Kegs at Bollinger's House after the 97 game?
After the Penn State game. The rally was on his front lawn. He eventually came out, said a few words, etc, then invited us all in.
I don’t remember kegs. I do remember scolding kids for stealing bottle of wine, not cool. On the other hand, he and his wife were very cool.
This is spot on. Left Touchdowns. Partied on South U and ended up on the lawn of the president's house. Bollinger came out, spoke and (shockingly) said something to the effect of, "Come on in."
I, too, remember being very pissed at people for stealing wine, but overall, the experience was one of my most memorable in college. (No kegs...students weren't inside for more than 20 min or so.)
He said a few things I couldn't hear. Then:
"This is your house. Come on in!"
I was in West Quad, not at the party, but I heard a similar story about a fridge full of alcohol, and people saying not to take it. I was on his lawn after the hockey championship, but of course Lee was at that game, so no house party that night.
I made it to the lawn post penn state thrashing. Also remember the ‘failed recreate the magic’ post puck.
Yep I remember being there and Bollinger coming out, such a great weekend. Sadly, didn’t some kid fall from a tree?
Yes indeed, a kid did fall from a tree. But was that the Rose Bowl win? I cannot remember, as I was not there.
But, my brother was there, standing next to the tree that kid fell out of. He landed hard and seemed to break his leg. There was another student nearby, and my brother flagged him down to help the fallen kid. The guy replied "No thanks. That's natural selection for ya" and walked away. I believe my brother found someone with a cell phone (rare back then) and called 911.
See the guy below that fell. He posted.
Someone fell from a tree…but it was in front of the student union.
I was there. It was amazing. Bollinger was super cool. Everyone filter out on to South U after the Penn State Game and went down to the President’s House…Bollinger greater everyone out front and then invited EVERYONE in to celebrate. Still remember his Golden Retriever walking around the house…sweet dog…but very confused by all the guests. No kegs though. Just remember the next morning seeing the carpet cleaning trucks in front the next morning.
If the Michigan Daily is archived, then you could find the picture of the carpet cleaning van on the Monday edition after the game. I remember it at the time. Hilarious.
I was so cold. It was brutal. I don't remember anything after the game
Man I have a confession. I was in seventh grade when they went to the rose bowl that year. I didn’t even watch much of the game, because I was at my uncles house fixing his computer. Please tell me there will be a similar magnitude game coming up.
I was a fan, but not watch every moment like I do now.
I had a hangover from hell that day. I barely remember bits and pieces of the game. That hangover actually lasted a couple of days. Never again!
Well, we kinda sorta had a game of similar magnitude last season. I think the score was like 42-27?
It was after the PSU game (week 9) which was a road game.
Don’t think there were kegs. People gathered impromptu at his house, and chanted “We want Lee!” Eventually he let everyone in. IIRC students made a bit of a mess and he had to bring in cleaners the next day.
All I really remember is that I took a undergrad law class with him. And also, it was a fantastic go.
It was after the Penn State game and since it was an away game, everyone was ready to party.
I know this because I’m actually in that picture with Lee Bollinger that was in the daily.
Yes to raging at the house. The party was going on inside the house and on South U outside the house. It was crazy fun. There were no kegs in his house, but they were flowing elsewhere that night.
The day was billed as "Judgment Day" on ESPN. Gameday was in Happy Valley for our game and in Chapel Hill for FSU at UNC. I think both games were between top 5 teams. Both games were blowouts. Best game of the day was Nebraska-Missouri, which should've ended in a Neb loss. We were late to the party at Bollinger's house because we were glued to the TV watching the end of that game.
I was at the game that day and wandered by the GameDay set, but there were too many people at it! That entire weekend was awesome - the PSU students/fans were welcoming, friendly, fun, and ready for a good game (that they didn't get). All the trash talk Friday night was in done in fun, I didn't see one asshat from their crowd. After the game, everyone I spoke with was genuine in their praise of Michigan, and they all said we got screwed because Nebraska got away with a clear cut horrible call. While I had no idea what was going on in Ann Arbor, the kegs in Happy Valley were flowing freely - we crashed a couple of frat parties, and some other random get-togethers - and nobody cared. What a night!
College football really does have the best atmosphere surrounding it - and at its heart, it's all the same!
Was just recalling this story to a Penn State friend yesterday. A bunch of us were on his front lawn, singing the fight song and cheering. He opened the door, addressed the crowd, and then invited us in. If you look at the cover of the 1998 Michiganensian Yearbook, the second picture down is a picture of Bollinger giving a thumbs up (and I'm one of the faces in the background you can see). That photo is from that night!
Such a sweet, sweet victory.
I was a freshman but didn’t go to Bollinger’s house. I remember a story that a kid climbed a tree, fell out of it, and was seriously injured or paralyzed. May have been apocryphal.
I witnessed the guy falling out of the tree. He was a good 20-30 feet up a tree in front of Bollinger's house and shaking the branches while standing. Lost his balance and fell on his shoulder/head. A few limbs helped brake his fall, but I never read about the aftermath, so don't know how badly he was hurt. Pretty sure this occured when a crowd gathered after the 97 OSU game, not PSU, and the crowd dispersed at that point, iirc. It was definitely still daylight out.
I was not in the PSU gathering, but remember hearing about it from friends that were there.
I remember that. Wasn't it following the Rose Bowl? My memory was foggy for obvious reasons, but I remember that making the news. It even made one of those shows that showed crazy moments captured on video.
Finally created a login after many years to reply to this thread just to say that I was the one who fell out of the tree after the OSU game in 1997 and very fortunately escaped with no permanent injuries of note. I spent four days in the ICU which just so happened to be the same hospital I was born in (back when it was the Women's Center). If you can get your hands on a copy of Fox's When Good Times Go Bad 2, you can see a video of it yourself. Apologies to all for ending what was a great party in front of Bollinger's house.
Glad you weren't permanently injured. Stoopid mistakes are just stoopid, and shouldn't be punished with a lifetime affliction. Especially when they were performed in a moment of pure joy with no ill intent.
My initial response upon seeing this thread was about "the kid in the tree". I couldn't remember what game, but OSU would've been my guess. Just glad you're okay. The fall was, for lack of a better term, spectacular.
Thought cats always landed on their feet.
Wow! Glad to hear you are okay. My best friend was visiting for the weekend and he broke your fall. In the aftermath someone grabbed him and hustled him towards someone that fit the bill for a reporter exclaiming "This guy is a hero!" There was a brief interview where my friend rambled something about his favorite food being steak and liking the number 12. Everyone was obviously inebriated. Glad to hear that you are okay. 4 days in the ICU is nothing to sneeze at.
Video: https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x5nx557
12:22 mark
Thanks for the link, I was too lazy to look for it. I’m sure they didn’t do a lot of research for these shows so they got a few of the details wrong (the first guy they showed wasn’t me, added injuries). No matter, it was a great win over OSU!
Glad you were OK! Always wondered what happened to you. Seems like you got lucky landing on the grass instead of the sidewalk.
Always thought about it. I pretty much assumed brain damage or worse. That's amazing.
Ricks was hopping. Jeter was back in town and had Knoblauch with him. They had the back corner where the pool tables are (or used to be back then) basically blocked off. Rich Eisen was there. I also recall some of the basketball team being there including freshman.
At least, I think that memory was from '97. Could have been '99. We beat OSU so regularly in the 90's, I could be getting the years mixed up... I miss those times.
I also remember Jeter at the OSU game in ‘97. I feel like he was on the sideline during the game. I also thought maybe I saw him at Touchdowns, but I may be getting things mixed up. I also have a memory of seeing Harbaugh at Touchdowns on Friday, which seems improbable, but I just checked and the Colts were at Detroit on Sunday of that weekend. Anyone else remember seeing him?
I didn’t see him but I do remember someone saying that they saw him at Touchdown’s also.
Phew—feel much better about my memory.
Yes, although I cannot personally verify the kegs. It was after the Penn State game, which was in State College. I was with a whole bunch of people on South University - I don't remember that we actually went in the house though, for something about being that forward offended the admittedly sizeable part of my brain that is devoted to my very English manners. We were, however, in the tradition of postgame soccer celebrations from the Old World, properly pissed.
It used to be a tradition (I hope it still is) that after a big road win students would meet at the steps of the Student Union and sing the fight song. Usually someone would sort of take charge and lead some cheers. If the crowd got really raucous a march across campus would begin. We would march in and out of the libraries and harass people who had spent their Saturday afternoon studying instead of watching the game. This game was about the greatest road win of the decade and the mob was beyond crazy. I remember marching into the Law library which I don't remember happening in previous years and people were marching on top of the tables screaming the fight song at the top of their lungs. Too bad we didn't have cell phone cameras back then. After the law library it was kind of a 'what now?' moment and someone yelled LET'S GO TO THE PRESIDENT'S HOUSE! After arriving and screaming and singing for a good few minutes Lee met us at the door and invited us in. The theft was an unfortunate byproduct. I remember people stealing about anything they could get their hands on like candle holders and picture frames. It was a wild scene. In fact, Lee told us that day that anytime Michigan beat Penn State by at least 26 points we were welcome in his house. Next year's score? Michigan 27-0! And Lee welcomed us back, albeit a much tamer crowd.
Kegs? I don't remember Kegs but there was a lot of alcohol consumption. Maybe a party ball or two but I doubt someone hauled a half barrel out there.
I ran the naked mile in 1997 and 1998. In 1998 we ended up running around the fishbowl then into the law library. We got up on top of the library tables, standing on books, singing the victors buck naked, studying nerds with their heads down wishing it wasn't happening. That was one of my best undergrad memories.
I also ran in '97. That was at the dawn of the times when skeezy assholes started video taping and selling the event on the internet, which partially led to the demise of the run only a few years later
I didn't jump on any tables at the law library.
And most of us at U of M had at least a little nerd in them... unless you were solely there because of your athletic ability
The bar has been set, Santa!
November 8, 1997. As mentioned above this was the day Michigan destroyed #3 Penn State in Sad Valley 34-8.
I was a 5th year senior watching the game with a bunch of buddies at Scorekeepers. While leaving the bar we saw the Missouri/Nebraska kicked ball play in the endzone, didn't think all that much about it at the time, and started walking towards campus.
As we were walking up South U we noticed some students gathering in front of Bollinger's house, so we walked up to see what was going on. Suddenly he and his wife walked out of their front door. He addressed the crowd, then inexplicably invited everyone in. Next think I knew we were walking around their house, downstairs, upstairs, we didn't miss a room. It was wall to wall students, pretty incredible. My main memory is that the house had white carpets, but not for long.
We eventually left the house, I puked in a garbage can at the corner of South U and Church, then rallied at my friends' house on Wilmot. The next day my friend showed me some gold hand mirror that he stole from Bollinger's bathroom, coincidentally he's now a partner at a law firm.
After the win over OSU a few weeks later a bunch of us got together at a friend's apartment. A few guys come home looking bummed. They went to Bollinger's house to celebrate the big win, he wasn't home, but that didn't stop people from congregating again. They explained how this guy climbed to the top of a tree then fell to to the ground. Once that happened the crowd went silent and everyone went home. I later met a guy that claimed to be the guy that tried to catch the guy to save him, I never heard what happened to the guy.
The next morning I was driving by Bollinger's house and there were 3 carpet cleaning vans in his driveway, good luck with that.
I can't imagine Schissel inviting students into his house. Let's hope Ono has some Bollinger vibes.
Oh, there were no kegs involved.
I was working Lubbock, TX that year.. Sounds like fun but it was over 7 years since I graduated from Michigan.
I had a new girlfriend who wasn’t a big sports fan so I didn’t get my student tickets that year. Swear to god. Between undergrad and long program grad night school I had student ticket access for eight of nine years. 90-98. The only year I didn’t elect to buy them was 97. And of course I broke up with that girlfriend in 98. I watched The Game in 97 alone in a hotel room in Cleveland while that girlfriend was out shopping. That’s my story and I’m not bitter at all.
For the Braylon MSU multi-OT game I decided to visit my UM best friend in DC instead of going to the game because I was bummed about a breakup with an MSU alum. Oops.
I was living in DC at that time. ABC was showing an ACC game so I had to listen to WJR in my car. The signal was only strong enough to pick up after 7pm, so I missed most of regulation. We only got to watch the OT in DC, once the crappy ACC game ended. I was glued to ESPN Classic all week watching the replay.
"...the Braylon MSU multi-OT game..."
All you need to say is 'Braylonfest'. We will all know...
It was penn state
There is a Michigan daily article about it with a funny quote from bollinger
https://digital.bentley.umich.edu/midaily/mdp.39015071754985/865
link to the Daily after the game with a picture of Lee and the co-eds