Cool story bro/ player ineraction thread
October 12th, 2014 at 11:23 AM ^
Cool formatting bro
October 12th, 2014 at 11:39 AM ^
Freshman year in South Quad, I lived next to Brent White. One of the best guys I have ever known in my life.
When U-M won the NCAA Championship in 1989, he was one of the first people I saw in the mob of people who ran out into the street following the epic win. He grabbed me to give me a bear hug and lifted me a few feet off the ground in the process. We were both drunk as hell, so it's a good thing he didn't toss me around like a rag doll.
Brent was from Dayton where my mom grew up. She found out Brent liked her zucchini bread so she would make him at least 3-4 loaves for each one I got. When I asked why he got more, she said "Because you're my son. There will always be plenty more. He plays football for Michigan!"
October 12th, 2014 at 4:15 PM ^
Cool mom bro.
October 12th, 2014 at 11:55 AM ^
Since I was planning to attend the Go Blue Bowl event, yesterday morning I was looking for something pocket-size I could possibly have signed by one of the players, should they oblige. I grabbed my UTL I ticket stub.
Imagine my excitement to meet Roy Roundtree there. Totally cool dude, really enjoyed talking with him, and of course he was kind enough to sign the stub. I told him I never have that kind of luck when it comes to this stuff and he chuckled.
Thank you for the opportunity, everyone. It was great to meet Marlin also and support his charity. I was also (almost) just as excited to chat with some of the MGoStaff, who were all very cool as well. It was nice meeting you all. Thank you all again, and thank you 'Tree.
(A very minor issue related to the recent "overthinking" of the Michigan brand and such ... Roy signed my ticket "#21" based on him wearing the Desmond legacy patch in his senior year. But he wore #12 at UTL 1. Not his fault at all, but it's one of those unintended consequences of the shortsighted Legends patch "strategy.")
Go Blue!
October 12th, 2014 at 4:35 PM ^
Glad you had a good time over there!
I wanted to head over so bad but a few of my friends I only see once a year showed up to my tailgate and I had to go into 'host mode'.
October 12th, 2014 at 7:57 PM ^
October 12th, 2014 at 12:10 PM ^
i was standing in front of Wendy's in 2007 and saw Mike Hart casually chilling with a few team players. I approached him star struck, shook his hand and told him "keep doing what you do bruh" trying to sound like I was all cool and chill.
Looking back on it makes me laugh
October 12th, 2014 at 12:38 PM ^
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October 12th, 2014 at 11:42 PM ^
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October 12th, 2014 at 12:39 PM ^
I was sitting in the last row of one of the huge Angell Hall auditoriums one day during (I think) the fall of 2006, reading MGoBlog instead of paying attention to lecture. For whatever reason, the story I was reading led off with a huge picture of Mike Hart. Suddenly, someone comes in late and sits down in the seat next to me. I look over, and it's Mike Hart. He looks at my screen, I gave him a sheepish grin, and promptly closed the browser window.
October 12th, 2014 at 12:47 PM ^
You left out a most important element - what was his response? Did he look at you like a potential stalker or did he just laugh?
October 12th, 2014 at 1:35 PM ^
Ryan Mallett, however, not so much.
October 12th, 2014 at 4:35 PM ^
Off topic but kind of on topic, and similar to yours. I was driving in downtown Chicago in my Alfa Romeo Graduate, the same car Dustin Hoffman drove in "The Graduate." As I pulled out into an intersection to turn left on to Michigan Ave, I waited for a pedestrian in the crosswalk. I felt like he was staring at me, so I looked at him and it was none other than Dustin Hoffman himself. He smiled at me, but probably really at the irony of the situation, and I smiled back. He finished crossing and I was on my way.
October 12th, 2014 at 4:43 PM ^
I know it's your car and all; so I'm really hoping that was a bad typo. The car in The Graduate was an Alfa Romeo Spider.
Also, I want your car.
October 12th, 2014 at 4:55 PM ^
I had a Graduate, which was the same exact car as the Spider except with cheaper accoutrements: a vinyl top instead of a rag top, vinyl seats and not leather. But the body, wheels and engine were the same. I think they probably came out with the Graduate as a PR move after the movie. Mine was also like 1989, whereas his was probably a 1967 or 1968 (can't remember exactly when the movie came out).
October 12th, 2014 at 12:41 PM ^
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October 12th, 2014 at 12:46 PM ^
Given his participation in last night's shadow liveblog I'm pretty sure it's just his avatar. I, on the other hand, am indeed a maize and blue orca.
October 12th, 2014 at 1:24 PM ^
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October 12th, 2014 at 12:49 PM ^
October 12th, 2014 at 12:52 PM ^
I met Lamarr Woodley after a game. Couldn't believe how down to earth he was.
October 12th, 2014 at 12:52 PM ^
End of Freshman year - 2009. Frat party at that one that used to be next to the Union. I have pretty much no connection to this place but showed up with some other people for this big party -- I think the frat was moving to another location so it was a going-away party-type thing -- and somehow they let us in to the party.
A great night. Do some dancing, have a couple drinks. Go to the front step to smoke and Justin Feagin --the Justin Feagin -- and the crew he's with show up at the door. The freshmen pledge frat bouncer guys are giving him a hard time about getting in to the party -- I say, "he's cool, let him in." Freshmen pledger dudes let Justin Feagin and his crew in. I high-five Feagin, who I've never met before in my life.
Cool story, bro.
October 12th, 2014 at 1:31 PM ^
It was SigEp.
I wasn't a brother but was friends with a lot of them and housemates with a bunch of them on Arbor St. and Greenwood. Good times.
October 12th, 2014 at 2:46 PM ^
October 12th, 2014 at 2:44 PM ^
October 12th, 2014 at 4:33 PM ^
Feagin wasn't the arsonist. It was his 'friend.'
October 12th, 2014 at 1:01 PM ^
I've told this one before, but it's a good one! My freshman year I was in Intro Psych and I got paired up with this guy to do a project with. We had to design, implement, and write up an experiment. So he and I came up with this idea to test the hypothesis that women eat differently depending on the social context.
We went into the cafeteria in South Quad and observed people eating, counted who they were eating with, etc., and wrote it up. Our hypothesis was not borne out, but that wasn't the point -- we learned a lot and got a pretty good score on our paper.
Towards the end of the semester I asked him what courses he was going to take next, and he said "actually, I'm going to play baseball instead". I thought that sounded pretty ridiculous. Good luck with that, Derek!
Welp, he became Derek Jeter, and I became a professor of psychology.
October 12th, 2014 at 1:37 PM ^
I am guessing you both have had similar experiences with women since then?
October 12th, 2014 at 1:07 PM ^
October 12th, 2014 at 1:15 PM ^
Small feet? Then how the hell did he get tripped up in the end zone against Michigan State?!
/Still mad should've been pass interference but good call Mo' going for 2
October 12th, 2014 at 2:09 PM ^
October 12th, 2014 at 2:11 PM ^
Does your husband just not have the 'trophy' that Desmond has?
October 12th, 2014 at 2:16 PM ^
October 12th, 2014 at 2:39 PM ^
Jamar Adams about stuff, does that count? Jamar talked to the team - as many of the guys who came back did - and felt disparity in talent is still a major problem with the team. He also mentioned a lack of senior leadership; not so much that it was poor as there simply aren't enough upperclassmen to establish it. Nice guy, well spoken; it was nice of him to talk to us.
October 12th, 2014 at 3:04 PM ^
Mike Cammalleri and Mark Mink lived across the hall from me in West Quad. They used to use their food vouchers on a shitload of pizza and hang out in my dorm room, sharing sed pizza, with other guys on the floor while prank phone calling girls from the directory and playing N64 / Dreamcast.
Those were the days.
October 12th, 2014 at 3:12 PM ^
This ONE time...at Head Set Camp...
October 12th, 2014 at 3:18 PM ^
My dad was a high school basketball coach, and would always take us to the state HS basketball finals at Chrysler. Between games, we were wandering around campus and found the doors to the indoor football practice area open, and strolled in to find the team finishing up and going into the locker room. We just followed some of them in and nobody stopped us. We get to where the scales are and suddenly out walks Bubba Paris in only a towel, gets on the scale and drops it to get his weight. As a 6th grader, I remember thinking "holy crap, it's Bubba" and "HOLY CRAP HE'S NAKED" and "that is one huge dude." We took that as our cue to exit quietly.
October 12th, 2014 at 3:19 PM ^
October 12th, 2014 at 4:21 PM ^
I ended up next to Chris Perry at a party after he helped trounce ND 38-0. After chatting a bit he realized I was classmates and a fellow athlete peer of his high school teammate from FUMA. He gave me his contact info to pass on to that guy. I did.
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October 12th, 2014 at 4:28 PM ^
i have told all these before, but i think they are worth repeating. i worked as a nurse at mott from 2006-2013 and had the pleasure of seeing the joy athletes can bring to sick kiddos and their families.
1. when hutch/griese/woodson started 'officially' hosting the golf outing, there was an unofficial visit to mott over the weekend. they invited anyone who wanted to come, but didn't expect many. they ended up with a lot - enough to have a sizable group of players on each floor, when they expected to have just one group. i watched steve hutchinson talking with a dad whose son would die within the next few weeks. i was amazed how warm and kind he was, reaching out to this dad going through something unimaginable. i saw a family that had been there for months have something to finally get excited about - and then their son ended up in a commercial with charles woodson. but the most impressive thing did not end up in a newspaper article or on tv. there was a teenage boy who had had heart surgery - that didn't work. he had to go back for a second surgery during the same visit, and it seemed like he was having a rough time emotionally (very understandably). the players talked with him for a while, and asked what he had been doing to pass the time. he told them he had been playing video games (on a system that had been donated by the funds raised by the football group) but couldn't play as much as he liked, b.c there was one for the floor. later that day, a guy came back with a bag for him - they had gone out and bought him a nintendo DS, along with several games. i cannot tell you the difference it made to this kid that michigan football alumni had gotten him a nintendo DS.
2. so seeing football players at mott is a lot of fun, but it generally happens when they come up as a group or as part of the griese/hutchinson/woodson weekend. one friday before a home game during zoltan's senior year, i was walking down the hallway at mott and this tall guy was walking in the opposite direction. i knew i recognized him, but of course couldn't place him until right after i passed him. it was zoltan mesko. that's my lasting memory of him - the kind of guy who took the time (during his busiest time of year) to visit a child in the hospital, without any fanfare or recognition.
3. i came upon lloyd carr looking a little lost in the hallway - he was looking for a patient and didn't know where to go. i walked him over the the area he was looking for. i was super excited to get to talk to him. but the entire time he was asking ME questions. with the couple words i did manage to get in, i thanked him for coming up, since visits from lloyd or the players lift spirits (of both patients and parents) in ways that we can't. he brushed it off immediately, saying that it's nothing compared to the work that is done by the health care team. i told him it was an honor to meet him - and he said it was an honor to meet me. i'm not a physician, i'm not a high up administrator - i'm a nurse that happened to be in the right place at the right time to walk him over so he could brighten someone's day. and on the way over, he completely made my day as well.
October 12th, 2014 at 4:41 PM ^
How is it decided which kids the players can visit? Just asking because a friend of mine has been caring for a boy from Haiti for the last 1.5 years. He has had multiple surgeries done at Mott. He actually just left on Friday, and I saw that they had to drive back up there today because a few sutures popped out.
I've never asked her if anyone from the team stops by, but I'm curious as to how those decisions are made.
October 12th, 2014 at 5:18 PM ^
i can tell you how it was when i worked there - it may have changed. thursday night was the night the athletes visited. a group of michigan athletes would walk around room to room, signing hats and talking to the kids. as far as i know, there was a group for every floor and they tried to visit every room, but if a kid was sleeping, had a doctor in the room, was in isolation precautions, etc. they may miss the visit. the vast majority of the time, the athletes were not football/basketball - i met people from golf, softball, baseball, track, cross country, etc. if your friend was there over a thursday, i would be fairly certain they met some athletes.
my story from the golf weekend was the first time it was officially the hutch/griese/woodson deal. the visit to mott was kind of unofficial - some guys were going to do it, and they invited anyone who wanted to come up. since they had such a strong response, it was more organized the next year and i think they had the players all together in one room, where patients could go and visit, with a much smaller contigent walking around and paying quick visits to the patients who couldn't leave their rooms.
one year after the red wings won the stanley cup, one of the players (can't remember who!) decided to bring it up to mott during the time he had it. they kinda just took it room to room. it was pretty cool.
October 12th, 2014 at 10:02 PM ^
These stories made me tear up. I love that the UM student athletes and coaches do this so much!
October 12th, 2014 at 5:11 PM ^
October 12th, 2014 at 6:09 PM ^
October 12th, 2014 at 8:45 PM ^
I was in a political science class, when in walked Jim Harbaugh. The class had already started, but he sat right in front of me. He had wet hair and seemed in a hurry, so I surmised that he had just gotten out of practice. He never returned to that class. He was probably funneled into a kinesiology class (it was a 400 level polisci class). If I could go back to that moment in a time machine, I would say "Jim, this might sound crazy, but don't ever make any public statements about Michigan's football players and academics. And someday Michigan is going to need a football coach and your name will be mentioned. Please say yes."
October 12th, 2014 at 9:57 PM ^
I thought you said above he never returned. Which is it? Did he not return the first time or the second time?
October 12th, 2014 at 8:45 PM ^
I was in a political science class, when in walked Jim Harbaugh. The class had already started, but he sat right in front of me. He had wet hair and seemed in a hurry, so I surmised that he had just gotten out of practice. He never returned to that class. He was probably funneled into a kinesiology class (it was a 400 level polisci class). If I could go back to that moment in a time machine, I would say "Jim, this might sound crazy, but don't ever make any public statements about Michigan's football players and academics. And someday Michigan is going to need a football coach and your name will be mentioned. Please say yes."
October 12th, 2014 at 9:30 PM ^
He was in one of my communications classes - organizational behavior, I think - and I had no idea who he was. He came to the first section and started talking about group behavior on the field. I still had no idea who he was (not yet a football fan?) and I thought, Who is this knob? Then, like with you, he never came to class again.
October 12th, 2014 at 10:13 PM ^
I met Mike Hart and Ron Bellamy at a Mott fundraiser a couple years ago. My son, who was 3 at the time I think, had his MMB hat on and they loved it. I'm pretty sure my son would have been more impressed with the drum major, haha! Coach Hoke came too, and right as he walked in my son was getting a cookie. He saw Coach Hoke and he walked over and started talking to him and showing him where the party was. It was adorable, because of course I was all shy and nervous, but my innocent, adorable son just walked right up to him and started talking to him! We have some awesome pictures from that day. When we were talking to Mike Hart, I asked him when he was going to coach at Michigan, and he laughed and said he would love to. So, when we had our chance to meet Coach Hoke and take a picture with him, I told him I promised Mike Hart I would ask when they would hire him. He laughed and I said you're just waiting for an opening, right? And he said right.
Before the App State game, Caris LeVert and Kam Chatman and some other basketball players walked by our tailgate. I yelled out hi guys, welcome back from Italy! And Kam waved and said thank you. I thought that was very nice and polite.
October 12th, 2014 at 11:20 PM ^
I had a creative writing class where we broke into tables of 4 and everyone had to read each others' papers and comment on them, except the first week of that my table had 3 because someone missed class.
This just happened to be the period when I thought I had to challenge myself by writing about types of people I wasn't familiar with. So for this I wrote short story about a poor black Detroit high school quarterback whose highlight reel was due to secret magical powers that he barely knew how to use and which made him ravenously hungry relative to how big of a thing it was he did. It was an awful story made putrid by my some of my attempts at characterization actually being really bad stereotypes.
The fourth person at my table showed up the day I had to share my story with them. Since it's in this thread you can probably guess where this is going. DeWayne Patmon kindly took my story from my mortified hands, and returned it for the next class with a lot of thoughtful criticisms and insights, including a bit of good advice I've kept since: write about what you know.
(His story, passed around a couple weeks later, was about characters in a massive tornado and I don't remember the rest because its plot got jumbled in my mind with that of Twister)