The crew and UMGoBlog interviewed me prior to the season, asking for a few of my favorites memories. You can check out what I came up with here. A snapshot: 2008 Spring game at Saline (really) 1990 and 2003 Ohio State games Getting to know the Little Brown Jug 2004 Michigan-Michigan State game The 1998 Rose Bowl experience including Morris Day, JMJ, Run DMC, and Chuck Wood. Here’s the full post.
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Forgot to Register
From my inbox, thought I’d pass this along. Greg Kinney, the great curator at the wonderful U-M Bentley Historical Library forward this cartoon last week and I love it. It was stored in one of the athletic department scrapbooks: The gent on the left is disgraced Michigan football player James Joy Miller, who was dismissed after the 1909 season for failing to properly register and attend classes. The scandal made it all the way over to the New York Times and Michigan ended up apologizing to each of the teams they faced that year. Cook is explorer Frederick Cook, who reached or (claimed to reach) the North Pole in 1908, months ahead of the guy credited with it – Robert Peary. At one point he promised to the King of Denmark that he would submit all the detail of his reports and findings to the University of Copenhagen. He submitted a report, but not all of the detail the school was expecting and this happened: In late November, drawing on his diary, he completed his promised report to the University of Copenhagen. (He chose not to send his diary to Denmark for fear of losing it.) In December, the university—whose experts had been expecting original records—announced that Cook’s claim was “not proven.” Many U.S. newspapers and readers took that finding…
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Sam McGuffie Update
photo: riceowls.com You’ll recall Sam McGuffie transferred to Rice, sat out last season but now he’s in action for the 1-5 Owls. He their leading rusher (399 net yds or 57/game, two TDs) including 309 in the last four games, and the Owls’ top receiver (28 catches for 254 yards, one TD). The stats sheet also lists him with 10 punt return yards on zero attempts which is pretty damn cool. (Add that phantom punt return to the mix tape.) While he sat out football last year he immediately joined the 2009 Rice track team & did work: From the photo above, looks like he’s also offering free admission to the ladies for his one man gun show. And I’m sure he’s still logging onto his favorite defunct website. Follow MVictors on Twitter
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Bo Rolls into Berlin (Navy 1976)
Here’s a program to the 1976 Navy game: A selection of a few other Navy-Michigan programs from the U-M Bentley Library program database: On Saturday from noon-3 WTKA 1050AM (and I assume WTKA.com) will be replaying the original Bob Ufer radio broadcast of the 1976 Navy game. If you’re cleaning out the garage or mowing the lawn I suggest you tune in. Old ‘Ufe practically wore out the scoring horn in this one, as #1 ranked Michigan put up 70 points on the Midshipmen, the most since 1905, and it’s a radio call to remember. Incredibly Bo’s Wolverines actually trailed with just over a minute to go in the first half before taking the lead. In a span just over 5 minutes in the third quarter sophomore QB Ricky Leach accounted for four touchdowns, two on the ground and two in the air, and shortly thereafter Ufer nearly keeled over with excitement as he tended to do. Based on the WTKA promos, after the 70th point Ufer likens the feat to “rolling into Berlin”! A few props are in order here. First, Ira and crew at WTKA for continuing this tradition. Next, my pal and M history buff Steve Sapardanis of Guts ‘n Glue for recommending they reair this game. Finally, audio and video archivist Art Vuolo, Jr., [see…
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Iowa! (Pregame Photos)
Just a few on another wildly beautiful day in Ann Arbor—let’s hope it ends that way. From the field, center David Molk warming up. He looked fine, perhaps favoring his taped left ankle just a tad. [ed. I published these just before the game started and obviously jinxed Molk big time, my bad] Some of the pink accessories the players are wearing today. Also saw pink wrist bands and tape: Many recruits in for the game today. Here are two stand-outs from Fort Myers, FL, Sammy Watkins and Dallas Crawford: The alumni band in full effect on this Homecoming:
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Michigan to Open 2012 Season vs. Alabama at Cowboys Stadium
Full official press release, via U-M Media Relations. [Comment: What. A. Schedule. Oh crap let’s get better soon.] U-M to Open 2012 Season vs. Alabama at Cowboys Stadium DALLAS, Texas — The University of Michigan football team will face the University Alabama in the 2012 College Football Kick-off Event at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on Sept. 1, 2012. The game will be televised nationally in primetime. “This is a great way to kickoff the 2012 season with two of the nation’s winningest college football programs,” said Athletic Director Dave Brandon. “We are excited about playing a regular season game in the state of Texas, a region of the country where we have traditionally recruited. Our goal is to get as many Michigan fans to the game as possible to witness this match-up of traditional powers.” The Wolverines will be the away team with the Crimson Tide designated the home team. The game officials will be a crew from the Big 12 Conference. This will be the fourth time that Michigan faces Alabama in school history, and the first contest played during the regular season by the two programs. All three previous games between the Wolverines and Crimson Tide were played in bowl games. Michigan defeated Alabama by a 28-24 score in the initial meeting, the 1988 Hall of Fame…
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Iron Skillet Lore
I think you know plenty about the Little Brown Jug, but if you need a refresher course head this way. A few tidbits from recent days: SMU and TCU battled for one of the college football traveling trophies last night, with Texas Christian taking home the hardware aluminum. Check out the origins and inspiration of this tradition: Ever wonder why SMU and TCU play for an iron skillet? The SMU sports information department has enlightened us: According to a Nov. 30, 1946, article in The Dallas Morning News, the "Battle of the Iron Skillet" was started to prevent "mutilation of school property" by rowdy fans. The previous year, more than $1,000 in damage had been done to both campuses. "The SMU student council proposed the skillet as a symbol of the rivalry and substitute for vandalism," says SMU Archivist Joan Gosnell. Gosnell says minutes from fall 1946 student council meetings provide more clues. On Oct. 1, the agenda includes: "Further set up idea of Little Brown Jug Trophy," referring to the Michigan-Minnesota football rivalry. On November 12, the committee arranging an SMU-TCU banquet and trophy "was reminded of their job." And on Nov. 19, a student reported that he had purchased the trophy — "an aluminum skillet." A motion was made that SMU and TCU would share the expense of…
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1933 Michigan National Champions Charm
A real doozy of an item showed up recently on eBay, described to be a pendant awarded to Michigan’s 1933 national championship team under coach Harry Kipke. Very cool: It appears to be in outstanding condition, made of 14K gold, and assigned to a quarterback named “W.W. Renner”. This appears to be originally the property of a William Renner who was on that ’33 squad and who wore #63: Renner is listed as “Art” on the 1933 team photo caption but as “William W.” on the official roster and in his later years, including when he was captain of the 1935 squad. I think the “Art” reference is an error as there was an Art Renner who played in the 1940s. I’ll let the Bentley know so they can check it out. I rarely use Wikipedia as a research source but the entry on Renner has some excellent detail, including this nugget about the Youngtown, OH native’s exploits against the Buckeyes during that 1933 championship year: In the 1933 Michigan-Ohio State game, played before the largest crowd to see a Big Ten Conference football game to that date, Renner came into the game at the end of the first half and ran the ball for a game-winning touchdown. An Associated Press story described Renner’s impact in the scoring drive against…
