Michigan vs Purdue 1995 football game

Submitted by Wolverine Devotee on
I've always wondered why the Michigan-purdue game of 1995 was 5-0. I heard there was horrible weather which is indicated by the score. I was wondering if anyone has a video of the game like a WolverineHistorian type video? I'd love to see it.

icefins26

June 22nd, 2011 at 9:41 PM ^

The only thing I remember is driving back from a hockey tournament in heavy snow listening to the game. IIRC it was a freak early November snowstorm.

TheVictors97

June 22nd, 2011 at 9:51 PM ^

All I remember was Will Carr (NT) carrying the ball and fumbling.  May have happened even more than once in that game.  It was so long ago my memory is hazy.  I remember thinking WTF is a nose tackle doing acting as a RB.

TheVictors97

June 22nd, 2011 at 10:12 PM ^

Per The Wolverine Blog:

Carr was so athletic for a big man that Lloyd Carr gave him the chance to be a goal-line running back, and experiment that yielded mixed results. Big Will scored on his first career carry, a three-yard plunge against Michigan State in 1995. However, he was stuffed twice against Purdue that same season, and his only other career carry, at Purdue in 1996, was a disaster. Down 3-0 to the Boilermakers late in the first half, the Wolverines drove from their own 13-yard line down to the Purdue two-yard line. On first-and-goal, Carr fumbled, and Purdue would go on to win 9-3, securing their first victory over U-M since 1982 and ruining the Wolverines’ Rose Bowl hopes. 

 

 

M-Wolverine

June 23rd, 2011 at 12:08 AM ^

Just came off as worded funny. Usually when someone says something was "Per" something, it's usually showing how they were right. But what you put was obvious, so I didn't think you were still mistaken. Just confused by the post.

Indiana Blue

June 23rd, 2011 at 10:11 AM ^

It was cold and wet ... awful sitting there watching your team implode.  After the Carr fumble I was so pissed.  On the way home I called WJR (even though I could even get the radio signal) just so I could vent.  Trust me ... my boys still remember that trip home.  Only now ... they both understand.

Go Blue

g_reaper3

June 22nd, 2011 at 9:45 PM ^

But Lloyd was super conservative as well.  The Purdue coach was real conservative as well.  Purdue couldnt move the ball at all.  I want to say Purdue barely got across midfield just once in the second half.

The next year was actually worse, Michigan lost 9-3 in West Lafayette.

Everyone joked that it was Lloyd (low scoring) Carr in the beginning.  The first two years were rough, 9-4 and 8-4.  Then Michigan had probably its best 3 year stretch in a long time, 12-0, 10-3 and 10-2.  From then on the heat was off until Tressel and the Horror.

michfan6060

June 22nd, 2011 at 9:46 PM ^

I remember watching that game with my dad and him explaining to me how uncommon of a score that was.

blueinsc

June 22nd, 2011 at 9:48 PM ^

it rained, snowed, and sleeted.  and despite wearing long johns, a sweatshirt, time appropriate colorado rockies starter jacket, and a poncho, was absolutely frozen to my core...but stayed for the duration of what could only be described as the ugliest football game i have ever witnessed.

WolverineHistorian

June 22nd, 2011 at 9:54 PM ^

Freezing rain, sleet, snow and a wind chill that reached 20 below.  60% of the field looked like it was dried mud.  And the weather was miserable from kickoff. 

Remy Hamilton missed 2 field goals, normally chip shot FG's for him in normal weather.  We also had an end zone interception, but I can't remember if Griese threw it or if it was a trick play end around pass.  We had 17 first downs to Purdue's 4.  I believe the boilers had one scoring threat all day. 

For the record, I have had over 30 different people email me this past year asking me to upload highlights of this game and I finally got a copy of it 2 weeks ago.  But I give it a C+ in terms of picture quality.  I can still upload it if you'd like.   

karpodiem

June 22nd, 2011 at 10:05 PM ^

hey, what's your email? I have the master broadcasts of a few games from the 2010 season in HD that I think you might like

when it cuts to commercial the camera stays focused on the field (typically on the sidelines) and the announcers audio is still on

you'd be pretty amused by some of Millen's comments from a few of the games.

M-Wolverine

June 23rd, 2011 at 12:36 AM ^

Is it like a 2 minute video?
<br>
<br>I mean I watched Purdue '04 (why was Purdue such a pain in the ass, particularly down there?) earlier, and I think you edited me out. (Though I was never sure if I made it on camera...Mike Hart almost ran me over going left to right, so it would be the reverse for the camera).

WolverineHistorian

June 23rd, 2011 at 1:43 AM ^

I uploaded 04 Purdue 3 years ago.  Almost all my videos from that year are badly edited and rushed.  I was still learning what I was doing.  Eventually, those will all have to be reuploaded. 

As for this game, I can upload more than just the 5 points.  There were other drives that were good but ended with no points.  And that also leaves plenty of room for defense and shots of the crowd, well, freezing to death. 

mGrowOld

June 22nd, 2011 at 9:56 PM ^

That game stands out in my mind for the simple reason that i didnt see it.  I live in Cleveland and tailgate with my brother and a bunch of guys from Michigan right outside of Chrysler.  That particular day I drove 3-4 hours (very bad weather)...parked...walked to the spot the tailgate USUALLY was held...only to see a lot of empty parking spots.  We hudled in the overhang from Chrysler waiting for everybody to show up and for the first and only time in almost 25 years....nobody came.

After consuming what beers we had we decided it was time to head back home.

 

Bando Calrissian

June 22nd, 2011 at 10:02 PM ^

I was supposed to go to that game, but I had the flu and stayed home.  Which ended up being a wash, because my entire family went and came home sick.  

It's still talked about amongst us as the worst weather anybody can ever remember in Michigan Stadium since the 70's.  Just absolutely terrible.  

WolverineHistorian

June 22nd, 2011 at 10:21 PM ^

1988 Minnesota would be ranked just behind.  No sleet or snow but freezing rain through most of the day.  Like 95-Purdue, about half the stadium crowd couldn't take the cold any longer and left after halftime.  It was a late start as well that ended under the portable lights.  In the press conference afterwards, Bo said Michigan would no longer have any 3:30 home games in November under his watch.   

EJG

June 22nd, 2011 at 10:36 PM ^

IIRCC that game started out at near the 70 degree mark then a cold front blew through in the 2nd quarter dropping the temp to near 40 with unbearable wind and rain.  I was in my final year of grad school and came to the game in a t-shirt and left at halftime frozen.  Fortunately I lived on State Street across from Shembechler Hall so it was a quick sprint home to watch the 2nd half on TV.

Bando Calrissian

June 22nd, 2011 at 10:37 PM ^

That's usually in the top 2 or 3 for sure.  Also up there is Boston College '96 (most rain I can remember at a Michigan game), Ball State '07, Northwestern '08.

I just remember standing on top of a bleacher in that BC game watching about 2 or 3 inches of water flowing like Niagara under my seat, and gigantic, deep pools of water in every corner of the field level.  Insane.

jmblue

June 23rd, 2011 at 1:57 AM ^

'92 Illinois is somewhere up there.  That's the snowiest game I've ever seen at Michigan Stadium.  Neither team could hold onto the ball.

What's interesting is that our bad-weather games always seem to occur a week or two before OSU.  For OSU itself, the weather is generally passable (1950 excepted).

TimH

June 22nd, 2011 at 10:10 PM ^

I was at that game.  I remember my clothes getting soaked on the way in and then turning to ice by halftime.  On the plus side, we were able to move way down the bowl by then because so many people had cleared out.

kvnryn

June 23rd, 2011 at 11:04 AM ^

You could pretty much sit wherever you damn well pleased by halftime. My dad and I ended up sitting at about the 40. We moved around a few times just to keep the blood flowing. An awful experience (that I would not trade for anything).

Bocheezu

June 22nd, 2011 at 10:13 PM ^

I came wearing a light coat with a raincoat over it (no idea why).  Either way, no winter hat or gloves.  All I could do was put my hands in the pockets of the raincoat to try and keep them warm, but the pockets were basically filled with ice water from the sleet/snow aspect of things.  I left at the half when I couldn't feel my hands anymore.  I was a freshman and I was woefully unprepared for a lot of games back then, including 95 Northwestern (which was windy/cool and I had a T-shirt and shorts on), Purdue, and BC in the rain the next year. 

Back to the Purdue game -- I just remember a FG in the first half, about a million punts, and a safety in the 2nd half after I went to the Union to warm up.

GoBlue2002

June 22nd, 2011 at 10:35 PM ^

That game was by far the worst weather game I've ever been to. My father and I sat in the sound end zone...What still stands out to me were 20 seconds in the third quarter when the sun came out and the crowd went wild. It was truly an amazing feeling for those who were left in the stadium.

I seem to remember Driesbach playing for Michigan and lots of fumbles and missed field goals with a Michigan safely in the north end zone. I know Mike Alstott was the Purdue back and it seems like they handed off to him 30+ times.

One for the ages...

Helfy

June 22nd, 2011 at 10:41 PM ^

I remember nothing of the game, as nothing much happened.  What I do remember is my jeans freezing in the seated position.  The freezing rain pelted them all game to soak them, and the cold froze them that way.

I also remember the laugh from the crowd when they announced the +100,000 attendance in the second half.

Ace

June 22nd, 2011 at 10:45 PM ^

Crazy game. My dad refused to go -- and take me, at the time far too young to go by myself -- after taking one look outside and checking the weather report in the newspaper. His old college roommate was in town for the game with his kids, decided to brave the elements, and they were all back by halftime. I distinctly remember the roommate's two sons seeking out the nearest heating vents that had a view of the television and sitting on them for the duration of the second half.

That's one I don't even regret not going to, considering the circumstances and the quality of the game.

EGD

June 22nd, 2011 at 10:49 PM ^

My memory is also a bit hazy, but I think the sequence of the weather phenomena was indeed rain, followed by some type of sleet/hail/death ice combination, and then the temperature plunging well below freezing.  I still can't believe I lasted through to the end.

Anyway, I think a major factor in the score ending at 5-0 was the condition of the field.   Keep in mind we still had natural grass at that time.  Between the 20s the field was in very poor condition--muddy, with clods of turf here & there and some standing water.  But inside the 20s it looked like footage of the "no man's land" between the French & German lines in WWI. So, sure enough, the teams were somewhat able to move the ball between the 20s, but whenever somebody would get close enough to possibly score, they would have to deal with the turf monster from hell.  

I distinctly remember the safety.  It came on a play where Purdue snapped it from around the 2-yard-line and Mattison brought #17 Clarence Thomspon on a corner blitz.  I spotted it immediately, but the Purdue QB never did.  

Uferisms

June 22nd, 2011 at 10:55 PM ^

I remember sitting in every part of the stadium as the wind changed.  The stadium was half full at best.  I remember seeing a mom (not dressed for the weather) sitting with her young (probably 10 - 12 year old) son.  Looked like it was his first game and he was really into the game.  She looked totally miserable, but as a good MGoMom, she sat there and let him have his day.   Seems like I was around section 26 at that time.   We ended the game sitting in section 1 (on the 50).  With a couple minutes to go in the game Michigan had the ball right in front of us and I was thinking the only thing that could go wrong was a pick-6.   On the next play the QB rolled out, turned back and threw a swing pass to the other side.  A Purdue defender stepped in front of it and had a sure pick-6, but dropped the pass.   I also remember the D being all over Mike Alstott of Purdue.  He really had no room to run that day.

In remembering other bad weather games (though no where near the Purdue game or some of the others mentioned) was one against Boston College in like 96 or so.  Driving rain coming in sideways.   It was in September though, so the temp was not near what it was in this Purdue game

Yostal

June 22nd, 2011 at 11:07 PM ^

Boston College 1996 is where I earned my first Fan Endurance badge, I'd rate it at a level I*

I only had a barn jacket and I thought I would be fine.  It had rained, and it stopped, so the student section was wet, and I distinctly remember a Marianas Turkey Shoot marshmallow and wet newspaper fight before the game started, back in the day when you used to be able to bring marshmallows to the game.  The first half was relatively dry, occasionally spitting at you, and then halftime hits and all of the sudden, the skies open up and hell rains down upon thee.  But by the middle of the third quarter, the downpour was over, everyone was soaked, and the game eventually ended.

*-We really need to build the Fan Endurance Badge list, complete with graphics, special modifiers (ie the CMU "Return to your cars!" moment), and bonuses for Road Game Fan Endurance (2008 Notre Dame, 1999 Northwestern in the Muck and the Mire, etc.)

M-Wolverine

June 22nd, 2011 at 11:16 PM ^

But the coldest I've ever been in my life. Had a raincoat on because it was POURING, but it didn't matter, because everything got soaked. And it was just above freezing. Then the temperature dropped. Sleet, freezing rain, turning to snow. So we were all forming ice, and there was no where to warm anything.
<br>
<br>The "consecutive" games over 100,000 is a wink-wink situation, because no way were there 100,000 at the game, and by the end there was under 20,000. And most of us were huddled under the old press box. I don't think I warmed up for days. Just wanted the game to end...and wondered what the Hell I was doing there.
<br>
<br>As for the game, I remember a Purdue fan being not that upset over the safety, because he'd give up the 2 points for the field position. And a receiver (Mercury Hayes?) jumping out of bounds, hydroplaning, and sliding on his belly by the seats and drink buckets for like 10 yards.

WolverineHistorian

June 22nd, 2011 at 11:23 PM ^

Here's a few screen caps from the Purdue game.  It looked like a blizzard in the first half.  In the second half, the snow died down but the sleet and wind remained.  There's a shot of the crowd in the 1st quarter and one in the 4th quarter. 

 

jmblue

June 23rd, 2011 at 1:39 AM ^

I'm surprised how many people were there at the kickoff.  I remembered the stadium being a lot more empty than that.  I guess it was fairly full at the beginning.

I cannot fathom how brutal it must have been for those shirtless Purdue fans.  Wow.  I was massively bundled up that day and still was miserably cold and wet.