Here’s a pic currently for sale from the turn of the last century at the inaugural Rose Bowl and more specifically, from the actual “Floral” Parade prior to the game. Funny, it looks like Willie Heston and crew are decked in their game uniforms and presumably taking the wagon directly from the parade route to the game!:
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Don Canham’s Gift
Prior to the Purdue game I sat in for a segment on WOMC’s Tailgate Show. Just before I went on the air, host Lucy Ann Lance summoned over Peg Canham, widow of legendary Michigan athletic director Don Canham. Mrs. Canham was wearing a stunning necklace and it caught my eye. Lance knew a bit about it and mentioned that it was a gift from the former AD, made from an old Wolverine football championship ring. I wanted to know a little more, so I connected with Mrs. Canham afterward and she was kind enough to send along a photo: I knew there was something very familiar about her necklace, and it didn’t take long to figure out why. I’ve featured a few Michigan championship rings on eBay Watch over the years including this one from 1977: Along with the photo, Mrs. Canham was kind enough to share a few memories about the ring. “He surprised me with the necklace for Christmas shortly after we were married in 1995,” she told me. “As I’m sure you can figure Don had a jewelry box full of rings but this one was always my favorite because it is the Michigan Stadium, and he knew it.” She also noted that in the famous photo of Don Canham at his desk (the same one you…
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What’s the Frequency? 104.3 WOMC, 10am Saturday
Yo! I’ll be on joining “The Michigan Football Network Tailgate Show With Lucy Ann Lance, Dean Erskine, and Doug Karsch” at 10AM EST on Saturday for a segment or two. For those in Ann Arbor, tune yourselves to 104.3 WOMC or those out of town listen live here. They broadcast in that yellow tent just off Stadium Blvd outside Crisler so come by to check it out. I’ll be signing jugs afterward. Replica Little Brown Jugs, that is.
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Stubs from Michigan football games
A big-volume seller on the auction site is dumping a bunch of vintage Michigan football ticket stubs. The offering is pretty impressive. What’s not impressive is the seller’s understanding of the significance of some of these items. Witness the (YAWN) description of the ho-hum silly little ticket stub from the insignificant 1969 Michigan-Ohio State game, you might have heard of it: Up for auction is a November 22nd 1969 ticket stub from the college football game that featured Ohio State University vs the University of Michigan. The ticket stub measures 2 1/4″ by 4″ and is in nice overall condition, as pictured. Yep, that’s when the game was played. Fortunately for these fools, the most significant game in the Michigan modern era won’t escape the eye of Michigan memorabilia hawks and it’ll fetch a nifty price, despite the poor marketing. Here’s an image of the stub, probably not in the best condition but nobody stuck their stubs in lanyards back then: 1969 OSU-Michigan Stub Here’s a few more of what’s for sale, you can click the image to view the full auction: 1937 MSU-Michigan Stub, full auction 1929 OSU-Michigan Stub, full auction 1927 Navy-Michigan Stub, full auction 1930 Minnesota-Michigan Stub, full auction
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50th Anniversary: The Two Point Conversion
I found this article on the prolific York Daily Record website pointing out that we’re upon the 50th anniversary of the two point conversion in college football. It’s a great read, definitely check it out. So why is this on MVictors? Look who pushed for the rule change: Among those on the committee who liked the idea and were part of the unanimous approval were Oklahoma coach Bud Wilkinson and former Alabama and Duke coach Wallace Wade. But the leading proponent was Michigan coach Fritz Crisler. He said after the rules committee meeting that the two-point play “will add drama to what has been the dullest, most stupid play in the game.” Once the rule kicked in the following season teams went two-point crazy until they came to their senses, perhaps with the help of an egghead in the math department: In 1958, teams quickly became infatuated with the opportunity to score more points. That season, there were more two-point conversation attempts than extra-point kicking tries. In 578 games that season, teams went for two 1,371 times, converting 613 for 44.7 percent, and attempted 1,295 kicking extra points. The fad faded as the math evidence piled up. Over the long haul, the one-pointer was a better bet than the two , and by 1965, college football was down to 331…
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Scouting the Iowa Hawkeyes (2006)
A couple of weeks ago on eBay, a seller offered up what was described to be a folder belonging to a Michigan coach. The photos were blurry, but the description claimed it belonged to someone on the Wolverine staff and held diagrams, notes, plays, and whatnot related to the game against the Iowa Hawkeyes held October 21, 2006 in Ann Arbor. Michigan won the game 20-6 thanks to a solid defensive effort and a strong game from Henne and Hart. If you read Brian Cook’s Hail to the Victors 2008 before the season, you got a little insight into the Carr coaching staff with the wonderful article titled ‘Rock Star’ by author Craig Ross. Ross wiggled his way into a quarterbacks’ meeting led by former QB coach Scot Loeffler, here’s a snippet: Loeffler: “What are the boys doing to us? Chad Hen-ne. (It eventually becomes clear that “the boys” means “the defense.”)Henne: “They are skying us and we are in chili with a dino.”Loeffler: “Rock Star!!!!” Ross later described his head as all this was happening: My head was spinning. I was trying to write notes as quickly as I could and still pay some attention, trying to learn something from what was going on. I was lost. It was hopeless. It felt a bit, perhaps exactly, like Ross after…
