"Spending the weekend in Ann Arbor": a great piece from 11W
Eleven Warriors has a wonderful write-up about the Penn State game here. Some hits:
Michigan is not broken, nor is it going anywhere at any point in the near future. Though the current caretakers aren't living up to the high standards heaped upon them, the likelihood of the program as a whole sliding toward eternal mediocrity is unlikely. With hundreds of thousands of living alumni, the tradition of "Michigan" is bigger than any one person.
I had honestly not cared who won the game, but was excited afterwards that the home crowd had pulled it out, regardless of how painful it had been to watch. Ann Arbor is a fun town, much the same way Madison, Bloomington, and State College are, and the victory gave the streets an adrenaline boost.
But even if I had been wearing a Braxton Miller jersey, I have a feeling that no one would've cared. That night wasn't about the rivalry with Ohio State, just like it wasn't about Dave Brandon. That night belonged to the thousands of Wolverine fans ready to forget about that for a little while.
Undoubtedly today the rumors will strike up again, and the fans and media alike will speculate about who might move into Hoke's current office in a few months. But for one weekend, Michigan fans got to feel like winners again.
Here's the full link: http://www.elevenwarriors.com/11w/2014/10/41694/too-big-to-fail-spendin…;
October 13th, 2014 at 12:17 PM ^
Well, yeah. Wearing an OSU jersey in Ann Arbor is a different (and less dangerous) experience compared to wearing a Michigan jersey in Columbus. That is obvious.
October 13th, 2014 at 12:18 PM ^
It's hard to believe we've sunk to the level of pity pieces from sympathetic OSU writers.
Never thought I'd see that day.
October 13th, 2014 at 1:04 PM ^
Because for the last 7 years or so, about every couple weeks, a clever OSU fan finds great humor in proclaiming "we need Michigan to be good, for the sake of the Big Ten". I"m not sure if you call that "pity", but I definitely find it to be less-than-genuine. MSU fans have even gotten on that bandwagon. Can't blame them though, I guess. Just part of the college fandom equation.
October 13th, 2014 at 1:04 PM ^
I didnt consider the story pity. It was more a statement about how magical college football can still be and how the pulse of UM football is still there, under a lot of scaffolding. But the throwaway line of how it is like their 2011 is not accurate - it is like how we felt maybe after Bo's 6-6 years (1984?) ... having 1 down year in a huge string of success is a very different thing than going through what we are going through now.
But to your larger point I think UM is getting difficult to hate but for all but the most hardcore OSU fans. When you've become this dominant in the series its fun for them I guess, but not in the old ways when beating a very good to elite team was a mass of emotion.
Right now OSU to UM is a lot like what MSU was to UM in the Bo/Lloyd era. One is the ball of yarn, and one is the cat. Every so often the ball of yarn strikes at you out of the blue but most years it is just a thing to be played with. But the ball of yarn is difficult to hate as it acts so mediocre for so long. It's more of a fanciful amusement than actual threat.
October 13th, 2014 at 1:46 PM ^
Yeah, not really getting the "pity" vibe. It's mostly about how great the gameday atmosphere is in Ann Arbor and how people are bothered by the AD and the team's direction but aren't raving lunatics about it. Honestly, I rather fans be unhappy in a civil manner than send death threats and launch attacks at coaches and administrators like we've seen in other places. That isn't some high-minded morality stance, but just a bit refreshing that the people who post on the internet might not represent the full degree of unbridled anger in Ann Arbor.
October 13th, 2014 at 12:20 PM ^
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
October 13th, 2014 at 12:24 PM ^
No, I don't think so. I thought I read someone saying there was a visiting Lacrosse team wearing their red team colors at the game. Brandon probably gave them free tickets.
October 13th, 2014 at 12:26 PM ^
get 2 free cokes with those tickets?
October 13th, 2014 at 12:52 PM ^
I was curious what their deal was. I thought it was either a group of OSU fans or a group of Michigan fans doing some kind of protest.
October 14th, 2014 at 12:36 AM ^
October 13th, 2014 at 12:52 PM ^
Around Section 16 or so. They looked to be a team of some sort.
October 13th, 2014 at 1:00 PM ^
They were collecting donations on the golf course prior to the game.
October 13th, 2014 at 1:47 PM ^
they were sitting right in front of my sons tickets.
Go Blue!
October 13th, 2014 at 3:23 PM ^
Ha. Well, I did see several groups of kids from a wrestling program in Monroe -- so, there was more than one group of red in that stadium (provided they actually went to the game). But yeah, that group in red in Section 16 was very visible from where I was sitting (in 17).
October 13th, 2014 at 12:20 PM ^
rather, it seemed pretty well reasoned and objective. I also think its accurate.
October 13th, 2014 at 12:20 PM ^
Link at the top works, link at the bottom has some random text appended to the end of the URL.
October 13th, 2014 at 12:22 PM ^
I was in Ann Arbor on Saturday from 11 AM to 1 AM .......... if an alien was visiting the United States and was trying to understand why college football is so popular with so many Americans, there couldn't have been a better atmosphere for explaining that than Ann Arbor on Saturday.
The atmosphere was simply glorious. Sunny skies and 60 degrees during the day, descending into early autumn chill once the sun went down. A visitjng school that brought a significant number of fans (it's always a bit more fun when the visiting school has a noticeable presence). Two fanbases who are dedicated and loyal to their teams. Two fanbases that were able to interact with each other and enjoy an October afternoon.
The football was not high-quality (it was likely the lowest quality game among the 18 historical Penn State/Michigan match-ups), but it was regardless a fully enjoyable day.
I know both our fan-bases have had some rough times over the last several years (for wildly different reasons). But it was nice to have a 100% FUN day --- drinking beer and tailgating and eating good food and talking and watching football, as opposed to talking about boycots and concussions and NCAA sanctions and Freeh Reports.
That's why I am a fan (and I think that's why most of you are too) --- because being a college football fan is supposed to be FUN.
Anyway, thanks for being good hosts, and God willing, see you all again in Ann Arbor in 2016 (and you guys in State College in 2015)!
October 13th, 2014 at 12:28 PM ^
+1 to you good sir.
By the way, what does "nittany" mean?
October 13th, 2014 at 12:32 PM ^
It's the hills around the college.... It's just like a local regional reference.
October 13th, 2014 at 12:38 PM ^
Mt. Nittany, for anyone who has been to State College, is pretty noticable from a geographical point-of-view. Rises up sharply from the surrounding valley, and stands alone as a single mountain ridge that continues on a few dozen miles to the northeast.
October 13th, 2014 at 4:48 PM ^
You used to be able to see Mt. Nittany from inside the stadium until they added the second end zone upper deck. Lot of people were not happy about that. But $$ rules all, and not just at Michigan.
October 13th, 2014 at 5:09 PM ^
I can remember the days when it wasn't there. Honestly, it was a better setting back then (IMO).
I'm not sure how true this story is (it does smell somewhat apocryphal), but supposedly some relative of James Beaver's donated a whole bunch of $$$ to Penn State with the caveat that the in-stadium view of Mount Nittany never be obscured. Once she died, PSU waited about 2 years then went forward with construction.
But as you said, it's ultimately all about the dollars.
October 13th, 2014 at 12:34 PM ^
October 13th, 2014 at 12:54 PM ^
Was an old wooden ship from days of yore.
October 13th, 2014 at 12:43 PM ^
Fun is a good word. It was a beautiful day, and while the game didn't have a super-intense seriousness it might have if more was on the line, the general impression I got was that everyone was having a good time and enjoying the fact that Michigan was keeping it competitive. The band at halftime was great too, and what else needs to be said about Norfleet's dancing?
We were right next to a couple of super-nice PSU fans and there was a a lot of fun "both our teams suck" gallows humor being traded back and forth, but all in good fun.
October 13th, 2014 at 1:04 PM ^
but I was also in Ann Arbor for PSU/U-M games in all of 1994, 2000, 2005 and 2009 (showing my age here).
Those years were different in that the games mattered more (in the cases of 1994 & 2005, those games REALLY mattered), but from my perspective those years were the same in terms of fan behavior, interactions, and general atmosphere. Point being, Saturday was not an anamoly, from my point of view.
For those that remember --- 1994, wow, what an unbelievable game and atmosphere that was. Weather that Saturday was almost exactly like this past Saturday. To this day, it remains the highest-quality college football game I've seen live. Hard to believe that was 20 years ago Wednesday.
October 13th, 2014 at 4:52 PM ^
Penn State fans tore down the goalposts when they won in Ann Arbor . . . in their own stadium back at State College. I'd say 1994 mattered.
October 13th, 2014 at 5:26 PM ^
they weren't actually torn down. Penn State officials actually left a "spare" set of goalposts outside of Beaver Stadium (that the students found and then marched around town). They did this because of 1990 .........
In 1990, Penn State defeated then #1 Notre Dame in South Bend. So the students went out to Beaver Stadium, broke into the stadium, and tore down the goalposts.
Now ........ how to get the goalposts outside the stadium.
The first idea was to pass the goalposts up the stands to throw over the top of the stadium (!!!!!). Thankfully, a better solution was found --- some hacksaws were procured and the goalposts were sawed apart and THEN left the stadium to be marched around town (in various pieces).
I wasn't in State College for 1990 or 1994, but I love stories like that and how they are part of college football.
October 13th, 2014 at 12:57 PM ^
A big RV was parked by and we chatted up the Penn State cheerleaders who stopped by to see them. Only one jackass Penn State guy swore at me when I said "welcome", but there's always a few.
There's a great article in the Daily Collegian (Penn State's paper) about how the students had a good time in Ann Arbor and the people were nice to them. Good to hear. I don't know how to link the article.
October 13th, 2014 at 8:51 PM ^
There is a "link" button at the top of the comment box. You can also just paste the link in the box. Here's the story:
http://www.collegian.psu.edu/football/article_caea1fca-5264-11e4-9bdd-0…
October 13th, 2014 at 12:26 PM ^
Since when do allumni/adults go there?
October 13th, 2014 at 12:30 PM ^
I stopped going when I turned 21. Nostalgia's one hell of a drug, I guess...
October 13th, 2014 at 12:37 PM ^
I always felt like Rick's had the reputation of the place you went when you were actually 21, and Skeeps was the place you left behind. Honestly, does anyone go to Skeeps and actually show a legitimate ID?
October 13th, 2014 at 12:49 PM ^
Rick's was the bar that served underaged students. I see that's changed now. Weird.
October 13th, 2014 at 12:53 PM ^
From what I heard from undergrad friends, AAPD cracked down on Skeeps last year welcome week. Officers were ID'ing people in line instead of the staff because of how notorious that place is. Not sure how it came about but the atmosphere moved more toward the 21+ crowd after that.
October 13th, 2014 at 1:09 PM ^
October 14th, 2014 at 10:45 AM ^
I went to Dooley's with some friends, all underage and no fake ID's. I showed my license, which was the old New York state license with no picture and no lamination, just a piece of heavier stock paper. After my friends showed their ID's, the bouncer called me back, looked at my ID then stamped me as 21+. I guess Dooley's needed someone in our group to buy the beer.
October 13th, 2014 at 12:35 PM ^
I went to Rick's exactly once. Got dragged in there on a Wednesday night in the middle of summer, ten minutes before last call.
You can't unsee what happens when they turn on the lights at the end of the night at Rick's. Even on a dead night. Yikes.
October 13th, 2014 at 4:56 PM ^
You go back to re-live old times. It's not like you're hanging out there.
October 13th, 2014 at 12:32 PM ^
October 13th, 2014 at 12:33 PM ^
This is a good article, written by someone who is clearly used to hating us but by now is kind of standing back going "well, what do I do now?" It's certainly not pity, but curiosity. He makes some observations about college football at a major institution (it could very well be any struggling, historically excellent program) which suggest that the tradition behind the team simply has too much steam to be killed, no matter how grim the short term situation is. The fans are unhappy, but we are still here. Our current leadership may get vanquished, but the essence of what Michigan is will be intact. I think that the fans, more than anything else, are the continuous lifeblood of Michigan football. The players and coaches determine the success of the team at any given point in time, but I think the fans provide the base, generation in and generation out, upon which everything is built.
October 13th, 2014 at 12:38 PM ^
That's a dangerous attitude to me, though. It's the attitude that DB has, which has gotten us where we are. "They will keep showing up and being fans no matter what we do to them, so let's bleed them dry."
We will be there, but there is a line, and it seems for a lot of people, we are approaching that line.
October 13th, 2014 at 3:16 PM ^
That line will be next year if DB is still here. Even the craziest of the crazies that still renewed thier season tickets this year willi say forget it if he's still here next year, and I don't blame them.
October 13th, 2014 at 4:13 PM ^
October 14th, 2014 at 9:50 PM ^
I wasn't calling you out or anything. I just have heard that type of talk a lot, and I would have believed it up until recently. I was just saying that DB has been putting this thought to the test, and, well, we're learning that even an undying devotion to Michigan and all her ways is no match for corporate and institutional greed.
October 13th, 2014 at 12:37 PM ^
WisWolverine. Or well reiterated...
October 13th, 2014 at 12:38 PM ^
This is pretty much exactly how I felt the entire day. Didn't care about all the BS surrounding the program. Just enjoyed my day and lost my voice at the game. Even elbowed my GF in the face when I jumped up on the goal line sack of Hackenberg. It was great.
October 13th, 2014 at 12:38 PM ^
Okaaaayyyyy. Not sure I like having Ann Arbor compared to that place.