Michigan Light
So, I am sitting around watching the 2008 Michigan vs Wisconson game last night on the Rotel Netword. I mean, the Barbasol Network--you know what I mean--and it hit me. The 2008 Michigan offense is at least one of the worst offenses Michigan has ever fielded. Those boys were like a one legged man at a butt kicking contest. They tried their level best and left everything on the field, but the results were painfully unspectacular to say the least.
So, how did these guys pull off the greatest comeback in Michigan Football History?
Yes, it is a rhetorical question.
During this great dearth of football news I thought it might be kind of fun to start a thread that lists the many great ironies, enigmas, anecdotes and oddities that Michigan has experienced through the years. The Brain Cook, being the engineer talking guy that he is, likes numbers and charts and graphs and stuff and so do many of you, but I like stories. They are far more entertaining. So, I thought I would throw this out there to all of you and see what kind of accumulation we could get. Call it light reading if you will.
Anyway, with all the people who visit this site and all their accumulated years of U of M fandom, we should be able to put up a sizable list.
Ready, set, go!
Michigan is one of 2 schools to sport a Heisman Winner, POTUS, and Superbowl Winning QB
That's just greatness
It's three, right? Michigan, Navy, Stanford?
slip of the keystroke.
Now who can name all 9 people involved without Googling?
Michigan: Ford, Brady, Harmon, Howard, Woodson
Navy: Carter, Staubach
Stanford: Nixon, Plunkett
Would have accepted "Elway" as well.
Go figure, I didn't think people would know the Navy answers.... but I forget how many Seamen we have on MGo. +1 for the correct answers
...makes it ten since Elway didn't win the Heisman. He can't replace Plunkett who won the Heisman and the Super Bowl.
Staubach, Plunkett, Marcus Allen and our own Desmond Howard are the only winners of the Heisman and Super Bowl MVP.
...37th, 38th and 39th Presidents have in common? They all served in the Navy.
Also JFK (35) and GHWB (41). Also, FDR (32) was the Asst Secretary of the Navy during Wilson's tenure.
Stanford and Navy are the only ones who can claim a president and a super bowl/Heisman winning quarterback.
Michigan is the only one who can claim that its president was also a football letter winner.
Oh and I'm sure someone pointed this out already, but it's Hoover, not Nixon who's the Stanford alumnus. Nixon attended Whittier College and Duke Law. [This proves I didn't use Google for my initial answer - because I got it wrong!]
I would have to guess that Jerry Ford (buried about 1/4 mile from my house) is the only one of the POTUS that actually played football. Right?
Throw in the NCAA Basketball Championship and you've just narrowed the list to Michigan alone.
The only school to win championships in the four major sports
It's great. To be. A Michigan Wolverine.
Minnesota is the only others school with national championships in football, hockey, baseball and basketball.
College basketball research organizations have retroactively awarded Minnesota national championships in 1902, 1903, and 1919.
FWIW, Stanford won the 1942 NCAA basketball championship.
Is it bad that I had to Google POTUS?
...Google's for.
I had to as well; it's not an abbreviation I've -ever- seen used prior to just now.
The other being Navy, right?
And, according to local legend, Michigan then invented the RHA to regulate the panty raids.
(Sorry, RHA nerd here.)
How about Mike Hart calling someone "little brother"?
We hate the state of Ohio yet they have given us some of our greatest players.
Indeed, people can't help where they were born or where their parents have the bad taste to reside.
But the bright ones high-tail it out of there as soon as the law (and Michigan football recruiting) allow.
in 2005 I was a freshman. Secton 27 (i think ) row 97 (that i remember). I came into school knowing we hadn't lost a game at the Big House in a few years, and a wide-eyed freshman who couldn't wait to start things off. Well, as we all remember that season didn't go so well, and big bad undefeated penn state rolled into the Big House, and I was getting ready to leave in the 4th quarter. I lived on North Campus and the trek back after football games sucked, especially in mid october at 7pm. As time was winding down (and Lloyd got 1 more second on the clock!) i said "Screw it" and started walking towards the exit. I saw the catch from the tunnel to the concourse (stopped and said "well, there is 1 more play, let's watch") And never left a game early in all 4 years.
Penn State in 2006 was an away game. This was the game I remember watching and just knowing that that team was going to be dominant. We only won by 7... but I remember the outcome never being in doubt. Here is the wikipedia snippet on the game:
Michigan's defensive front seven was the story of the game, collecting seven sacks and holding theNittany Lions to -14 net rushing yards. On a third-quarter pass play, Alan Branch knocked Penn State's quarterback Anthony Morelli out of the game with a concussion; Penn State's backup quarterback Daryl Clark was later injured on a rushing attempt. Third-string quarterback Paul Cianciolo managed to throw the Nittany Lions' only touchdown pass of the game. The game was a homecoming for Pennsylvania native Henne, who played the only game of his career at Penn State. With Manningham not playing due to a knee injury suffered against Michigan State, Arrington and Breaston caught the bulk of Henne's passes, each collecting five receptions. Hart picked up his sixth 100-yard rushing game of the season and scored the winning touchdown.
I didnt remember we held them to negative rushing yards. ridiculous. And what is talk of this game without...
Good Times
JoePa argued for a few seconds earlier in the 4th
Thanks JoePa
...2006 game in Happy Valley. It was a beautiful thing.
One thing's for certain, that game was oh so much better than the 2008 and 2009 PSU games I also attended.
I'm really hoping that the Michigan ticket office puts some of their allotment for this year's game up for public sale. Right now they only have IU and PU tix for sale. Anyone have any insights about PSU tix?
Well, they offered up to 8 for Victor's Club members last week, and that offer expires today. I would imagine any that are left might be released to the public.
To wit:
Dear Victors Club Member,
We have good news regarding tickets for the 2010 football season. As a Victors Club member with 200 or more priority points, we are able to offer you additional tickets to all home games and the Notre Dame and Penn State away games. These tickets are available on a first-come, first-serve basis until July 19, 2010.
Sep. 4 Connecticut Limit 8
Sep. 11 at Notre Dame (away) Limit 2
Sep. 18 Massachusetts No limit
Sep. 25 Bowling Green No limit
Oct. 9 Michigan State Limit 4
Oct. 16 Iowa (Homecoming) Limit 4
Oct. 30 at Penn State (away) Limit 8
Nov. 6 Illinois Limit 4
Nov. 20 Wisconsin Limit 8
...thanks for the heads up.
"POTUS was in a bicycle accident" From, the West Wing. Great show.
Indeed a great show, and in fact where I first heard POTUS. Bravo network currently has reruns from 8-10 a.m. (ET) Monday thru Friday. A couple months ago they started over from the beginning. I've been DVR-ing them and haven't missed one... except that I now a backlog of about 20 episodes, and the DVR is about 90% full! I'll be watching several episodes tonight to free up space. But yeah... one of my favorite shows ever.
Was this episode before or after the movie Eagle Eye where Billy Bob Thorton uses it. ( I'm too lazy to use google )
2008 Wisconsin was the largest home comeback in school history. The largest overall comeback was the 2003 Minnesota game (21 points).
I'm glad you mentioned this, because I immediately thought, "Hey, what about that one game against Minnesota back in.....in........ " and got distracted by something at work before I could look up when that was. (How dare work distract me!) I remember that being somewhat of a turnaround after we'd lost a couple, and it was looking like we were about to lose again until the big comeback. We didn't lose again through the rest of the regular season, IIRC.