OT: What's a Wal Mart Wolverine?

It's completely an invention of MSU, created to reinforce the notion that everyone who supports Sparty went there while everyone who supports UM is an idiot who never got in.  Of course, my counter has always been that if having a faction of Walmart Wolverines is that UM is a national brand like only a few other schools, then so be it.  Better than a regional school with little national prominence except being blown out on TV and rioting.

I personally think Walmart has some pretty good deals on UM merchandise. Very affordable for those of us that can't afford a $50 polo from M-Den....yet.

I am a Michigan fan and a Michigan alum, and I actually get treated with a certain degree of warped deference by my Spartan friends and colleagues when it comes sports (proving that theyreally wanted to go to Michigan all along, right?). They are merciless with the so-called "Walmart Wolverines", but with me, the football banter can be - but rarely is - almost pleasant and even filled with amusing zingers. 

It's a strange double standard that makes me despise that fanbase even more, but don't tell any MSU people I know that, please. 

One thing I would like to say - I think the appreciation for the school itself is qualitatively different if you went there. I don't think anyone would dispute that. I think that can be said for any  alum of any school. 

MSU "fans" say that don't make sense.  I think it's supposed to be derogatory against Michigan fans who didn't attend the university and buy Michigan apparel at Wal-Mart.  Part of this might actual have historical background, because Michigan was the first university to widely brand and sell its logo and clothing.  This is just my theory, however.  Ironically, it is just because no one outside of Michigan cares about MSU that they go with this.

Your a Husker fan, a Wal-Mart Husker would be a Husker fan that is not an alumni and has no association with the school. Almost the entire population of Nebraska could be called "Wal-Mart Husker" fans. Like let's say Nebraska Omaha went D1 and they kept their football team and went FBS. They wouldn't have the fanbase Nebraska Lincoln has. UNO fans would be jealous that nobody really cares about them and would start calling you guys "Wal-Mart Huskers." You don't hear this term because you don't have another team in Nebraska competing with you for fans.



It's a dumb term. I didn't go to Michigan. I've never even lived there. My parents were born there and my Grandparents worked for GM. My Dad was in the Air force. I've lived everywhere but I consider Michigan home and most of my family lives there. Michigan is my team. I'm the definition of a Wal-Mart Wolverine, and I don't care.

When I was a kid there was no Wal-Marts, only K-Marts and I was a wolverine fan back when I was 8 years old, way before I thought I would ever attend the University of Michigan, so that would make me a K-Marts wolverine.

Really it's just something stupid a jealous little brother would say!

I'm a walmart Wolverine and damn proud of it, my sister and brother in-law both went to U of M, and my Grandpa got me hooked on U of M when I was 5. I'm now 30 and a season ticket holder of 4 years.

The bigger the fan base the better the team...right? To hell with State fans they can't come to terms with not being a National team.

Michigan fan definition "1" = Michigan alumni.

Michigan State fan definition "1" = Michigan State alumni.

Michigan fan definition "2" = didn't go to either school so they have a choice, and choose Michigan.

Michigan State fan definition "2" = Uh ... see definition #1? We can't find any more.

I'm a Wal Mart Wolverine by definition. I didn't get good enough grades nor could my parents afford to get me into Michigan. But I fell in love with the wings, the colors, the fight song, the stadium, the nickname, Bo Schembechler, Rick Leach, Anthony Carter, Rob Lytle, and Butch Woolfolk. I took pride in how the Wolverines represented our state, and still do, especially in these tough economic times the stadium is still always 110,000 strong. If you're a Michigan resident choosing sides, what on earth would compel you to choose State over the Leaders and Best? It's not even a fair fight. And for that matter, if you're a college football fan anywhere and your situation compels you to choose a "national" program (didn't go to a FBS school; live in a region that doesn't really identify itself with a program; you're not Irish Catholic), what better option than to root for the greatest college football program in the history of the sport? 

I have friends who went to both schools, but friends like me and my family who went to neither school always root for Michigan, and passionately. And yes, that website does make you cringe. These seem like just regular people who may not be the most refined or attractive representatives of the UM fanbase but never asked for their photo to be shared publicly either, especially if it was taken and posted without their knowledge. They use the term "scUM" to describe U of M while pulling this? Really? With a straight face? Please. 

So ridiculous...and shameful, really.

I was brought up in a mid-Michigan household where Bo held demi-god status.  Michigan will always be my team despite choosing the service academy route over Ann Arbor. 

I wear the WalMart label proudly.

Basically one of sparty's short-man syndrome side effects.

They can't attract fans outside of alumni, so that is what they resort to; calling out fans of michigam that didn't attend the school.

It's just jealousy. They wish they could get over 100,000 fans for 236 straight games.

LIke the guy on that HBO special said, our colors do just happen to look great with a pair of khaki's.

IMO there actually are a small % of UM fans,  like that Mikey character from american chopper,  that are just drawn to the kick ass name and best of any school colors.

I'm not just a WalMart Wolverine. I am WalMart Wolverine.

"Walmart Wolverine" on WXYT 97.1 The Ticket. It's a sports talk show in Detroit for those that don't live around metro Detroit. Pat Caputo started talking this smack a few years ago. He explains that a Walmart Wolverine is a fan of Michigan who never went to school there. On his show he will even call you out if there is a topic on Michigan and you call in with an opinion. He honestly believes that no can be a fan of Michigan if you didn't attend Michigan. What an ass. I got into it with him last year when I had an opinion and called. Told him I was a 23 year season football ticket holder, Victors Club member, 3 year basketball season ticket holder, plus my son has attended UM Basketball camp for 10 years. He wanted to argue that I didn't have the right a talk because I didn't go to school there. He now has Terry Foster and the self righteous Mike Valenti talking this crap. Oh, all three throw the arrogant Michigan thing around also. Hate all three of these idiots. Like anyone who loves a university and is a true fan and lives, eats and sleeps their program isn't arrogant. I believe every school is like that. When your school is good you have the right to brag a little.

Some of us who are fans, and not alumni, have Walmart in our holdings. I have earned plenty of dollars over the years through that company. This allows me to attend games at the Big House and buy my gear at the M Den. When I retire in 4yrs and 9 mo most of my money will still be coming from that store up the street from all of us and I will have a vest made to wear at the game so all will know who the walmart wolverine is Go Blue.

Its OK though, despite not having a national following they DO recruit nationally.

A "Walmart Wolverine" is a derogatory term used by Spartan fans to put down non-alumni fans.  The ironic thing is that most MSU fans also never went to college there and many MSU fans and alumni shop at Walmart.

I once had a MSU fan that went to WMU mock me (an alumni of UofM) for Michigan having too many "Walmart Wolverines" that didn't go to school there.  When I pointed out that he didn't go to MSU, he said UofM has more fans that didn't go there.  So I asked him if he was less of a fan for not having attended MSU and he refused to answer and repeated that UofM has more fans that didn't go to college than MSU.  Unfortunately, there are a lot of people like that.

I agree with virtually all of the above posts. "Walmart Wolverine" is largely a derogatory term used by jealous MSU fans to rip on the non Michigan alumni fan base.

However, Michigan fans (particularly alumni fans) often put down fans of Ohio who didn't attend Ohio. Here are several examples:

• Bob Ufer, a famous Michigan announcer for Michigan fans of a certain age, quipped at one time that "Ohio Stadium is "10000 alumni and 74000 truck drivers."
• Mgoblog fans have loved an incredible youtube video of a non-Ohio alumni fan with an Ohio State themed bathroom. Link:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFuR56RxlGc
• Brian Cook, the proprietor of this here site, used the tag line for most of the last year, "Save us the hymnals, cooler poopers." This was a derogatory reference to the Ohio State fans who pooped in coolers. LInk: http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2009/09/10/biggame.html Quote: (in reference to adding extra porta potties.)  Ohio State hopes so and says it has learned its lesson from big matchups such as the Texas game in 2005, in which cleanup crews found several soiled shorts and a few coolers filled with poop."
• mgobloggers love to ridicule the non-alumni Ohio fan for both their sartorial splendor (jorts, painted faces, strings of buckeyes, etc.) and their hairstyles, i.e., mullets, mohawks, etc. Link:  http://thedirty.com/2009/09/die-hard-fan/
   

And on the nature of actual Ohio State alumni, Michigan alumni love to put down the quality of Ohio State academics. While Ohio State certainly isn't ranked as highly as Michigan, they have made significant improvements, and are no longer a slouch in that category.

What's my point?  Mr. pot, meet Mr. Kettle. I happen to think that it is great Michigan has far more "Walmart Wolverine" non alumni fans than MSU. But that being the case, there has to at least be an acknowledgement of the inconsistency of ripping Ohio for THE SAME THING!!!

Walmart Wolverine:  n 1)Name created by Michigan State adolescents who were rejected by the UofM admissions department. 2) Term used to degrade Michigan fans who did not actually attend the school (raising the question - how do spartan fans root for the Lions, Tigers, Red Wings, or any other team they never played for?)  3) The only derogatory name Sparty fans could come up with after a night of mass alcohol consumption and inhilation of the toxic fumes of burning couch fibers...otherwise known as "a school night."

There are no walmart Spartans, because anybody with a second grade education gets into MSU.

The funny thing is, most MSU students/grads fit the definition of a Walmart Wolverine, since they:

1) got rejected from Michigan, meanin they didn't attend

2) envy/look up to Michigan's football prestige

This information should have been in your conference integration packet.

I figured Nebraska fans would be a little perplexed by this particular derogation. We often use you guys as an example (ie "would you tell the whole state of Nebraska they can't root for the Huskers?) when explaining why the concept is so silly.

I expect some Spartan fans now are trying to back off that concept because it makes their fanbase come across as petty, but I doubt it will work--it's far too ingrained. They're a great university, the paragon of the Morrill Act schools, yet share the state with the Harvard of the Midwest. The unfortunate effect of this is to create a fanbase for MSU that is justifiably oversensitive about the perceived denigration of their rightful place among universities. To hear it from a Michigan alum they call it snobbery; to hear it from a non-alum they call it hypocrisy. "Walmart Wolverine" is the latter.

I'm a Walmart Wolverine.  I just went to Walmart looking for coffee filters for our office coffee maker.

Bought a bag of chips and a Mountain Dew.

People need to get f*ck off their high horses; not everyone can afford to goto Whole Foods or Zingerman's and splurge on the Neimann Ranch pork, washed down with grass-fed American Kobe ribeyes and a $200 bottle of Barolo.  Walmart is cheap; it has cheap things.  People who need things at cheap prices will go there.

FWIW I'm in a D.I.N.K. (dual-income no kids) household who makes a lot of money; really don't think it's cool ripping on people because they are poor/in a lower socioeconomic level than myself.

When I was growing up, I wanted to go to Michigan and when it came time to apply, I didn't realize I needed to apply early so I got my application in late and was "conditionally accepted".  My High School Counselor mentioned that EMU had a scholarship and I would probably qualify for it.  I looked into EMU and thought I could go there for a year and then transfer to UM.  I was accepted to EMU and got the scholarship and stayed at EMU to get my degree.  I still am a UM fan but I also enjoy EMU "sports".  I figure following EMU keeps me rooted ot the ground.

I also feel that through my blog I support UM in other ways than just sports.  So if I'm a Walmart Wolverine, so be it.  There are much worse things to be called.  Speaking of which, I wonder if I should submit my picture of me on the sidelines of the Big House in a Michigan hat and EMU shirt to that website....:)