Tradition started back in the
just a joke i think. i, for
just a joke i think. i, for one, thought it was halarious
COYS and lets go Detroit FC!
I just checked ... it goes
I just checked ... it goes back before Canham. It was started in the 1950s.
"[T]here were a lot of people predicting glorious heights for Rich; mostly the same people who are predicting doom and gloom [for Hoke]. Excuse me if I doubt their prognostication skills." -- M-Wolverine
Slippery Rock
The announcer always included Slippery Rock's scores into their announcements during the 50's, 60's and 70's. It always got a laugh and a big cheer during the commercial breaks. There were always several thousand people in the stadium who were not even sure there was such a school.
I can give a partial answer...
My Dad went to UM as well (69-72) and he used to tell me how they would announce the Slippery Rock score during games, and whenever Slippery Rock was winning everyone would cheer wildly. He loved it and had no idea when it started or when it stopped, but growing up I thought it was done at every single UM game (we didn't grow up in Michigan). When I arrived at UM in 2006 I was very surprised to not see the Slippery Rock score.
My guess is that someone in the athletic dept (Dave Brandon?) wanted to bring back the old tradition. Either way, I loved seeing it up there today!
BA 2009 LSA
Welcome back, Slippery
Welcome back, Slippery Rock!!!!!!!!!!!
Class of '97: 4 Years -- 4 Four-loss seasons
Get the story...
...here.
Whenever I think "majestic soul-funk," I think Michigan Football.
Slippery Rock and
Slippery Rock and Shippensburg St. played in the Big House back in '79 ... 60,000+ showed up for the game.
"[T]here were a lot of people predicting glorious heights for Rich; mostly the same people who are predicting doom and gloom [for Hoke]. Excuse me if I doubt their prognostication skills." -- M-Wolverine
Fuck Shippensburg State!
Go Slippery Rock!
Hoosier by birth, Wolverine by choice
It is my understanding
that it predates Canham.
From Wiki:
The announcement of Slippery Rock's football scores is a tradition at University of Michigan football games, begun in the 1950s by Michigan Stadium's public address announcer. Slippery Rock was so popular with U of M fans that on Sept. 29, 1979, they played in-state rival Shippensburg at Michigan Stadium, in front of 61,143 fans, a record for a Division II football game (Shippensburg won, 45-14). Slippery Rock played a second game at "The Big House" in 1981, attracting 36,719 fans in a 14-13 loss to Wayne State University.
Supposedly back in the 60's
there was a pause in the action (time out or something) and a Slippery Rock score was announced into the quiet, and for some reason the crowd decided to go nuts. Since that time, Slippery Rock's score would be greeted with cheers (if winning) and groans (if losing). This culminated in Slippery Rock playing Shippensberg (burg?) State at Ann Arbor in 1979, with some 60,000 fans and a huge number of HS Bands in attendance. This kinda died down afterward, but ti is great if they are reviving the tradition, purely because it was so fun and crazy....
Ah, most excellent
Glad too see they are back with us. Respecting traditions can be a wonderful thing.
May you have a strong foundation
When the winds of changes shift
Steve Filipiak
"The foundation for the trips to Ann Arbor were laid many years prior when Steve Filipiak, public address announcer at Michigan Stadium from 1959-71, was one of the first people to report scores to big-time college football crowds."
I got the above from a Slippery Rock site.
I got the below off a Michigan site:
"(Carl) Grapentine is only Michigan's third PA announcer since 1957. He follows in the footsteps of Steve Filipiak (1957-1971) and, of course, Howard King (1972-2005). Filipiak is best known for starting the tradition of announcing the Slippery Rock score during Michigan games."
Not taking credit...
But I had tweeted to Bruce Madej earlier this year if it would be possible to bring the Slippery Rock score back, and he explained he wanted to do it, but Slippery Rock didn't want us to continue doing it, but he said he would look back in to it. Well, apparently, something got worked out, and there it was. It was just a little perfect touch and I hope the return of the Slippery rock score each week.
Craig Barker || The Hoover Street Rag || Twitter
"The Michigan fanbase: a cynical, Eeyorish bunch even in the best of times."
They were still doing it in the late 1980's...
I remember them doing it when I was there 1986-1989... I think it stopped sometime in the 1990's.
Glad to see it back.. I'm always in favor of strange old Michigan traditions.
Ahem
There is nothing OT about a Slippery Rock score announcement at Michigan Stadium.
Hate to break it to everyone,
Hate to break it to everyone, but announcing the Slippery Rock score isn't something that is unique to Michigan. This link explains the backstory. http://www.rockathletics.com/sports/2007/11/7/FB_1107073836.aspx?tab=rockm
Basically, years ago there was a dispute among which college football team was number one. (Some things never change). One sportswriter wrote an article arguing (in jest) that Slippery Rock should be number one, because Slippery Rock beat team A, who beat team B, who beat team C, etc., etc. Ever since then the Slippery Rock score has been announced at football stadiums across the country.
I don't see that in my reading of the article
Joking about Slippery Rock being #1 is different from announcing the scores at games. According to the article, in fact, "Steve Filipiak, public address announcer at Michigan Stadium from 1959-71, was one of the first people to report scores to big-time college football crowds." If this is in fact true (and it may be hard to document), then Filipiak could certainly have been in position to start the tradition. Someone presumably did it first, before it spread to other schools.
Where's Charlie Bauman when you need him?
In the program...
In today's program, there was an article on Slippery Rock's place in Michigan Football history, and ended with a small plea to one day announce Slippery Rock scores at the Big House again.
Looks like something got worked out.
Huh...interesting
As an alum of Shippensburg University, i was very interested/pleased to find out a connection between the Blue and Red Raiders. Great to hear...
Tradition started back in the days of Don Canham.
"[T]here were a lot of people predicting glorious heights for Rich; mostly the same people who are predicting doom and gloom [for Hoke]. Excuse me if I doubt their prognostication skills." -- M-Wolverine