Your favorite Michigan sports anecdote

Not my favorite UM story, but a funny one:

Several years ago I worked for an advertising organization in Detroit, managing its weekly magazine. Once, I guy called from a local business, wanting to place a classified ad. I had him send me the ad copy, and told him I would call him back with the price. Could I please have his name?

Rob Houghtlin, he answered.

The name rang a bell, and then I remembered why.

I said, Not Rob Houghtlin, who used to play for Iowa, and made that kick that beat Michigan back in the 80's? (1985, to be exact.)

He laughed a little and said, Yes, that's me.

I replied, Don't take this the wrong way, but I'm a UM grad, so I hate your guts.

He laughed hard. He said he gets that reaction a lot, and loves hearing it every time.

I wanted to hate him, but honestly, he seemed like a really nice guy.

The first Michigan satellite camp ever was in Indianapolis in 2015. It was not publicized in Indy (I knew about it from following beat writers). I took the day off of work and took my son. There were hundreds of HS football players.  The entire Michigan coaching staff was there. Nick B was the only media member that I know of and there were a few dozen parents. We were essentially the only fans. We were ten feet from Coach Harbaugh most of the day. We got several signatures from him and lots of face time. Chris Evans was the standout athlete at the camp and committed shortly thereafter. The standout quarterback was none other then Brandon Peters. The cover photo for Nick B’s Mlive article was Harbaugh signing a sports illustrated with his face on it for me with my son inbetween us. That Mlive picture is now framed in my basement in a shadow box next to the signed cover of SI.  Coach was very kind to my son. Interestingly, Durkin was the friendliest assistant to my son as well. The coaching staff was extremely energetic (this was their first satellite camp ever, after all). 

I was drunk out of my mind at Skeeps a few years ago and was leaning up against a wall. De'Veon Smith came up to me looking concerned and said "you good bro?" to which I mustered a "never been better" and then he dapped me up and left.

Two anecdotes from the early- to mid-90s. Really small things, but both stuck with me. 

Freshman year (92-93) and I was going to send a birthday card home to my younger brother. I lived across from a guy on the team, so I asked him if he could get Ty Wheatley to autograph the card--I figured my younger brother would love it. (That was Wheatley's breakout year.) Apparently when presented with the card, which had an oldey-timey sepia portrait of Babe Ruth on the front, Wheatley noted that he "fucking hated" Babe Ruth, or something to that effect. Still gamely signed the card though, so I got to be cool older brother.

The other one was a year later. I was going to Madison for the game in 1993 (had some friends there). To get tickets I once again hit up a guy I knew on the team, and he put me in touch with two players who were willing to part with their allotted tickets (no comment on whether there was a financial transaction involved). We had to pick up the tickets at will-call at Camp Randall. We were convinced that these tickets were meant specifically for family members, so we were really nervous about going up to claim them. You can imagine a couple of white guys from Minnesota walking up to the window after spending the morning practicing how to say "Biakabutuka." Needless to say, we weren't fooling anyone but no one cared either--got our tickets and went to the game. 

Small addendum to the second anecdote: that was the game when the student section rushed the field, resulting in several serious injuries. Because we had will-call tickets we avoided the melee, but had a good vantage point to watch the whole thing go down. 

You mean antidote? 

Surely something must cure me of my affliction. 

I worked at Crisler Arena my last two years in Ann Arbor. One of our duties was to wash all the towels from the basketball and wrestling teams. One day I was supposed to be folding towels, but had a hard time getting back to the bowels of Crisler Arena where the laundry facilities were located. It seems there was a press conference going on, some guy named Schembechler was announcing his retirement. Whilst this was going on, I snuck past security back to the laundry area. It was 2 industrial washers and dryers inside a cage, set back from the hallway. I was folding towels, and after a while I heard someone coming. So, not wanting to get in trouble, I just sat down quietly, hiding behind a counter, and waited. It was Bo. He was finished with his press conference and was exiting out a little-used back stairway. He was by himself. I watched one of the toughest men I knew, John Wayne tough, lean up against a cement pillar and weep. Needless to say, I didn’t ask him for an autograph.

Chris Perry staying on the field to watch OSU celebrate on their victory and the using the memory to fuel every workout the next 365 days.

Then returning and winning!

1. Sneaking into a late 1970s Ohio State game by going through a hole in the fence over by the house that used to stand inside the fence on Main Street;

2.  Watching Paul Seal walk across the diag in the dead of winter in his ankle-length black maxi coat - one mean-looking dude;

3.  Watching Glen Chapman drive around Ann Arbor in his black car that had "Blackbird" written on the side in red paint - another mean-looking dude;

4.  More of a Crisler Arena story than a sports anecdote, but while attending the John Sinclair Freedom Rally in 1971 my roommate noticed that the ticket collector was not ripping the tickets in half.  He was clearly high out of his mind.  When asked, he gave us his entire stack of tickets which we took outside and sold for $20 (twice the stated price) and made about $300 each.  Most profitable concert I ever attended.  Downside was having to listen to Yoko Ono "sing"; and

5.  Robbie Moore in the basement of the V-Bell throwing glasses against the wall while yelling "I'm a fucking All American" at the top of his lungs.

I was visiting my sister during for the 1997 the Iowa game.  Marshmallow lands at her feed and she hands it to me to throw; I do and get promptly thrown out.... she didn't notice for over a quarter while I sat on the curb outside of the stadium gates. 

She came out just before the start of the 4th quarter and we hauled it back to her dorm room to watch as Michigan intercepted the ball to seal the game.  

Also Desmond Howard still caries his MCard with him

Shared a glass of chartruese with Horace G. Prettyman after we bested Albion 18-0.

AC's catch at the Indiana game in 1979.  I was a freshman in the Marching Band.  My parents drove up from Pittsburgh to see the game (and allegedly to see me...allegedly).  AC scored.  My parents met me back at Revelli Hall after the game and took me to dinner and I didn't have to eat South Quad sludge for dinner.

Not sure if I would have eaten well if the game had ended in a tie.

‘98 Rose Bowl, the only bowl game I have ever attended. 

Washington State jumps on us early, leading 7-0 and driving for another score.

WSU section next to us begins the “overrated” chant.

Then Woodson’s pick in the end zone.

Every Michigan fan around me rose to their feet and began chanting at the WSU section, “Heisman! Heisman!”

So satisfying

In 1987, I went to see Jim Abbot pitch at Ray Fisher Stadium. It was a weekday afternoon game, so hardly anyone was in the stands, and I got a good spot behind home plate, about halfway up the stands. Shortly after I sat down, Jamie Morris and another football player (I don't remember his name) sat down right in front of me. Then Bo came in and sat down next to his players. I was surprised to see how much Bo enjoyed being with those kids. It was clear that he just liked them and being around them. This was even true for the second player, who, as I recall, was a reserve. This kid seemed to be a little stand-offish towards Bo; he did not quite show the same affection for his coach that Morris did. But Bo was equally effusive with both players. It was not quite what I expected; I thought Bo would be more gruff and domineering. It left me with new-found respect for Bo as a person. In addition, Bo was very gracious with the fans who kept interrupting with autograph requests. One guy left the stadium and then came back with his collection of game programs and asked Bo to sign each one. Bo signed away, but managed to keep his attention on his players.

I had an entire beer keg thrown at me from a second floor student apartment window in Columbus with a loud "FUCK MICHIGAN!" after the Harbaugh "Guarantee Game" in 1986. 

It missed, much like Matt Frantz..

Good times back then.

Went to the Hoover Street IM for a pickup bb game what seems like a century ago. On the next court, most of the Michigan team was playing. And my most striking impression, being only slightly taller than a Smurf myself, was "OMG, Ricky Green is a giant! He looks so short on the court next to Hubbard, Robinson and Thompson!"