Experiencing the Big House

Submitted by MichFan1997 on

Have you ever been so overwhelmed by experiencing the Big House that it has got the best of your emotions? For the home opener in 2010, my and one of my friends took her mom to her first ever Michigan game. It was her mom's birthday and everything. Her mom cried the first time she saw the team run out onto the field because she never thought she'd ever see that live. 

So my question to you guys is, do you have any similar stories? Have you ever been overtaken by your emotions from experiencing the Big House live?

KSmooth

May 16th, 2012 at 1:12 AM ^

UTL will be hard to top.  I remember very well just screaming "TOUCHDOWN!  TOUCHDOWN!  TOUCHDOWN!" when Roy Roundtree hauled in that final pass.  And how nobody wanted to leave after the game was over.  Even Pop Evil sounded good.

Another really emotional moment was Bo's last win over OSU in 1989.  Not as exciting a game, but we all knew the man was retiring and seeing him go out a winner was bittersweet.

South TX MFan

May 16th, 2012 at 2:27 AM ^

My dad and a lot of the people from his side of the family are from Michigan. Although I never lived there (dad was in the military and we moved around), I was raised a die hard Michigan Wolverine fan and am to this day. We finally settled in TX and I never left. I look forward to each season but I was only ever able to watch them play on TV. Finally, last year, I was able to make the trip to the Big House to see them in person. My wife and I came up for The Game. We flew into Detroit the night before and stayed in AA that night. We got to the golf course early in the morning and tailgated with a bunch of really cool Michigan fans, and of course the game was awesome. The entire experience was totally mind blowing and is something I will never ever forget. We made this sign that my wife carried around proudly, and especially loved showing it to OSU fans before and after the game. I can't wait to make it back!

 

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v79/1bad95z/Trips/Michigan005.jpg

tedheadfred

May 16th, 2012 at 2:34 AM ^

The Game, 2009

I went with my best friend, who had terminal cancer to the game.  We talked about all sorts of game day memories on the way to the game.  I dropped him off at the game so he could sit in the pressbox (lots of people pulled lots of strings so he could see that game - its tough for a cancer survivor who is very weak to sit in the stands).

We all know the outcome of the game.  I just couldn't leave the stadium.  I walked around the bowl alone looking at the field from different perspectives both figuratively and literally, thinking about how we were kids watching the team, being in the marching band together and running out of the tunnel, him taking his wife to a "first date" there just six years earlier.  It's like everything I had known had crumbled and the pittiful nature of the team was the personification of the last few years. I was so mixed up emotionally I can't say what I felt but somewhere in there were parts of absolute sorrow and rage.  I stayed until the stadium staff threw me out.

That was the last day I saw him or spoke to him.  We lost him three weeks later and the world hasn't been the same for me since.

That game has had a special place for me for lots of reasons (I haven't missed being at The Game since 1992 other than 2008 when I watched it with my friend from the cancer ward) and that day sealed it.

God Bless you Matt.

BDW

May 16th, 2012 at 8:27 AM ^

Final seconds of the 97 OSU game with my grandfather (last game he attended before passing away) it was so loud you couldn’t hear the person next to you.

 

mgoblue99

May 16th, 2012 at 9:17 AM ^

Beating OSU in 2003 was emotional for me.  Michigan looked like they were going to blow a second-half lead and lose, yet again, to Ohio.  But they held on and clinched a berth in Pasadena for the first time since 1998.  After 4 years of undergrad and 1+ of grad school, I never thought I'd see a Rose Bowl.  The way the game played out, the up and down of it, plus the result led to tears.

Bigscotto68

May 16th, 2012 at 9:46 AM ^

I will always remember the first ever OT game at the BIG HOUSE. My 2 year old son sat in my lap, pumped his fist on cue for "The Victors", and was fast asleep by the OT and didn't even flinch when the crowd exploded at the moment of victory!! Will remember that day until i die...

 

Also, am man enough to admit I cry every time the team comes down the tunnel and touches that banner.

Blue in Yarmouth

May 16th, 2012 at 10:52 AM ^

I live in Nova Scotia Canada and have never had the opportunity to get to a live game at UM. It is my dream to make it for a OSU/UM matchup in the next few years and god willing I will. 

My uncle went to UM in the 70's and shares many stories about the various games he attended while there. All I can say is I hope you all realize how lucky you are to be able to go to the Big House and see the games live. I envy the lot of you!

Hank Hill

May 16th, 2012 at 11:19 AM ^

I moved away from Michigan the Monday after I went to the '08 Wisconsin game. Remember how everyone thought everything would be okay after that?
I had not made a trip back to the Big House until UTL. My oldest brother is a huuuuuge ND fan, and I took him for his 30th birthday. We sat row 1 right on the goal line near where Roundtree caught the game winner. My brother had razzed me the whole game until that and a brief moment after Vincent Smith's TD, screaming in my ear the whole way. After the game, We were all the way down the aisles and after about 5 minutes with a sour look on his face, he said, "let's get the fuck out of here". I looked at him, looked around at the scene,saw no one moving, laughed, and said, "To Hell with Notre Dame".
After the game he said even though his team lost he was still grateful to witness such a historic event first hand, and said it wasnhis best college football experience ever. It was great for me as well because I do not see my brother very often, and we were able to spend a great day together, in the greatest place in the world.

1989 UM GRAD

May 16th, 2012 at 11:46 AM ^

I'd point to the games everyone else has listed...especially UTL and Ohio.

At this point in my life, I get misty eyed almost every time the team comes out of the tunnel.

My now ten year old son become very passionate about Michigan sports at the beginning of the RichRod era...and experiencing the games with him has made it much more meaningful for me.  

We go to almost every home football and basketball game...and I'm sure some of his most vivid childhood memories will involve U-M football and basketball games with his dad. Realizing this makes each game that much more of a moving experience.

Interestingly, some of the games I remember most vividly (but certainly not in a positive way)  involve losses...Kordell (had left early to get to a dinner), the Horror (was in the car on my way back from Camp Michigania), and FSU in 1991.

M-Wolverine

May 16th, 2012 at 1:12 PM ^

Other than some off-field happenings (Mealer, 9/11, etc) I can't say I was particularly moved, other than by extreme excitement (the many examples given UTL, OSU '97, etc).  So only time the football actually kinda put me in an altered emotional state (almost all wins get me excited..it's just the level changing) was after the Rose Bowl in '98.  I don't know if before or since I've ever been so...content? Satisfied? It's like I was walking around the Stadium, and wasn't even jump up and down excited anymore.  It was a feeling of just for once, all was right with the world.

Hengesbach

May 16th, 2012 at 3:45 PM ^

I cried 3 times during UTL, once when we took the lead after Smith broke free on the screen, once when ND took the lead on the broken coverage and finally when we Roundtree came down with the final throw. Only comparable moment was being there when Brock touched the banner. That was a whole different kind of emotion. Still get shivers thinking about it.

Feat of Clay

May 16th, 2012 at 2:18 PM ^

Took my kid to fan day event and watched him run around on the field.  Just thinking about what a big fan he already was, what a neat tradition he was becoming a part of, and here he was having a blast on the same field.  Choked me up.

I'm a big ol' wuss so there are many other times I've had to rummage for a kleenex.  Brock Mealer for sure, Desmond's speech at UTL, the end of UTL when I was there with my son & husband jumping up and down and hollering incoherently for the sheer joy and incredulity of that ending.

Flyovers get me too, I admit it.

Blerg

May 16th, 2012 at 2:59 PM ^

I cried like a little bitch after the 2011 OSU game.

Both my parents went to DIII schools and aren't into sports too much, so I grew up without college rooting interest.  I fell in love with Michigan when I was going through the whole college search and applied in the fall of 2006. I refused to follow the football team that season for fear of becoming too attached and getting rejected by Michigan.

I found out I was accepted the day of THE GAME, fall 2006, and knew I was going to Michigan immediatly.  My first two games as an M fan were loses to OSU and USC, and my first game in the Big House was as a freshman seeing our #5 Wolverines lose to App State...In addition, I had a rough time adjusting to college life that was only compounded by a shitty roommate situation.   I almost transferred from UM after my freshman year.

The next 3 years were the Rich Rod era.  While it was piss poor football I had a great college experience.  There was too much fun with the people that will stand at my wedding. I partied way too often and fell in love all while trying to "become' an adult.

I came back for one final semester, fall 2011, to finish my degree.  In my old age I thought way too much about the past four years the week leading up to the OSU game.  Once M sealed the win I started crying knowing that it was my final game in the Big House as a student.  I thought about college ending, my time at UM, and all that the program had been through.  I think crying was the correct response. 

 

Florida Blue

May 16th, 2012 at 4:35 PM ^

The first time I was at the Big House I cried real man tears when the team took the field.  It is something I always wanted to see live and when I finally did it eclipsed my expectations to the point where some weird liquid came out of my eyes.  It was unforgettable.

m1jjb00

May 16th, 2012 at 7:44 PM ^

Bruce Kimball milling about the field before the game sneaks out and tackles Brutus at the ankles. She starts beating him with bent flag pole before it's broken up. That was my first Ohio game.

UTL with my daughter was awesome as was The Game 2011, especially after treking to Columbus the year before and seeing the Viva Rodriguez banner unfurled.

WolvinMaine

May 16th, 2012 at 9:55 PM ^

I graduated from Michigan undergrad in 96, my wife from grad school in 98.  We are both from the Metro Detroit area.  Careers/life have taken us away from Michigan, but we have kept our season tickets.  My parents seats are next to mine.  I go back for about 2 games a year, doling the rest to friends and family, but since they are my tickets, I get to cherry pick the best games.

I went to 2 games last year.  I was at the ND game, and it was amazing.  However, the OSU game that will go down as the greatest I have ever attended.  My 9 y.o. son, who I have brainwashed since he was in the womb to be a Michigan fan, made the trip with me for his first  OSU game.  He was standing between my parents, enthralled as Michigan defeated our arch rivals for the first time in his memory.  It was one of the best moments of my life, and the true reason I have kept my tickets even though I live a thousand miles away.  After the game, I asked him if he wanted to go down on the field with everyone else, and he said, "No, I just want to sit here with Grandma and Grandpa and watch."  So for the next 30 minutes the 4 of us just hung out in the stands and took it all in.  I will never see Michigan Stadium again without thinking about that game.   

nybluefan

June 1st, 2012 at 8:35 AM ^

We got on the sideline with like two minutes to go, towards the north end zone.  Some dude in a monkey suit climbed up the goal post while the game was still going and UM got a penalty.  When the game ended we stormed the field and took the goal posts down.  I was a freshman and thought the chaos and energy was the greatest thing in the world.  I was so pumped that I had decided to go to UM!

Class of 1817

June 1st, 2012 at 1:24 PM ^

Saw Grbac make that pump fake and launch that bomb to Desmond for The Catch against ND. (Guess we got a couple of those now!)

First truly spectacular Wolverine play I saw in person, and a moment where you knew something special was brewing.

Great time.