Last week I talked about finding the “bottom”, that is, the end of the spiral of crappy things happening to this football team. I don’t know if we’re there, but out there before the game Saturday you felt a weight was lifted and the mood was actually a bit festive.
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Getting Wild About Harrys | 1930 #TWIMFbH
For tomorrow’s evening affair, a trip back to 1930, a season that started with a double-header(!) in front of only 13,000 fans but was notable nonetheless. In that year coach Harry Kipke got things working and started a string of 4 consecutive conference crowns. October 11, 1930 was week 3 when his Wolverines faced defending league champ Purdue. This game also marked the debut start of would-be superstar quarterback Harry Newman. Check it out: [display_podcast] You can catch all of the This Week in Michigan Football History clips here…And don’t forget to catch it live Saturday on the KeyBank Countdown to kick-off on WTKA 1050AM or inside the Bud Light Victors Lounge starting at 3pm. Follow MVictors on Twitter
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Augie’s Glorious Return..and Old 98’s Righteous Coupe
Via my Google keyword spybot sentinels…from the Escanaba Daily News (naturally!), check out this piece on 92 year-old alum August Altese (inset left). Augie played on the freshman team in 1940 and suited up once more for the Victors Classic prior the Spring Game a few weeks ago. A few choice cuts from the story: On taking the field: ‘“I didn’t have my hearing aids in and they just pushed me out there,” Altese said. “I was so pleased to see that everyone was clapping. They assigned me the last five minutes and I just kind of ran this way and that. They didn’t throw anything to me, but when I was warming up they threw me three passes. I missed the first two, caught the third one and fell, and I still feel it.”’ On Billy Taylor: ‘”He was a great runner for Michigan, but he boozed it up and got into drugs after graduation,” Altese said. “Now he’s running an establishment that helps people. He’s a great guy.”’ and check this out, on Tom Harmon’s sponsored-sled(!!): ‘“As a freshman at Michigan in 1940, Altese didn’t get much playing time, and though he was on the same team as legendary Michigan quarterback Tom Harmon, he said he never met him. [Ed. The author didn’t know or point out that…
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Wire Photo Wednesday | Fritz Watches Harry Wrestle
Good Wednesday to you, friends. WPW leads off with a classic shot of the B1G football coaches meeting prior to the 1931 season (see above). This photo, from the Big Ten meetings prior to the 1931 season, is probably worth its $44 auction price. On the floor you’ve got M headman Harry Kipke with Purdue coach (and former player under Rockne) Noble Kizer demonstrating life in the trenches. Minnesota’s Fritz Crisler, who would replace Kipke later that decade, watches from the back. Amongst the men seated is Illinois legend Bob Zuppke sitting next to the one & only Amos Alonzo Stagg. Great shot. Dress code in ‘31? White shirt, tie, Brylcreem in the hair (except for Stagg). I don’t know when wire photos started to be distributed to newspapers, but this has to be a fairly early one (from 1926) featuring the great Michigan quarterback and NFL HOF’er Benny Friedman. The seller claims it is an original and wants a mere $30. If it’s truly the original it’s worth over $100 easy IMO.
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TWIMFbH: Relief from The Crash (1929)
For Saturday’s WTKA pregame show, we step back to the first game after the stock market crash of 1929. It was a biggie and yielded this iconic program cover:Despite the financial mess just days earlier, 87,000 fans packed the big to witness the heavyweight clash. While Yost had established Michigan as a national power long ago, the Wolverines had, up to this point, failed to beat or even score on Harvard in their four previous meetings dating back to the 1880s. That changed on this day in Michigan Football History 84 years ago on Saturday: Here’s the clip: [display_podcast] You can catch all of the This Week in Michigan Football History clips here….sponsored in 2013 by Ziebart of Yspilanti. And don’t forget to catch it live Saturday on the KeyBank Countdown to kick-off on WTKA 1050AM or inside the Victors Lounge.
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80 Years Today…The Real Jug Returns!
Many of you know the story—For those who don’t read on. For those who do, skip to the bottom for a little Jug update. PANIC(!) erupted in mid-September 1931. The coveted Little Brown Jug, the symbol of the Michigan-Minnesota rivalry, vanished from the U-M Administration building. A frantic search ensued sending media relations man Phil Pack (think of a vintage Bruce Madej) all over town chasing leads. Based on a tip Pack even searched a few cider mills..but those visits proved fruitless. /wink Then, on November 19, 1931, the very same week of the Minnesota game that season, a car pulled up to the Tuomy Hills gas station (now the Bearclaw Coffee at the corner of Washtenaw and Stadium) with four men wearing “dark goggles.” One of the disguised passengers rolled out a jug onto the pavement & it was scooped up by gas station attendant K.D. Smith. While initial reports were skeptical of the authenticity of the crock, which was said to have been “freshly painted”, Fielding H. Yost himself inspected it and said it was indeed the real McCoy. A local sports writer said Yost was full of it, calling it “a clever imitation.” Michigan retained the jug in 1931 but then headed back to Minneapolis in 1932. Yost went along on the trip (Harry Kipke coached the…
