I could care less about non-UofM alum fans as long as they project a quality face of good sportsmanship and are not complete douches like the truck drivers of tO$U.

the wife did the school work and i did the wife so wheres that put me? Oh yeah, on my couch watching NASN and Sky Sports all day or playing online. So yes, until she dumps my lazy ass i will talk smack about academics : )

I actually believe, on average, the non-grad fans are more rabid supporters of the football team. I wish there were more of them in the stadium so it would be a bit louder on gameday! UM grads tend to be much more fair-weather than our non-grad comrades, as has been mentioned in other comments here. I totally agree: the more the merrier!! However, I also think grad fans have a greater loyalty to UM as an entire institution vs. the non-grad fans who are loyal to UM ATHLETICS. Example: After the year of infinite pain, I was strongly in the camp of Lloyd Carr supporters. At the time, I volunteered at the Ronald McDonald House in Indianapolis and met a person who worked for Indiana U's football coaching staff. I mentioned to this person that I was a UM alum and disappointed with UM's record against tOSU the past few years. Very long story short, the guy said Coach Hep was doing everything he could to emulate UM's program at IU. He said that Lloyd was the ONLY coach in the Big Ten who valued winning AND developing his players through discipline and education AND followed all the NCAA rules. I wasn't surprised to hear about the shortcomings of the buckeye program, but I was very surprised to find out he had a lot of negative things to say about JoePa's behavior, too. I was never more proud to be a UM alum than on that day. Bottom line, I think the non-grad fans at that point would be more likely to say: "I don't care that more of his kids go to class, they went 7-5! Time to retire!" Whereas, more of the grads would be more likely to say: "I'll put up with one bad year if I know he will continue to represent our school so well."

First, what drives my MSU buddies crazy is, and I quote, "Those toothless UM zombies [non-Grads] who buy their UM t-shirt at Walmart and then talk smack about the inferiority of MSU as an educational institution." I get that. But as far as supporting a college's athletics teams is concerned, every college has its share of non-Grad fans -- UM probably more due to the relative success and profile of the football team. And all colleges should be glad they do, otherwise their athletic department budgets would be a fraction of what they are. When mgoblue re-launched its website last year, its first-ever poll question was "How did you become a Michigan fan?" The 12,685 responses broke down as follows: Born into it 48.9% Saw a game live 6.3% Saw a game on TV 8.3% Michigan is my alma mater 24% Of course, the results are unscientific and the "born into it" option can mean anything from "my parents went there" to "my dad was a toothless Walmart UM t-shirt wearing zombie". But I'm willing to bet that, as a general rule, one-quarter alum percentage of fan base is probably not that far off, especially for high-profile schools like Michigan, Ohio State, Notre Dame, USC and the like. And even if the Grad fan base is a higher percentage at other schools, let's say DOUBLE, that's still no more than 50%. Even if Grads don't love you, the ADs do. And most Grads are smart enough to welcome fans who represent 50%-75% of the customer base (although Grads are much, much more likely to make donations so would be over-represented in total revenue contribution.) All is to say, it's nobody's "right" -- UM grad or grad of another -- to deny you the right and pleasure to cheer the Wolverines (or anyone else). But, talking smack about, say, MSU, as an institution of higher learning when you yourself may have attended the Kalamazoo School of Beauty and Hair Design displays an incredible lack of self-awareness and is highly ironic (in the real way, not the Alanis Morrisette way). Go Blue!

tubauberalles - you have punches on your old MCard? I was on campus when they introduced the ID policy for student tickets (I'm in the class of 2003), but I don't remember them ever having to punch anything. They just looked at your MCard and let you through.

As for the original question, hey, people can root for whomever they want. I think it's great that we have a large fanbase.  I want Michigan to be popular. More popularity/exposure is a good thing.

Big gay heart - I believe UM actually has the largest number of total alumni of any school in the country. I'm pretty sure I've heard that statistic before. That's because almost everyone who enrolls here actually goes on to graduate. OSU, MSU and others have more students, but also a much worse graduation rate.

unless you palyed on the team. And by played, I mean started.  Everyone else must root for EMU.

chitownblue - I'm not sure about the size of the alumni association, but wikipedia says that "The university also has one of the largest research expenditures of any American university and one of the largest number of living alumni, at 420,000." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Michigan

total, unwavering loyalty to all that is: The Victors, the Wolverines, Maize and Blue and Go Blue! Welcome aboard! UM athletics are about doing things the right way, getting a degree, tradition, teamwork, camaraderie, and a commitment to excellence. As a UM alum, I welcome all those who support the most successful college athletic program in the world. The UM athletic department is the only public university that is totally self supporting and does not receive any government funds. Unlike most colleges, UM is and always has been in complete compliance with Title IX.

First of all Cougar Blue, you are a Sparty troll. Only a Sparty asks that question. If there's one fan who is more insecure than a Michigna fan, it's a Sparty. You guys start this kind of thread on every Michigan board you troll through. Now, the all important answer: Grads usually make shitty fans. For the most part, grads of a school like Michigan are probably not from Michigan (or a very large percentage of them are not), and possibly even fromn another country. Also, grads from Michigan probably tend to have a bit more in the "Lifestyle Points" catalog than most (unless it's Ivy Leaguers). In other words, doctors, lawyers, engineers, business types, guys with a lot on their plate. Not too much time to worry about the stripes on the new Adidas replica away jersey. I believe they also have a sort of detachment from UM sports that the typical fan can't, and again, it's because they tend to be more intelligent, bathe more, drink alot less rubbing alcohol and Thunderbird, and spend alot less time auditioning for "Cops" in general. Again, that funny thing about having a life that occupies your time, mind, and spirit a bit more than Kroger Deli Clerk Homer Shekejanksi of Hamtramck who never grauated high school yet spends most of his time belittling the academics of Ohio State and other colleges, but praising UM for being a "class" insitution that has "academicals that is second to nobody". Lastly, any college team is supported by the multitudes of idiots that post on message boards (present company excepted, of course), spend 60% of their $17,000 annual income on college gear, cable TV, whiskey, Pizza, and a pick up truck payment, and tape football games so they can watch them, analyze them, and then talk about them to their pet pit bulls when they are out in their garage making methamphetamine. Of all the fans that root for any college football team, barely 1% of them have probably even attended a college class before the coma inducing professor, who was "fucking stupid", asked them to leave on the first say, adding, "for the love of god, please don't kill too many children during your lifetime" as said future mullet sporting used car salesman slithered out the door. So as you can see, it is the "I ain't got no book sense, but I got alot of common sense" fan who never went to college at all (in spite of all that "common sense"), but who rabidly supports his favorite team by sinking whatever measly income he makes into buying anything with a "State U" emblazoned on it. And they further the cause by, as the movie "Idiocracy" so brilliantly laid out, multiplying like rabbits, and passing this "common sense" on to future generations, multitudes, of mullet sporting used car salesmen, who will support the team their "Daddy, who I ain't seen since I was 12, showed me who the best team was".