks to the great Dr. Sap, a few clips from the game for you: So after weeks of ignoring those important in your life, tune in while you are making good with your spouse, friends, family or putting rake to leaf in the yard. Go Blue! Stats, as you can see Braylon’s old man carried the load. [more stats here] More on Bob Ufer here. Follow MVictors on Twitter there.
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Ufer’s Brazilian Soccer Buddy (1978 audio) | Storytime with Sap
[Ed. Via the extensive archives possessed by Steve “Dr. Sap” Sapardanis, a timely piece as we begin the 2014 World Cup..proving once again that you can tie Michigan football history back to anything.] Guest post by Steve Sapardanis In 1978, Bob Ufer had some hilarious stories along with a few “friends” he would often refer to during his radio broadcasts to further emphasize how great Michigan was doing and how the stars were aligning to match U-M’s football hopes and dreams that season. When Michigan travelled to South Bend to face Note Dame for the first time in 35 years, Ufer was ready. He had talked about this game for years and couldn’t wait for kickoff. Irish fans, still feeling the highs of their 1977 national championship, claimed that “God made the Irish #1.” Ufe had other ideas. As the seconds winded down in U-M’s epic 28-14 victory in South Bend, Ufer went on about how actor George Burns, who portrayed The Almighty in the movie, “Oh, God!” was seen leaving the ND sideline to walk over to shake Bo’s hand. Burns really wasn’t there of course, but the metaphor had already been cast – everybody loves a winner, even the gentleman upstairs! Then there was this. After the game Ufer proved that Michigan fandom extended all the way to…
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Dr. Sap Discusses…the Bo Brackets (WTKA audio 4-18)
A close-up on the watch Bo is wearing on the Schembechler Statue – hmm, 1981 Rose Bowl! Note it also reads 1pm – Bo’s favorite time to start a game — (MVictors photo) Bo’s headset – with the Dymo tape and all– (MVictors photo) If you missed it, we had some great radio this morning on WTKA 1050AM as Ira and Sam were joined in studio by MVictors’ own Steve “Dr. Sap” Sapardanis to discuss his recent Bo Brackets series. The discussion of Bo’s greatest teams wasn’t left to those in studio alone, as Ira took calls from longtime coach Jerry Hanlon and legends Don Dufek, Stan Edwards and Ali Haji-Sheikh. Check out all of the Bo Brackets posts here: Background Results: Schembechler 16 Elite 8 Final Four Title Game Here are three clips from the show with a little on each: Clip #1: The Bo Bracket is introduced, Sap explains the origins and the initial seedings. 1980 kicker Ali Haji-Sheikh joins about 10 minutes in, and shares a quote from Bo himself what he considered his best team. Clip #2: Leading off with a Bob Ufer clip, they get deeper into the Brackets and coach Jerry Hanlon joins in (5 mins in) and then Stan Edwards (10 minutes in). Edwards tells Hanlon, “…you know damn well..” that 1980 team…
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Going Down Bloody-Nose-Lane With Bob Ufer (1965) | Storytime with Dr. Sap
[Ed. Did you know the great Bob Ufer called the occasional hoops game? Believe it. Here’s Sap breaking down a recording from the 1965 IU game with Ufe on the mic. P.S. If Ufe were alive today I bet he’d have a few choice words for Crean! #DONG] A guest post by Steve “Dr. Sap” Sapardanis With Michigan winning their first outright B1G Basketball Championship in 28 years, I thought it would be appropriate to look back on the 1965 Michigan – Indiana Basketball game. Not because UM will be playing IU this weekend, but because Bob Ufer was doing the play-by-play radio on WPAG (the predecessor to your beloved WTKA 1050AM). Back in 1965 Michigan, led by the great Cazzie Russell, also won the B1G title and was ranked #2 in the country behind some school out west (UCLA). But the real story here is Ufer. A few years ago, Ufer.org came out with a CD that had the first half of the UM-IU Hoops game and it is priceless. To hear Ufer call a basketball game in much the same fashion that he called a football game is pure joy. Here’s a breakdown of a few selected tracks: [display_podcast] Track #1: Here you’ve got Ufe calling the opening tip of the game. Track #2: If you listen closely…
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Passing the Broadcast Torch to Frankie
Ricky and Franky Saturday will be the home finale for many folks involved with Michigan football: the departing seniors of course, legendary equipment manager Jon Falk and longtime broadcaster Frank Beckmann (and yes, many longtime fans based on the recent tweets). Much has been said about about Falk but notsomuch about Frank. I think he’s done a great job broadcasting and he’s had some legendary calls. Following Bob Ufer behind the mic is beyond impossible and I tip my maize and blue fedora to Beckmann. So check this out. Thanks to the Art Vuolo and Dr. Sap archives here are a few clips from the radio broadcast of the 1981 Notre Dame game in Ann Arbor, Beckmann’s first season calling games. Ufer was ailing in ‘81 and Beckmann stepped in to call the opener against Wisconsin, a stunner where Bo’s #1-ranked crew fell to the Badgers. The Irish took over the top-ranking the following week and came to Ann Arbor to face the wounded blue. A few months back Sap told me that this game contained moments of Frank and Ufe on air together and I thought it’d be cool to share a few heading into the finale. Running down the clips: Clip #1. The transition from pregame to kickoff, as Ufer hands the broadcast over to “Frankie” Beckmann, but…