The Michigan Wolverinesfootball program represents the University of Michigan. In addition to winning more games and garnering the highest winning percentage in NCAADivision I-A history, the Wolverines are also known for their distinctive helmet design, fight song, and record-breaking attendance figures.
Michigan began competing in intercollegiate football in 1879, and its program is credited with popularizing the game at the collegiate level west of the Appalachians. In 1887 its team introduced the game to students at Notre Dame who began their own storied football tradition and became one of the Wolverines' fiercest rivals. Since 1935, Michigan has almost always concluded its regular season schedule with a game against Ohio State. The Michigan-Ohio State rivalry is widely regarded among the greatest in American sports.
The Wolverines compete in the Big Ten Conference and have won or shared 42 league titles, more than any other football program in any conference. Their current head coach is Lloyd Carr, who has led the team since 1995.
In addition, from 1883 to 1901, Michigan often played its "big game" of the season at the field of the Detroit Athletic Club to accommodate more spectators. [1]
Championships
National championships
Michigan has won two wire national championships, being declared the Associated Press national champion in 1948 and 1997. Michigan claims national championships in an additional nine seasons:
Most wins (860) and highest winning percentage (.745) in NCAA Division I-A football history
The most conference championships of any college football program in any conference (42)
The most winning seasons (109)
The most undefeated seasons in Division 1-A football (25)
One of only two schools with a winning record against every Division 1-A conference, including independent schools such as Notre Dame
Scoring and schedule
The largest delta (points for minus points against) in college football history
The highest all-time strength of schedule rating in college football[2]
Attendance and television
The highest NCAA home attendance every year since 1974 except 1997
The largest stadium in the United States (Michigan Stadium, seats roughly 112,000)
The largest crowd to ever attend an NCAA football game: 112,118 on November 22, 2003, at Michigan Stadium vs. Ohio State
The longest current streak of over 100,000 in attendance at home (200 games)
The most televised school in college football history (368 televised games)
Current streaks
The longest current streak of non-losing seasons (39 seasons; 1967-present)
The longest current bowl game streak (32 seasons; 1975-present)
The longest current streak of games in Division 1-A since last being shutout (275 games; last time on October 20, 1984, at Iowa)
The longest time since playing a (non World War II-era) non-Division-1A opponent (74 years)
Honored pageantry
The number one sports rivalry: Michigan-Ohio State, according to ESPN's "10 Greatest Sports Rivalries"[3]
The best helmet in football, according to ESPN's "End of Century" Special
The best uniform in sports, according to ESPN2's 64 Team Bracket Results[4]
The only fight song in the Hall of Fame
Important games
Bowl games
Michigan has been invited to play in 38 bowl games in its history, compiling a record of 18-20 in those games.
Note: From 1918-1945, the Big Ten did not allow its teams to participate in bowls. From 1946-1974, only the conference champion was allowed to attend a bowl (the Rose Bowl), and no team could go two years in a row.
Michigan plays Minnesota for the Little Brown Jug. Michigan's record in games played for the Jug, which date to 1909, is 64-22-3. The Wolverines currently hold the trophy having won the 2006 contest.
Michigan competes against Michigan State for the Paul Bunyan Trophy, which was introduced in 1953. Michigan's record in games played for the trophy is 33-19-2. The Wolverines have won the last five meetings.
Notable games
1913 Michigan Agricultural College (MSU) vs Michigan
May 30, 1879: At White Stocking Park in Chicago, Illinois, the Wolverines play their first football game, a 1-0 victory over Racine.
November 23, 1887: On their way to Chicago to play the Harvard Club, Michigan makes a stop in South Bend, Indiana and introduces the game of football to Notre Dame. Michigan wins the inaugural contest between the two storied rivals 8-0.
November 24, 1898: Michigan defeats Chicago 12-11 in the final minute of play to clinch its first conference title. Student Louis Elbel is inspired by the victory to write The Victors, now the school's fight song.
January 1, 1902: Michigan caps off a 12-0 season, in which it outscores opponents 550-0, with a 49-0 romp over Stanford in the inaugural Rose Bowl game.
November 30, 1905: Michigan and University of Chicago are playing to a scoreless tie when reserve fullback Denny Clark catches a punt in the end zone and, despite being told to down it so they would have the ball at the 20 yard line, running it out and right into two Chicago defenders who pushed him right back into the end zone where they downed him for a safety (forward progress was not noted back then). The Wolverines lost 2-0, and Clark quit the team and school amid bad press and ridicule on campus, and went into exile.
January 1, 1948: Fritz Crisler's "Mad Magicians" return to the Rose Bowl and trounce Southern California 49-0. The victory earns them a final #1 ranking for the 1947 season in an unprecedented post-bowl vote.
November 25, 1950: In the "Snow Bowl," a game played in blizzard conditions, Michigan punts 22 times but manages to defeat Ohio State, 9-3, to clinch a Big Ten championship. The Wolverines' lone touchdown is recorded on a blocked punt by Anton Momsen.
November 22, 1969: First-year coach Bo Schembechler and Michigan end Ohio State's 22-game winning-streak with a stunning 24-12 victory, clinching a Big Ten title and beginning the "Ten Year War" between Schembechler and his mentor, Woody Hayes.
October 27, 1979: Anthony Carter scores on a 45-yard reception with no time left to defeat Indiana. Announcer Bob Ufer makes one of the most memorable calls in Michigan history.
November 23, 1991: Michigan blows out Ohio State 31-3 in a win sealed by a Desmond Howard's 93-yard punt return for a touchdown. Howard, who would go on to win the Heisman Trophy, famously strikes a "Heisman pose" after the score.
January 1, 1993: The Wolverines, after winning their fifth consecutive Big Ten title, defeat Washington in a thrilling Rose Bowl, 38-31. Michigan is led by Tyrone Wheatley, who rushes for 235 yards and three touchdowns on just 15 carries, including a Rose Bowl-record 88-yard run.
August 26, 1995: In the first game of Lloyd Carr's head coaching career, Scott Dreisbach throws a 15-yard touchdown to Mercury Hayes with no time left to defeat Virginia in the Pigskin Classic, 18-17.
November 25, 1995: Tshimanga Biakabutuka rushes for 313 yards, the second-highest single-game total in school history, as Michigan defeats previously-unbeaten Ohio State, 31-23.
November 22, 1997: Against Ohio State, Charles Woodson returns a punt 78 yards for a touchdown, catches a 37-yard reception that sets up another touchdown, and intercepts a pass in the Michigan endzone to deny the Buckeyes a score. Led by his efforts, Michigan defeats OSU, 20-14, clinching a perfect regular season, a Big Ten title, and a Rose Bowl appearance. Woodson goes on to win the Heisman Trophy, becoming the first and only primarily defensive player to win the award.
January 1, 1998: Michigan defeats Washington State in the Rose Bowl, 21-16, to clinch the school's first national title in 49 years. Brian Griese, who passes for 251 yards and three touchdowns, is the game's MVP.
January 1, 2000: Tom Brady throws for 369 yards and four touchdowns as Michigan defeats Alabama in the Orange Bowl, 35-34, in the first overtime game in school history.
August 31, 2002: Philip Brabbs kicks the game-winning field goal from 44 yards out to defeat Washington, after Michigan kickers missed three other attempts, one with just under 1:30 remaining in the game. The kick is set up when Washington is penalized for having twelve men on defense just after calling their own timeout.
October 10, 2003: Against Minnesota, the Wolverines fall behind by 21 points (28-7) before staging the largest comeback in school history, winning 38-35. The Wolverines are led by John Navarre's 353 passing yards.
October 30, 2004: Trailing Michigan State by 17 points with 8:43 remaining, the Wolverines make a furious comeback to tie the game and then win in triple-overtime, 45-37. Braylon Edwards sparks the comeback with a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns and then catches a third in the final overtime session to clinch the game. It is considered locally as the greatest Michigan-MSU game ever played.
January 1, 2005: In a wild Rose Bowl game that features five lead changes, Vince Young and Texas defeat Michigan on a last-second field goal, 38-37. Michigan's Steve Breaston sets a Rose Bowl-record with 316 all-purpose yards and teammate Chad Henne ties another record with four touchdown passes. Young, meanwhile, rushes for 192 yards.
October 15, 2005: On the final play of the game against Penn State, Chad Henne throws a 10-yard touchdown pass to Mario Manningham to win 27-25. It is the only loss for the Nittany Lions that season.
December 28, 2005: The Wolverines squander a 28-17 fourth quarter lead against Nebraska in the Alamo Bowl, before the game's final play offers one last chance for Michigan. In a finish reminiscent of The Play, the famous ending to the 1982 Stanford-Cal game, Chad Henne throws a pass to a Jason Avant who laterals the ball to Steve Breaston before it passes through the hands of Mike Hart, back to Avant, on to Mario Manningham, back to Avant again, before Tyler Ecker advances all the way to the 13-yard line where he is knocked out of bounds. No penalties are called against Nebraska despite the entire bench emptying onto the field while the play was still going. Nebraska holds on for a 32-28 win.
September 16, 2006: The Wolverines, having lost the previous two years to rival Notre Dame, travel to South Bend and dominate the #2-ranked Fighting Irish in all phases of the game, winning 47-21. Chad Henne throws touchdown passes of 69, 20, and 22 yards to Mario Manningham. The Wolverines' fierce defense forces five turnovers, returning two of them, an interception by Prescott Burgess and a fumble recovery by LaMarr Woodley, for touchdowns.
November 18, 2006: For the first time in the history of the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry, the two teams meet when ranked #1 (Ohio State) and #2 (Michigan). However, the festive atmosphere of the game is dampened by the death, one day earlier, of former Michigan coach Bo Schembechler. Although both teams enter the game featuring highly ranked defenses, offense rules the day as the teams combine for over 900 yards before Ohio State emerges victorious, 42-39.
The Wolverines finished the 2006 season with an 11-2 record and a loss in the Rose Bowl. They earned final rankings of #8 in the AP Poll and #9 in the Coaches Poll.
Jim Cnockaert (2003). Stadium Stories: Michigan Wolverines: Colorful Tales of the Maize and Blue. Globe Pequot. ISBN 0-7627-2784-5.
Kevin Allen, Art Regner, Nate Brown, and Bo Schembechler (2005). What it Means to Be a Wolverine: Michigan's Greatest Players, Talk about Michigan Football. Triumph Books. ISBN 1-57243-661-1.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
