Toledo Blade article on the first UM vs ND game
There was a nice article in the Blade on the first Notre Dame Michigan football game which occured in 1902 in Toledo, Ohio. Here is the link. The article is too long to post but was an interesting read.
http://www.toledoblade.com/local/2012/12/30/Notre-Dame-made-its-mark-in…
December 31st, 2012 at 7:15 PM ^
Is this the game we taught them how to play football?
December 31st, 2012 at 7:27 PM ^
The article notes that a couple of Michigan football player taught the game to ND in 1887. ND had been playing for 10 years when this game happened.
December 31st, 2012 at 8:43 PM ^
I read somewhere (perhaps in John Kryk's great Natural Enemies) that Michigan counts the 1887 game as an official contest between the two schools. Notre Dame does not.
December 31st, 2012 at 10:52 PM ^
I'm pretty sure both schools count it, because we both recognize the same all-time number of games played in the series (40). There is nothing in this wiki article to suggest otherwise.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michigan–Notre_Dame_football_rivalry#1887:_Michigan_teaches_the_game_to_Notre_Dame
December 31st, 2012 at 8:58 PM ^
You would believe that was a win for nd reading the article.......but if their biggest win of the era was a 23-0 loss as well as the consecutive losses...well now...
I like how some would discredit the early dominance of the 1900's but when they try to make nd look good suddenly Michigan was the superbowl champs and little nd stood up to them....always entertaining to see the writen biases.
December 31st, 2012 at 11:37 PM ^
Your title is incorrect. This wasn't the first Michigan-ND game. That was in 1887. The 1902 game was just the first time they were (somewhat) competitive against us. Apparently, they view the '02 game as a turning point in their program's history.
January 1st, 2013 at 9:52 AM ^
From the article: "And to think: All this fuss over a 23-0 Notre Dame loss."
Some things never change.
January 1st, 2013 at 11:11 AM ^
I hope they can celebrate so much after a loss to the tide
January 1st, 2013 at 12:29 PM ^