When was Michigan's last non-televised football game?
Of course it has happened in my memory--I used to listen to non-televised games on the radio with my Dad, and in the mists of time we used to target non-televised games to attend for our one game a year. But at least as far back as 1997 non-TV games were practically a distant memory (I remember this because there was an article about senior ND QB Ron Powlus, the one-time wunderkind of whom the article remarked, "His every game has been on national television." Reading that, I worked back through 1994 and was pretty sure that at the very least almost every Michigan game had been televised in some way in that time period).
Obviously no B1G team goes un televised anymore, but Michigan has always been one do the bigger tv draws. Anyone know what game was the last one seen only in-Stadium?
September 15th, 2014 at 8:15 PM ^
1994 at Purdue.
I have highlights of that game but they are from the pressbox, maybe coach's film, with a narrator.
September 15th, 2014 at 8:21 PM ^
You're amazing. Even before I clicked on the thread, I knew you'd have the answer.
September 15th, 2014 at 8:42 PM ^
September 15th, 2014 at 9:15 PM ^
Amen brother. We need to maintain our strict policy of being complete assholes to each other and not ever, under any circumstances, saying anything that could be construed as "nice" or "uplifting" in any way. No comments should be made that could result in a fellow poster ever feeling good about themselves no matter how informative or helpful they might be.
I'll go first.
September 15th, 2014 at 9:26 PM ^
Like that?
September 15th, 2014 at 9:06 PM ^
September 15th, 2014 at 9:12 PM ^
I wasn't born until the following year. July 1995
September 15th, 2014 at 9:16 PM ^
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September 15th, 2014 at 9:27 PM ^
I'm a graphic design major, man. All our work is done in the studio/computer lab.
September 16th, 2014 at 12:04 AM ^
WD is not to be disturbed---he's busy at his life's calling, designing uniformz.
September 15th, 2014 at 11:12 PM ^
September 16th, 2014 at 9:07 AM ^
My son was born in June 97. I feel old now.
September 15th, 2014 at 9:59 PM ^
September 15th, 2014 at 10:22 PM ^
And here's your correct answer. PASS tape-delayed the Michigan-Memphis game in 1995.
From the Michigan Daily:
September 15th, 2014 at 10:33 PM ^
So you're saying it was televised. A day later, but still televised.
The Purdue game in 1994 was not televised. No tape delay, no nothing.
September 15th, 2014 at 10:43 PM ^
The game was not televised live. For those of us who tuned in at 10PM that night, we already knew Michigan won big. In the 90s, that's how things happened.
But, hey, if you want to split hairs because you're the expert, fine with me.
September 15th, 2014 at 10:56 PM ^
While televised late, the game was still televised (and yes, we all knew the score before it aired, which sucked!).
September 16th, 2014 at 11:22 AM ^
It seems like in this instance WD is technically correct, which is the best correct to be.
BD is practically correct, but that's not technically correct.
September 16th, 2014 at 11:32 AM ^
Calling a game that was tape-delayed on PASS as "televised" is like saying that after you spent some quality time with the SI cover that you "had sex" with Kate Upton.
September 15th, 2014 at 10:35 PM ^
George Perles was a commentator?? Haha, oh boy...
Could you imagine John L. Smith or D'Antonio covering one of our games???
September 15th, 2014 at 11:11 PM ^
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September 16th, 2014 at 12:21 PM ^
Great find. It's funny because it seemed like a pretty fun game (45-23).
September 15th, 2014 at 8:11 PM ^
I'm pretty sure we weren't on TV on Sept. 6th 2014.
September 15th, 2014 at 9:51 PM ^
September 16th, 2014 at 6:59 AM ^
September 15th, 2014 at 8:13 PM ^
I remember in 1995 I was out doing some work in a neighborhood in Albuquerque and a couple of friends drove by telling me that Michigan was beating the hell out of Ohio State (Biakabutuka game). I went crazy because I really wasn't paying attention to that game - OSU was supposed to walk all over us. One of my friends joked that I was about to start knocking on everyone's doors to see if I might stumble on someone with satellite TV, which not too many folks had in those days. That doesn't answer your question, but back then I don't believe that all the games were televised. Not the case in 1997, when I could go to the sports bar down the street and watch every game.
September 15th, 2014 at 8:17 PM ^
as per WolverineHistorian
September 15th, 2014 at 8:25 PM ^
September 15th, 2014 at 11:32 PM ^
September 15th, 2014 at 11:18 PM ^
i had my phd comprehensives the following week. i was warm watching it on TV.
September 15th, 2014 at 8:19 PM ^
September 15th, 2014 at 8:20 PM ^
While I dont know the answer to your question I do know that back in the Paleozoic era when I was in school there were limits on how often a team could appear on TV in a given year. Once. That was it until 1977 - you got to see your team once a year on TV and once only. And until 1981 all games were on ABC except for the bowl games.
I dont remember ever seeing a Michigan - Michigan State game on TV because ABC usually waited for the OSU game to televise us. Man have times changed (for the extreme better BTW).
September 15th, 2014 at 9:24 PM ^
I'm stupid and don't know how to embed but here's a link to a great Wolverine Historian montage of TV intros from the Stone Ages. I especially like the Tron-like ones from early to mid 80s. Anyway, there was a whole lot of Ufer going on back in the day out of necessity, which led to some pretty cool memories serendipitously.
September 15th, 2014 at 9:51 PM ^
September 15th, 2014 at 11:17 PM ^
There was also a period of time when MSU couldn't be on TV because they were on probation. Woody turned 'em in to the NCAA.
Funny story, met a guy from that MSU team that got nailed at a tailgate in the Blue Lot a few years back before the MSU game. He showed me his Big 10 championship ring, bragged he was on an MSU championship team. Saw the date on the ring, and calmly asked him how he liked the Rose Bowl. He didn't take it well.
September 16th, 2014 at 7:01 AM ^
September 15th, 2014 at 8:22 PM ^
Luckily, here in Florida I was able to NOT see the HORROR. Never have I been so contented by the lack of coverage for a Michigan game.
September 16th, 2014 at 7:17 AM ^
I didn't have to unsee that game too - just the blcoked field goal, over and over and over again.
September 15th, 2014 at 8:24 PM ^
September 15th, 2014 at 8:32 PM ^
Well there were those two years when BTN was available in like 5 houses... does that count?
September 15th, 2014 at 8:47 PM ^
I don't think it does really, but remember that those five houses saw, as their first live BTN event telecast, some school from North Carolina play a #5 Michigan team and, well.....*drinks*.
In all seriousness though, I don't think Comcast (my provider) resolved their BTN contract much before 2008 or so.
September 15th, 2014 at 9:19 PM ^
September 15th, 2014 at 8:32 PM ^
in the 80's that limited schools to 2 home game broadcasts per year.
September 16th, 2014 at 12:13 PM ^
When the NCAA lost an antitrust lawsuit brought by Oklahoma and Georgia. Back then every school thought it was going to be able to sell its games on pay-per-view; what shook out was not quite that.
Up to 1983, the NCAA made the college football TV contracts, which limited the number of times any one team could be on TV.
Of course, ESPN, with its desperate need to fill all the airtime it had, didn't exist until 1981.
September 15th, 2014 at 8:35 PM ^
September 15th, 2014 at 8:38 PM ^
I think you're thinking of 2010 at Indiana. That game was on ESPNU but probably also on ESPN3.
I remember being annoyed at it being ESPNU because we couldn't find the HD ESPNU channel.
September 15th, 2014 at 8:42 PM ^
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September 15th, 2014 at 8:47 PM ^
September 15th, 2014 at 8:55 PM ^
I didn't get to watch the game vs Ball State in 2006 because we didn't have ESPNU.
Listening to the radio broadcast was very scary. That game got way too close because Carr took out the starters too early IIRC.
The coach of that Ball State team had his team ready to play, that's for sure.
September 15th, 2014 at 11:46 PM ^
A big part of that game was the fact that it was just about as cold as I remember being at the stadium, just about ever. I was in the MMB, singed my glove on one of those sideline space heaters before halftime. Couldn't feel my feet. Hell, we had a blizzard the day before the game. Really, it wasn't as close as the score indicated, even if BSU had a shot at the end. They gave us a scare, but not much of one.