Night Gamez, RAWK Music, and Maize Jerzeyz, yo

Submitted by JeepinBen on

 

Let me start off by saying, I’m not that old. I’m 24 (it feels really old compared to 2 years ago when I was graduating). Some of you might read the title and think “Get Off My Lawn” but that’s not what I’m going for. The more and more I’ve thought about the Notre Dame game this year, the more upset I get. I’ve got tickets, I’m going, I’ll love it… but it won’t feel like Michigan Football. I don’t care at all if we have a Fullback, or play a 4-3, that’s not what I mean. What I mean is the Game-day Experience. Yes, this will be the first night game, yes everyone else has night games, and yes, Prime Time exposure, etc. etc. this really seems like a net positive. But part of me thinks that with the whole thing we’ve sold out. I’m a 3rd Generation Michigan Grad, and I love that when I went to games from 2005-2009, it started just like when my mom and dad when to games in the late 70s, and when my grandparents went in the late 40s/early 50s. The Marching Band formed their block M,

the Fanfare M, they played the Victors, the team came out the Tunnel, and they looked like this:

 - is that Henne? Devin? Leach? 

 - is that Arthur Walker, Paul Seymour, Jon Jansen, Jake Long, or Lewan?

Their seats looked like this:

 

Now, I can’t help but feel that we’re all of a sudden every other team in college football. We’ve got skyboxes (granted, the construction ended up looking great, and I’ve taken the tour, and they’re amazing). We’ve got Lights. We’ve got Special K and we’ve got (allegedly) Maize alternate/throwbacky/cash-grab Jerseys.

So, all the things that I (we?) have claimed to hate throughout the past few seasons we now embody.

Michigan will Take the Field and it will be OMG MAIZE JERZEYS! I CAN BUY JERZEYS?

  

After Michigan takes the field “I Got a Feelin’“ I know what Special K will play (I feel like every time they went to commercial in this game the damn Black Eyed Peas song played, I know that the movie has AC/DC) - Dunno if embedding is working, but Iowa 2009, when Iowa took the field: (link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TsHF31w8-sU&feature=related)

The Fatcats in their Skyboxes will see the numbers, the ratings, the jersey sales and think that this was successful. And what’s next? Our old scoreboards looked like this

Will our new ones look like this?

Again, I’m excited for the night game, I’m going, I’ll love it, and I hope Denard gets 503 yards and we beat ND 77-0 (with at least 1 Mike Martin Pick 6). But part of me really likes that we’re (we were?) different.  I hope to really enjoy the Night Game, but come November, on a Gray Saturday afternoon I’ll bundle up, trudge through snow and slush to my seat which looks like this

to see Michigan play in The Game, hoping the sun peeks through the clouds, and our team will look like this:

And the band will play the Victors and it’ll just feel… right

 

 

Comments

turtleboy

June 5th, 2011 at 1:23 PM ^

that the "throwback" jerseys aren't really throwback jerseys, and that for this "old-fashioned-rivalry" game we'll play our first ever (intended) night game. Feels a tad bi-polar.

jmblue

June 5th, 2011 at 3:11 PM ^

Well, we can't wear exactly the same thing.  Jerseys back then were basically long-sleeved t-shirts, not designed to be worn over heavy pads.  Helmets were smaller and didn't have facemasks.  Also, light-colored jerseys didn't then exist (they were introduced for TV).  Any attempt to wear "throwbacks" is at best an approximation.    

rockydude

June 5th, 2011 at 8:07 PM ^

If the jersey were a brighter yellow that really matched the helmet, along with blue pants, that might look pretty good. I can't do the all yellow pants and jerseys together though. We'll look like a bunch of bananas or something. But the yellow jersey isn't that bad. I expected the worst, but it might be doable . . . 

But her top is unacceptable. She should take it off right now.

justingoblue

June 5th, 2011 at 1:39 PM ^

I agree. It'll  be at night, if they want throwbacks, lengthen the sleeves and be done with it. I can think of more fans wanting an authentic 1948 jersey (M #1 ND #2 AP with a bit of controversy) than the crap we've come to expect for this game.

Another idea, trot them out in 1948 numbers (only one that's retired from that team is 11, I don't know if they used other, now retired numbers for other players on the team), that'd be something different that might also sell.

Edit: They did not, leaving a total of one player needing to wear a non-authentic throwback number.

ryebreadboy

June 5th, 2011 at 1:44 PM ^

I agree with this.  Game Day is absolutely an experience unlike any other.  That's why I always try to make it to two a year.  Sure, the night game will be AN experience, but it won't be the same experience.  I suppose I wouldn't argue with one a season, but there's something to be said for trekking down to the stadium at 10am, and all the paraphernalia that already comes with game day.  I know they call it modernizing, and to some extent it was necessary, but it's all starting to feel a little bit like selling out.

Genzilla

June 5th, 2011 at 1:47 PM ^

As much as the stadium, jersey's, and hard-nosed style are part of Michigan's history so is winning.  You could even say that winning is the most important of those things.  For some of us, the tradition and distinctiveness is why we love UM, but for many of the top recruits, it's a lot more about the sex appeal of the school.  I think it is possible for us to find the proper balance of tradition and sexiness, but it will be harder for us than many other schools with our fanbase.

gater

June 5th, 2011 at 1:48 PM ^

I remember when my dad complained about us going away from natural grass to the turf grass. Said real football was played on grass (even though we played on astro turf in the past). I told him it would be fine and he would get used to it. He now loves the stuff because it doesn't come up in 12" sections and we don't have people out on the field stomping down divets during timeouts. Just like that, this will be fine.

Blue since birth

June 5th, 2011 at 1:50 PM ^

I have no interest in seeing the uniforms messed with... And the "hype music" is lame.

Just about everything else mentioned is awesome IMO.

Night games (and lights)

Skyboxes

New scoreboard (although hope it isn't overused on ads)

yoopergoblue

June 5th, 2011 at 1:52 PM ^

I wish everyone would get their panties in a bunch about wearing an alternate/throwback jersey for ONE GAME.  I really don't think it's that big of a deal and we'll be back to our regulars the next week.  We are not Oregon or Boise State with those Nike monstrosities every week.  Relax everyone.

Vacuous Truth

June 5th, 2011 at 2:12 PM ^

maybe this is how it starts? can we expect there to be a home game like this every year? DB hasn't promised otherwise.

And if we desperately had to wear a "throwback" (even tho, as mentioned, we already wear throwbacks) why couldn't it have been on the road? i just don't like the idea of messing w/ the home jerseys

champswest

June 5th, 2011 at 2:51 PM ^

I have never liked them (on other teams) and I especially don't like them on us.  We have one of the best uniforms in all of sports.  Why mess it up with some kind of patched together look?  After the game, will anyone say "Wow, those were cool uniforms"?

By the way, one of the features of this board is the right to state our opinions.  So, if we want to get our undies in a bundle, we will.  And I am perfectly relaxed.

ak47

June 5th, 2011 at 2:11 PM ^

I am a fan of all the michigan tradition I really am.  But for everyone who bashes oregon (yes I agree its stupid too) they are winning.  Kids are looking at and going to oregon because of the jerseys.  Recruits like prime time, they like night games and higher ratings mean more national exposure.  All of these things help winning.  Maybe I am a sell out, but I'll suffer through what should be an awesome experience in the night game if it means trading in a small bit of tradition for winning because at the end of the day isn't winning michigans most important tradition?

Vacuous Truth

June 5th, 2011 at 2:15 PM ^

even without the things you mentioned above, BH and co. have done a pretty good job of recruiting. i don' t think a maize jersey with stripes on the shoulders and a beaver on the front is going to make many HS kids change their minds.

and who knows, maybe if we don't conform to the newly-popular night games/cool jerzeyz/rawk music, we can draw some recruits by pointing out how old school we are. i don't think the traditions at michigan are a huge hinderance on our recruiting potential.

ak47

June 5th, 2011 at 3:06 PM ^

Yes we still recruit fine but that doesnt meen we couldn't do better.  Hoke has been killing it with the mid-west kids and thats great but its not going to be every year that we can count on a strong class from the mid-west and things like night games are how you gain the national exposure necessary to recruit on a national level (I know we are currently in on some california guys but I think thats a lot of Hoke being at SDSU and we haven't actually landed any of them).  Also it might be just me but if done right I think maize jerseys in a night game could look amazing (no pun intended). 

ErikS

June 8th, 2011 at 12:36 AM ^

I want a night game a year too, and for selfish reasons.  As a season ticket holder from out of state, it is a major ordeal for me to haul my ass to AA from NY for games, so I do it right for the 4 or so games I decide to attend.  I am at the golf course when it opens, tailgate as long as possible, wrap it up and get to the stadium before kickoff.  Then afterwards, I may get another hour while traffic thins out.  The experience is over all too soon, especially later in the season when we kick off early.  I am sooo excited to be able to enjoy the day with my fellow tailgaiters.  I will grill at least 3 times, play some bag toss (hate calling it cornhole), toss the ball, watch the early games (we bring a 48' screen), and basically enjoy the entire day of Michigan Football.  This makes up for the one guaranteed bad weather game I attend every season (still hate you Northwestern game).

turtleboy

June 5th, 2011 at 3:03 PM ^

veto the stadium music and smoke machines. The Iowa video made me smh. Me no likey. I'm fine without a goofy foam mascot and the team running out of a giant inflatable moon bounce.

jmblue

June 5th, 2011 at 3:20 PM ^

I agree to an extent.  It will be weird having a game at night, instead of during the day.  Having said that, some of the traditions you allude to aren't as old as you think.  I believe the "M Fanfare" has only been played as part of the pregame show for about 20 years, for instance.  Likewise, the "Temptation" teaser did not become the third-down defensive stop song until about the mid-'90s, and "Let's Go Blue!" was written in the '70s (and was originally just played at hockey games).  So for the first century of our football program's existence, these were not part of the gameday experience.  They are late-20th century innovations.

Also, while many forget this, the traditional kickoff time for Michigan games was not noon, but 1:00 p.m.  The 12:00 and 3:30 kickoff times were a TV innovation.  As recently as the 1980s, when not all of our games were televised, we still played a lot of 1:00 games.  Even beyond that, we sometimes played OSU at 1:00.  The introduction of 3:30 kickoffs was itself a major departure from tradition, with games ending in darkness; the new night games are simply pushing that further. 

JeepinBen

June 5th, 2011 at 4:04 PM ^

I'm less worried about the start time, and more worried about the Jerseys and Special K... 

I like most of the subtle additions to the tradition through the years. The defining moment of my freshman year was under the lights at a 3:30pm start (The New Math.) We'll see how much of everything goes into this game

WolverineHistorian

June 5th, 2011 at 5:13 PM ^

The band has been playing the 'M Fanfare' for pregame much longer than 20 years.  I have game tapes from the 70's where you can hear them playing it in the background.  I believe it was written in the early 60's.  Temptation and Hawaiian War Chant became traditions in the 50's but you're right, it wasn't until the mid 90's that Temptation became the 3rd down stop cheer in the stands. 

Everything else, spot on.  Before all teams had their games broadcast on TV, 1:00 start times was the norm.  From what I have read, the entire decade of the 70's had 1:00 start times.  The only night games was when blue traveled to the west coast.

Bando Calrissian

June 5th, 2011 at 5:50 PM ^

M Fanfare was arranged in the 1950's for the pregame show, though the Fanfare M didn't become standard until the 1970's.  Previously, the band folded out into a chevron shape for the Fanfare and transitioned into the M for The Victors.  The pregame show has been revamped a number of times over the years, though there have been several more drastic overhauls than others.  The last major one came in the late 90's, as I recall, though it wasn't particularly drastic.  Everything since then has been largely the same show with only slight tweaks (basically for the change in the team's entrance post-9/11).

Temptation and War Chant were arranged in the late 50's, but War Chant was played in a much different arrangement as early as around 1951, with the band making a hula girl complete with skirt who would sway her hips as they played.  It was a hokey-sounding arrangement far more akin to the original song.

I seem to recall Temptation being used for 3rd down stops in the late 80s-early 90s.

Michigan248

June 5th, 2011 at 3:22 PM ^

I understand this argument I really do but you have to think outside the box on this. whats tradition if most the country cant watch our games? If your not in the EST then chances are you may not be up in time for Michigan games especially high school students on the west coast. Alot of people in the football world do not believe Michigan is the school it once was. We have to shake it up, Im not suggesting we play all night games but once a year one home game why not? I might get alot of negative feedback on this but so what Im tired of people saying this kind of stuff or stuff like is Hoke a michigan man because he doesnt wear a hat on the sidelines? Les Miles does and he choose not to come back to Michigan twice. I believe all this crying is doing is creating negative vibes through out our great university, how about from now on we support Michigan no matter what and not bitch about it.

WolverineHistorian

June 5th, 2011 at 3:45 PM ^

I understand the desire for tradition.  But I don't think this one game will make such a dramatic change that we see nothing but night games and crappy throwback jerserys that were never worn in the first place. 

I've always dreamed of a night game at the big house.  On TV, I watch all other college football teams across the country have night games and the atmosphere and excitement among the fans looks incredible.  Our fans deserve to experience that too in the biggest and most beautiful stadium in America. 

I've lost count of how many of our opponents have chosen or worked to get us as their night game.  Nearly every team in the Big Ten has done that this past decade.  Northwestern once scheduled us for a night game despite the fact it was their Homecoming!  It adds to your home field advantage. 

And the fact that it's against Notre Dame?  Perfection.  A hated rival with a fan base that still spends the majority of their time kissing their own asses despite the fact their progam hasn't been relevant since 1993.  Notre Dame scheduled their first ever night game against us in 1982.  They were a crappy team led by a crappy coach, Jerry Faust.  This is a man who could easily get outcoached by Charlie Weis.  (ND was the only school in the country arrogant enough to hire him based on the fact that he was a dominant HIGH SCHOOL coach.)  On that night, they beat us 23-17.  I think it's only fitting that we get a little long overdue payback.

My advice to you is to stop thinking too much. Go to the game and just see how it feels to watch the band form the block M and watch the team run under the banner under a night sky.  I'm positive you'll feel the same goosebumps you do for a regular day game.  And embrace the fact that you'll be a part of history. 

I personally would sell my soul to go to this game.  I have a few connections that might be able to hook me up with tickets but seeing that they're going to cost a fortune, I just can't afford it.  So I need you to scream extra loud for me.  And don't stress out about the tradition changing.  Michigan will still be Michigan after this game. 

unWavering

June 5th, 2011 at 4:42 PM ^

Keep in mind that the traditions you refer to needed to start somewhere.  Yes, I agree that the hype music is annoying at best.  But trust me, we don't want to have the stadium/scoreboards from 1887.  People don't like change, but what they don't realize is that the things they loved before the changes were things that replaced other, older things. 

rockydude

June 5th, 2011 at 5:14 PM ^

I'm not an undergrad now, or anywhere near it. (class of 94) But one thing I do remember from those days is that rather than having games that were geared toward the students, a lot of the experience was oriented to alums, and older people in general. While that is nice in one way, it is less positive in others. I remember we (students) were always aggravated that our vigorous "waves" always screeched to a halt at the alumni section, or that they were silently sitting on their hands during pivotal third downs. 

Most of the games are still going to be conducted in such a way as to appease the old folks. That being said, what is wrong with a night game or two, where the students and younger generation really get to have a little fun? You know they are going to come in, rowdy as can be, and make some serious noise, and really try and get after the opposition. Before knocking this modest deviation from tradition, let's wait and see. I am thinking this is going to be the loudest game in the history of Michigan Stadium. The young people are really going to let ND have it, and the success might even lead to a new tradition of ND beatdowns in the evening.

BlueHills

June 5th, 2011 at 5:47 PM ^

Tradition!

I hate to break this news, but change is a constant, even at Michigan. Even at Stadium and Main.

When I was at Michigan, women weren't allowed on the field. We had an all-male cheerleading squad. We had an all-male band. That changed in the early 70s.

The scoreboards had no video. Hand-operated light bulbs lit up in various ways. Sometimes they'd get it wrong. That's changed.

The yellow color on the uniforms and helmets was a slightly different shade. It had a little more orange in it. That's changed.

Michigan played a variation of the single wing when I was a little kid. The players jumped into position after motion. There were no face masks. The starters played both ways, offense and defense.

Later on, Bo ran the wishbone. He introduced helmet stickers. These things have changed.

When I first saw the Michigan Marching band as a child in the 50s, the band uniforms were different. They were more military, and they didn't have the same shako hats. The hats were more like OSU's hats. The band uniforms didn't have the same colors or trim; they were midnight blue with tan fronts. The little capes were different, too. There were no people running around with flags. That's all changed.

I was a freshman in the fall of 1967. There were womens' sides to dorms and mens' sides to dorms and ne'er the twain did meet. If you had a member of the opposite sex in the room, you had to keep the door open and at least 3 feet had to be on the floor. And they checked (we still got away with sneaking as much sex as possible, but hey, that's kind of hard to do with an open door). Anyway, that's all changed.

On Sundays we were required to wear a jacket and tie to dinner. That was no big deal, because on Friday and Saturday nights when Michigan Men went out, we always wore jackets and ties. Jeans weren't happening on campus in a big way until 1968, The Year All Hell Broke Loose Everywhere. Great year, by the way. Well, obviously that changed, too.

North Campus was new. No one went there except music students and guys in one fraternity that built its house there. There were much smaller buildings. The hospital was about a tenth the size it is now.  I didn't know a single person in the business school. No one wanted to be in business.

I would like to point out that in 1967-8, at MSU, the men even wore jackets and ties to football games. We didn't. So they were even dweebier than we were. We called them Moo U. We felt infinitely superior. I guess that hasn't changed.

My point is that traditions change. No matter who you are, and no matter where you are, things aren't going to stay the same. That's just the simple truth. Sometimes it's hard to accept.

rockydude

June 5th, 2011 at 5:54 PM ^

That's really interesting. Hard to believe how much things have changed in a short period of time. I wonder how different things will be when I am telling someone the tales of life in the early 90s. . . .

BlueHills

June 5th, 2011 at 9:24 PM ^

Ha, I wish it was only a short time ago!

But I had the immense joy of seeing a daughter and a son graduate from Michigan in the past few years (we won't discuss the immense pain of paying those bills!). So I got to see a Michigan that was a bit different from the one I attended.

But I still get a lump in my throat when I hear "The Yellow and the Blue." 

scwolverine

June 5th, 2011 at 5:54 PM ^

get to us.  If indeed the ND game jerseys are Maize...so what?  Enjoy them, embrace them.  Go buy one if you wish.  I think they will look great!  Worried about breaking tradition?  Maize jerseys have been worn before...1964? maybe?  As far as the Rawk music.....turn to page 259-260 of "Bo's Lasting Lessons" about the South Carolina Gamecocks entering the stadium to the theme song from 2001: A Space Odyssey.  His exact quote : "  That is how you take the field.  THAT is college football!  All will be well people.

Taps

June 5th, 2011 at 5:55 PM ^

I can deal with the skyboxes; they helped pay for the amazing renovations.  I can deal with throwback jerseys once a year; god knows I'm gonna buy one.  To not love the new scoreboards is, in my humble opinion, joyless and get-off-my-lawny.

But I would rather make a tragic mistake with my zipper than listen to Seven Nation Army again in Michigan Stadium.

scwolverine

June 5th, 2011 at 5:56 PM ^

get to us.  If indeed the ND game jerseys are Maize...so what?  Enjoy them, embrace them.  Go buy one if you wish.  I think they will look great!  Worried about breaking tradition?  Maize jerseys have been worn before...1964? maybe?  As far as the Rawk music.....turn to page 259-260 of "Bo's Lasting Lessons" about the South Carolina Gamecocks entering the stadium to the theme song from 2001: A Space Odyssey.  His exact quote : "  That is how you take the field.  THAT is college football!  All will be well people.

Bando Calrissian

June 5th, 2011 at 5:58 PM ^

I can pretty much get on board with most anything at Michigan Stadium except advertising and RAWK.  Those two things drive me absolutely up the wall.

I'm not going to like maize jerseys, but I can live with it.  I like the idea of a night game, as long as it isn't more than once per season, and isn't some throwaway nonconference game or against a lesser conference school like Northwestern or Indiana.  I dig helmet stickers.  I'm all for the most technologically awesome scoreboard we can find, after all, Michigan Stadium was the first collegiate stadium in the country with an electronic scoreboard.

But I swear, if I have to sit there at a night game seeing advertisements from Bank of Ann Arbor and Absopure to the sounds of ACDC and Bob Seger, that's too much for me.  

A big piece of Michigan Stadium died for me when the RAWK thing started.  It pisses me off, not just as a former MMB member, but also because I always felt like there were little things that set our stadium apart from the others.  You could come to Michigan Stadium and watch the game, listen to the bands, the sounds of the stadium, feel like you're at a college football game.  There are certain things about our stadium that should be timeless, other things that can change . The in-game atmosphere is one of the former, not the latter.