M GO BLUE banner stolen in 1998

Submitted by HelloHeisman91 on

Just watched a program on the BTN that was highlighting the game day experience at M and they mentioned the banner. Anyway, did anyone know that the only time the team hasn't ran out under the banner since 62' was the 98' Syracuse game? They couldn't find the banner and no one knew what happened to it until the next year and the return trip to Syracuse when they saw the banner hanging on one of their campus buildings. I have never heard that story. A quick search came up with this but I wonder if they got the original back.

http://www.pub.umich.edu/daily/1998/sep/09-15-98/news/news3.html

psychomatt

September 24th, 2009 at 6:54 AM ^

That was before Y2K. People still used VCRs and Madonna was hot. Not sure I can remember much else about 1998. I guess at least they've had plenty of time to replace the banner.

blueloosh

September 24th, 2009 at 9:20 AM ^

That was one of the most dreadful days in modern Michigan history. Usually the misery at least doesn't start until the actual game.

That day may be the best Donovan McNabb ever played in his life.

Seth

September 24th, 2009 at 9:42 AM ^

I totally forgot about that. I remember hearing about it when we found the banner in '99 (and beat them in their own building).

Security around the athletic campus was almost non-existent in those days.*

When I was umpiring IM softball, another umpire and I had a game off when a team didn't show. He was a big golf enthusiast, and suggested we go hit balls on the golf course. Finding the course closed and the clubhouse locked, we wandered into Crisler. Didn't meet a security guard until we were on our way out, and even then, our "it's okay, we're umpires" response was good enough. If the banner was in there, walking away with it would have been ludicrously easy.

My freshman and sophomore years a frat brother and I would walk into Michigan Stadium ("sneak" is the wrong word. We'd leave the car inside the gates and walk in), and throw a football around. One time another pair of guys were there and we challenged them to 2-on-2 using half the field.**

And somehow, when major sports venues not in use were open rather than surrounded by steel walls and armed guards, the world went on pretty okay. Sure, a banner may disappear or something, but c'mon, it sucks the prank was on us, but that's an awesome prank, nobody got hurt, and just adds to the legends.

* OMG i just called my high school graduation year "those days."

** They were athletes. We were Jews. The one stop we made was when I stopped counting Mississippi's and just blitzed.

GOBLUE4EVR

September 24th, 2009 at 10:27 AM ^

the 'cuse' game in 98 when the team ran out under the basketball teams banner, and not one player could jump and touch it. needless to say that isn't the only thing that went wrong with day....

jmblue

September 24th, 2009 at 8:48 PM ^

I remember it well (unfortunately). It was my first game as a student. The replacement banner was much skinnier and was set too high for anyone to touch. I thought at first that it had gotten rolled up and wondered why no one unfurled it.