Favorite Michigan Football Game of All-Time?
I would have to say mine was the 2005 Michigan vs Penn st game. I was in third grade at the time and i had been talking a lot of smack to one of my friends who is a Penn State fan (Live in PA) so it was a very important game to me. When Henne darted the pass to Manningham my heart stopped, and everyone in my house went absolutely crazy, i will never forget that moment.
Lynn Henning who asked him if he had felt he lost the team and Bobby's answer was "I don't know".
Mac,
If I were there and I saw this it would be number one.
I am curious if you were at UTL 1 by any chance.
Also did you see this?
This might be the only game I could have seen in person to eclipse 1997 Rose Bowl and I wish I could have seen these in person. It was not bad on television!
Tate Forcier's last minute winning drive capped an upset that not only proved that Tate was a proven winner, but that Rich Rod was the best coach in the game. It was a great game and gets my personal nod because it was all I had for the better part of those three years. (Spoiler Alert: Because the reality was that... <cough> <cough> )
I was at the 1998 Rose Bowl, whch was an awesome game that literally brought me to tears, but we expected to win. Second place.
I loved this game, althought maybe not my favorite game (hard to top '97 OSU game). Underrated in my opinion. One of my happiest moments was right when Prescott ran back his pick 6 on ND's first drive. This game was a total ass kicking and set the tone for the best UM season since '97 (until the last two games).
hat tip to all the ones mentioned so far, most of which i saw at least on TV. love the memories. but there's a sleeper that i don't think anyone has mentioned and that was the triple OT thriller against the illini in the big house. great game.
and one more - my last game as a student in 1983, of course against ohio and a victory. loved the feeling of being on the bench and walking off with the guys after the victory. sweet.
Attended National Championship game, Desmond's Heisman OSU game and UTL1. Being at PSU in 1997 was the best in feeling in that our team were the baddest motherf..ers on the planet, and truly the top of college football.
but The Catch, I was 9 at the time of The Catch, and the Tyrone Wheatley show in the Rose Bowl really hooked me into Michigan football as a kid. I was already a Michigan basketball fan, but The Catch cemented my fandom for Michigan football and Tyrone grew my love even more. Of course the 97 games against PSU, OSU, and Washington State are fantastic as well. I count myself very lucky to have seen that National Championship year because you just never know if there will be another in your lifetime. Charles Woodson became my favorite Wolverine of all time during that season. Touchdown Tim against OSU is unforgettable. There are just too many to really peg one down.
I will say my favorite game I ever attended was the 100th game against Ohio State. It was my first game in the Big House against OSU and I nearly had a heart attack when my Mom and Dad told me they got tickets for me to that game. Just a beautiful atmosphere that day and it was great to take home the win on that anniversary. Braylon owned Chris Gamble and CP was money all day with over 200 total yards.
I'm flabbergasted at a lot of these responses.
Beating OSU to win our only NC bid in the last half century while Charles Woodson cements his Heisman bid has to be the best.
'05 Michigan v Penn St. I was 15 sitting in the north endzone with my dad, next to probably five PSU undergrads who made the trip. One of the guys ran his mouth the entire 4th quarter and I remember wanting to clock him so badly. Once Mario caught the ball with 0:00 left the dude put his head in his hands and started balling.
Sitting in the endzone watching Braylon was fantastic. The whole comeback and overtimes of that game was truly unbelievable to watch. Braylon was a man amongst the boys that day.
A stomping that put us at no. 1 at PSU, 38-6 and it was not as close as the score indicated!
UTL 1 can't be topped but here are some underrated games to ponder:
2006 vs. Notre Dame- We were ranked something like 15th and ND was #2 behind OSU. We went into SB with low expectations and absolutely crushed them. Henne-to-Manningham was established as a fearsome pairing and there were finally rumblings about the defense being elite.
2006 vs. PSU- My friend Arthur calls it "the game where we fucked up ALL of their quarterbacks" and I wouldn't want to remember it any other way. Rondell Biggs, Llamar Woodley, Allen Branch- quarterback destroyers. I've never seen a DL dominate a game like that before.
2008 vs. Wisconsin- As much as I'd like to forge that entire season this game was special. We had something like 19 total yards of offense in the first half and still mounted a comeback to win it. Steve Threet rumbling down the sideline for a long gain after selling the zone read had to be the most amazingly unathletic play I've ever seen. I don't know that there is a more memorable single play for me.
In person - Under the Lights I. The end of that game was insane. My little brother (ha) went to Notre Dame. When Denard took a knee to close out the first half, my brother texted me: "Taking a knee? Brady Joke is a pussy." Boy, did he eat crow.
On TV - 2006 Michigan v. Notre Dame. At that time, ND was ranked in the top 5 with golden boy Brady Quinn as the QB. Same little brother, an ND student at the time, calls me up from his tailgate and asks if I'm even going to bother watching the game. I did not engage. Then, Michigan went on to absolutely crush ND. Quinn looked like he wanted to cry. Absolutely beautiful.
Top three Michigan games
1. 1969 Ohio game. Beat undefeated Ohio and sent us to the Rose Bowl. I help tear down the goal posts. Most unexpected win.
2. Jan 1, 1998 Pasadena, NCG. Took my oldest daughter to see Michigan win a National Championship. Most spirit, fans were singing "Hail to the Victors" walking into the stadium.
3. UTL II took my wife to see a Michigan game - her first game. Most exciting to see Michigan beat ND at night. Life is good.
I have the same three, in the same order. And I was there in 1969, too.
No brainer for me--
UTL 1. It was my bachelor party. There are always one or two guys that just want to get completely drunk and go to strip clubs. My best man and I put the kibosh on that and instead we tailgated all day (to a moderate degree) and went to the game. It's the fist time I ever felt like the Big House could truly get LOUD to an intimidating level. College Game Day was on campus, warm & sunny weather.
The first 2 1/2 quarters of that game wasn't much fun, but MAN what an absolutely unbelieveable finish.
I kept a copy of the Detroit Free Press from the next morning and framed it for my home office.
Honorable mention for 2005 Penn State and due to the importance of the game, 1997 Ohio.
But as far as just memorable games are concerned UTL 1 is head and shoulders above the rest.
I miss those days!
The end of that game was crazy. I must say it was one of the most entertaining games ever.
1985 M v OSU. Harbaugh's bomb to Kolesar in the 4th quarter. The student section I was in became totally, end-of-the world unhinged. I've seen a lot of great UM moments over the years, but that is my personal fave.
UTL (birthday and just CRAZY)
Braylonfest (in EL, in the process of applying to Michigan- beautiful)
PSU 2005 (First year of Undergrad)
Videos from the Wolverine Historian - thanks!
Runner-up: 1993 Rose Bowl, or The Wheatley Show:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ej-NKrkvfPY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zEYPjcgYnjk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4XTvaL6Ees
My personal favorite is 1979 vs Indiana:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7M3jVy_kJR4
I would not have believed it if I wasn't there - and yes, that was the loudest I've ever heard the Big House :<)
1997 at Penn State. As one pundit put it later, "After that game, the national championship was Michigan's to lose." Arguably the most dominant performance against a national championship contender I've ever seen from Michigan. On that day, all the old comments about Michigan being too slow and not tough enough were put to rest. The Daydrion Taylor hit on Bob Christensen caught the attention of the entire football world.
1997 vs Ohio State. The team weathered a tough start, and then held off a fierce rally by Ohio. The last quarter was nerve-wracking, but that one was sooooo memorable.
1998 Rose Bowl vs Washington State. Started off like so many other disappointing bowl performances, but in one play, Charles Woodson gave our guys a reprieve. FINALLY, A NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP! FINALLY, A PERFECT SEASON!
Favorite game I've been to: 1999 vs Ohio State. My wife was 7 months pregnant, and I flew out and attended the game on a press pass. Walked up to a security guard at the tunnel and asked, "Could I just look down into the tunnel?" His response: "You've got the pass, you can go wherever you like." Walked down the tunnel about two and a half hours before game time, and a couple of Ohio State players were in sweats tossing a ball around. The Big House was mostly empty, with a chilly mist in the air. After the game, I went into the postgame press conference, which was held in the Crisler Arena back then (not called Crisler Center at the time). I was standing right next to Tom Brady while he was being interviewed, and Steve Hutchinson walked up right next to me and asked Bruce Madej how the Michigan State-Penn State game turned out. Great comeback win by our guys. I still maintain that if Brady had played the entire game against Michigan State, UM would win that one, and then the bizarre defeat the following game against Illinois would have been a win -- and yes, if UM had won those two games, I'm certain they would have won the national championship. Can you imagine 2 in 3 years?
'97 OSU, UTL 1, and 2004 MSU...
Mario manningham - best 1st half ever
1995 vs. OSU for two reasons. It was my first game in Michigan Stadium and Touchdown Tim with 300+ yards.
Bonus: We ruined their perfect season.
The year after we beat them in 3 OTs (The Braylon game), Sparty fans were telling us all off-season that they were going to crush us with a healthy Stanton in Spartan Stadium, and they Michigan won. Fuck Sparty
For me its the 3OT victory over MSU with Braylon's catch, and Chris Perry's OT touchdown to beat Penn State (can't remember the exact years). Both were in the end zone where I sit, and great wins as well.
2008 Wisconsin game
This is easy. The 97 Michigan-OSU game. Like many of you, I was there. Woodson v. Boston for who was going to play for the National Title. Woodson was amazing that day and was the difference. He won everything with his performance that day. Best game ever.
When Michigan went down to Columbus and manhandled the Buckeyes 22-0! Totally assume to see Woody get so dominated at home. Michigan was #4 and OSU #8 and many said OSU would win a close game because it was in Columbus. I was a big Rick Leach fan but our D played assume. We should have beaten Purdue, we just played a lousy game. We were #1 in the country before our road trip loss to Purdue by 2 points!
Sorry, but there are just too many great games to list just one. So only the games I've seen live...
10. 1995 - OSU - Biakabutuka runs wild. Buckeyes have no answer.
9. 2008 - WI - Greatest Comeback
8. 1995 - UVA - Dreisbach to Hayes
7. 1991 - OSU - Desmond strikes the pose
6. 1991 - ND - Desmond - the catch
5. 1997 - OSU - Woodson takes over
4. 2005 - PSU - Henne to Manningham
3. 2004 - MSU - Braylonfest in 3 Overtimes
2. 1979 - IN - Wangler to Carter
1. UTL Part I - well documented above
And even putting up 10, I still had to leave out several UTL - Part !!, 85 - OSU... so many great games, so little time.
Go Blue!