Ring of Honor at Michigan Stadium?
Well, the Lions finally got around to putting up their version of a ring of honor in Ford Field.
Would/should U-M consider doing something like this also?
They'll have plenty of space on the new structures on which they can honor former players and/or teams. As they are now, the structures look pretty plain.
Is this something you would like to see?
Personally, I would like to see it.
Not only would it be a nice way to recognize former Wolverines greats, it might increase the intimidation factor a little by adding to the lore of Michigan Stadium.
Also, telling a kid that someday your name is going to be up there could be a nice recruiting tool as well.
It could also be a way of getting around the issue of retiring jerseys due to lack of available numbers ... instead, players could just have their name put up on the Ring of Honor.
November 27th, 2009 at 2:45 PM ^
I like the Big House to be as clean and clutter free as possible. Its the slippery slope argument; once you allow this, the next thing you know Velveeta has ads up all over and the stadium looks like every other one in the country. I like the old barren look, and I am super happy they did the renos in the old school red brick.
November 27th, 2009 at 2:46 PM ^
Horrified images of a new halo...no way
November 27th, 2009 at 2:58 PM ^
Not sure about this idea.... the Lions are the polar opposite of Michigan in terms of having a history of winning, so their "ring of honor" had to be way easier to come up with than Michigan's would. 130 years and counting, and a heckuva lot of deserving players.
That said, I'm hopeful that there will be some degree of trimming the place tastefully, perhaps somehow honoring the long history of M football and our hallowed stadium.
November 27th, 2009 at 3:08 PM ^
That argument would hold water if the Lions invented the concept, but there are plenty of teams in both college and the NFL with Michigan level history who have them.
November 27th, 2009 at 3:02 PM ^
I disagree that it would beget advertising; I mean, the University would be implementing it, not some corporation.
And yes, it could look cluttered, but as the poster above me mentions, they have to do it tastefully.
I've long thought Michigan football legends deserve to have their jerseys retired, and National and Big Ten Championship years recognized, but maybe this would be the classy way to do it.
I'm all for it.
November 27th, 2009 at 3:14 PM ^
and the team has 42 B10 titles, they could name each section after a title year. /kidding
But really, I am against this. The structures are not complete yet, it will look more finished underneath when things are complete in 2010.
November 27th, 2009 at 3:18 PM ^
If we did this, it would be best to put the ring in one of the plazas, as we've done already with the pillars commemorating the conference and national titles. Or maybe inside the new concourses. I'd keep the inside of the stadium as clean-looking as possible.
November 27th, 2009 at 3:19 PM ^
If they covered the ring with brick, named every section after a famous player or coach and hung their picture up at the entrance of the section it would look awesome.
November 27th, 2009 at 4:25 PM ^
Good grief. That would look horrible.
November 27th, 2009 at 4:42 PM ^
I think any decision would have to wait and see how the new boxs look once they are completely finished before deciding. It would be a great way to honor the many great players that have come through michigan but the I'm sure they would not want it to make the big house look crappy. I maybe like the idea someone mentioned about doing something outside the stadium like what is done for national and big ten titles. This would probably make be the best option because it would keep the inside of the stadium clean looking while still honoring past michigan greats and I do not think to many people would complain about it which would definitely happen if you put something on the inside of the big house.
November 27th, 2009 at 5:17 PM ^
...and will go a bit further. I would rather see some kind of commemorative marker outside the stadium, or even a series of individual displays ringing the perimeter, but far enough away so that they aren't part of the stadium.
November 27th, 2009 at 5:18 PM ^
greats or NCs, Big Ten titles in a more prominent position. NCs years on the "big" screen ... that is sad. Big 11 titles on a kiosk. I'm "All In" for something with impact.
November 27th, 2009 at 5:59 PM ^
I think the reason it was never done before is because the bowl design of the stadium did not lend itself well to doing something like this. Now that we've got these two monolithic structures lining the field, I think you can tastefully use that extra space to do something to honor past Michigan greats.
Lambeau Field, which may be the NFL equivalent to Michigan Stadium, has a very tasteful and simplistic Ring of Honor lining their luxury boxes. Something like this might be nice:
http://www.mot1.org/mot1/Packers/sec%20342,%20row%206/sect%20342,%20row…
November 28th, 2009 at 1:10 AM ^
Lambeau looks so small! Cute stadium; glad we play in the Big House.
November 27th, 2009 at 6:36 PM ^
There is already a "Ring of Honor" at the big house and it states each TEAM's accomplishments (big ten title, NCAA champs etc), also, it'd be very un-Michigan to signify a player over the team and the school. That's why you only really see coaches remembered in the way of memorials.
If your a Michigan fan, you know the past, present, and future players, but from the outside in, I would want people to know the Block M first, because players rotate every year and can only be here playing for 4 years, while the Block M endures all.
Pro teams can do this because they can have guys play for them for 20+ years.
November 28th, 2009 at 2:12 AM ^
Although you have to question why no player who has played more recently than Ron Kramer has had his number retired. Apparently the standard is becoming President of the United States for a great player to have their number hung up.
Michigan has had a tradition of retiring numbers since, what, the 40's, and there have certainly been players since who have done just as much (if not more). At the very least, Woodson and Desmond should be up there. There's a couple more that should definitely be considered, too.
As for recognizing them somewhere in the Stadium, I'm mixed. Somewhere on the outside of the bowl, sure. Inside, though... I feel like schools that do that are schools who can put up a ring of honor including their 5 bowl game appearances. You'd need like 3 stadiums to do our Big 10 championships alone.
November 27th, 2009 at 9:09 PM ^
The TEAM, the TEAM, the TEAM.
November 27th, 2009 at 11:15 PM ^
would work better for this. Sort of how they do it in Joe Louis Arena.
November 27th, 2009 at 11:20 PM ^
Look...if the "halo" wasn't bad enough for you, maybe we could drape christmas lights off the facade of the luxury boxes. That would go nicely with the piped-in techno music.
Personally, I was concerned that the stadium renovations wouldn't look good...but they look great. The muted blue facades with the small "michigan stadium" is perfect. Tradition is still important; even if we now blast Neil Diamond in between plays.
November 27th, 2009 at 11:24 PM ^
I'd like to see this inside the concourses - hang the years/jerseys from the ceiling as you walk around the sections, maybe in chronological order?
Does this make sense to anyone outside my head?
November 28th, 2009 at 1:15 AM ^
I think it would be nice to take a Yost-like approach: photos of key players over the years displayed in a concourse area. Yost has A LOT of players and coaches, and it doesn't diminish the team concept nor does it cheapen our tradition--if anything it creates a 'living museum' to UM Hockey within Yost. I prefer this to any number of 'retired' jerseys or names & years of All-Americans, etc., painted in the bowl or on the suites.
November 28th, 2009 at 2:14 AM ^
Similar to the pictures hanging in the concourse at Crisler.
Speaking of Crisler, when I was in there the last time, it looked to me like they took those ancient pictures of Big 10 championship football teams out from above the doors leading to the parking lot. Maybe I was looking in the wrong section, but they looked to have been removed. It was always kind of random they were up there, but it was still kind of cool.