Link to a great MGoBlog thread..

"What does Michigan mean to you?" is the thread topic.

Some really cool comments in there.

Hate to send folks to another site, but MGoBlog is awesome (clearly) and it's the one site I wouldn't mind people leaving ours for.

http://mgoblog.com/mgoboard/what-does-michigan-mean-you-and-your-family

Yes, Ad, plenty of those are pretty cute...and in some cases, heartwarming.

Let me add my own. Though we alums all have tons of memories and reasons for being "Michigan Men" and "Michigan Women", when someone really pins me to the wall for one single answer, the one I invariably give is the following true ancedote:

In August, 1970, I was a disillusioned, discontented, confused teen with all-but-nonexistent self-esteem (despite an academically-accomplished senior year of HS) and few positive thoughts or hopes for the future.

In May, 1974, I was a happy, confident, mature young man with sky-high self-esteem and feelings of self-worth, ready to take on the world...

And oh, by the way---those two dates precisely encapsulate my time as a U-M undergraduate. Perhaps,
ahem, a coincidence, no?

Perhaps, good sir!

Haha.

My answer:

Michigan football first and foremost is what brought me and my father together. Like many young boys and their fathers, we butted heads on everything. We're both OCD and demand perfection from just about anything you can demand it from. When I didn't do something right, sh!t hit the fan. If he did something 'wrong' in my eyes, I let him hear it (although that always ended up bad for me in the end).

But the one thing we could both wrap our heads around together was Michigan football. See, unlike most in here, I'm not a graduate of UofM. Neither was my dad. No one in my family attended UofM.

But my father was born and raised in Constantine, MI, and was diehard Michigan fan. Long story short, so is his oldest son.

He took me to my first game in 1991. Perhaps you've heard that game referred to as simply "The Catch". It was Desmond vs Notre Dame, and we sat about 10 rows up in that exact same corner (of course millions now say they were in that corner, but I can say it and know that it's true).

At that point I was only 5 years old (so yes, simple math tells you I was born in '86, I'm now 25, and still a young pup), so I wasn't able to grasp the significance at that point.

The next game I remember us going to was 1996 vs Boston College. The only thing I remember is sitting near the student section and hearing everyone b!tch and moan about BOTH Scott Driesbach and Brian Griese.

The next game? Ohio State, '97. Woodson conquers the world.

The rest is history.

Michigan football, in a somewhat scary way, is my life. Hell, I don't really have to tell you folks that. I wouldn't have spent the time creating a website specifically for Michigan football fans if it wasn't. I wouldn't contribute to a Michigan recruiting site if it wasn't.

I eat, sleep and breathe Michigan football, admittedly to a fault.

I let the team ruin my weekends when we lose.

It shouldn't be that way. I have no control over what happens on that field on Saturdays. But dammit you better believe it dictates the way the rest of that Saturday night and all day Sunday will go. It isn't fair to the ones I share my time with, really. I think some of my past girlfriends (and maybe even the current one) have become huge Michigan fans simply because they NEED our boys to win, just to make sure I'm in a good mood for the rest of the weekend.

Nevertheless, it is what it is.

My life.

And I wouldn't change for anything.

Go Blue

Interesting, and thanks for sharing. One point of objection, though: your assertion that not being a U-M grad renders you a minority on this forum. Frankly, I think it's just the opposite.

To build on the scenario I related on the other thread about the changes, for the infinite better, my time (Sept.70-May'74) wrought in me, let me say that, confined to Michigan football (though I've probably told this in other posts, ad infinitum ad nauseum):

Until I set foot on campus, during August orientation in 1970 [I was an out-of-Stater], I did not know (1) Michigan's sports nickname (2) the school colors (3) the head coach's name, or (4) who any of its chief rivals, in any sport, were. And to a man, I honestly did not give a flying f---.

Then, about a week or so into my residence on the 8th floor of South Quad (that's a major central-campus dorm, about a half-mile, crow-flight, from the marching band's practice lot, two miles from the 'House), I was going into the laundry room to pick up my junk, and through the open windows comes the sound of the M.B. in its opening of "The Victors". Don't ask me why---but then and there, I was hooked! The more I learnt of U-M football, the more I loved. (Though I was already hooked on U-M, the school, by then).

"What does Michigan mean to you?"

it's simple for me...

At this point in my life I fully understand how truly blessed I am. I'm a first generation American born child of Mexican immigrants and my early childhood was NOT easy. Poverty, drugs, gang violence etc were all just a part of everyday life growing up in LA. In 1992 the riots happened in my backyard (literally) and for all of my parents shortcomings (trust me there are a lot) they did myself and my brothers and sisters right by understanding the severity of the situation. I still remember loading everything we had in our car and leaving the driveway. My parents had no money, no jobs, no known destination but most important no hesitation. Of course now I understand how brave a person has to be to do such a thing.

We drove east and ended up in South Bend Indiana (being catholic my dad is a Notre Dame fan). We lived in a town just north of the Michigan/Indiana state line. Up until that point I was not a sports fan. Back in LA, getting around without being beat up took most of my time. I couldn't be bothered by a final score or game stats but when we moved to Michigan all of that changed.

I remember how foreign the concept was to me that sports were a way of life for people. It consumed them. I remember feeling so out of place in our new environment. There were no black kids at my school. Of course I was the only Hispanic. Most kids didn't know what a Filipino person was. But they all could tell you the starting lineup of their favorite teams.

I still remember the first Michigan game I watched. 1993 Rose Bowl vs Washington. I remember not having a winter jacket and freezing my ass off in the Michigan snow. I remember watching that game and wishing I was back in LA. In fact the only reason I left the channel on were my hopes of catching a glimpse of the surrounding area so I could dream about being back in So Cal. But a funny thing happened, Michigan won that game and somehow I was hooked.

After that Michigan football kind of became a "hobby". I really can't explain it any other way but like some hobbies do, Michigan football ended up being my passion.

I got through high school just fine. I joined the military, saw some of the world, made it through war. I went to college, got married, had kids, bought a house, got a dog.... basically living the dream (so to speak). But through it all there was always Michigan.

The "good life" is relevant. What some define as happiness may not be true for others. For me it's friends, family, success, love, hope and in there somewhere is Michigan football. Like I said earlier, at this point in my life I fully understand how truly blessed I am. I'm blessed to be a Michigan fan.

I honestly think this is the best thread we've ever had.

I'd love to hear more stories.

Thanks for sharing such a great story, sandy.

Sandy, I sincerely wish I'd had a roommate like you my first year at U-M.

And not simply because the one I did have (for, happily, only two months) was a complete, inconsiderate prick, but equally so because bonding with a person who went through what you did as a teen would have
perforce moved me to spend one helluva lot less time bemoaning my situation (read: feeling sorry for myself) and a lot more realizing that, disenchanted as I was with my teen years (and home situation in general),
I really was blessed by comparison. It also would have helped me develop fortitude of my own.

Thanks for sharing. As Admin says, this definitely ranks up there with our better threads.

Admin wrote:

...It shouldn't be that way. I have no control over what happens on that field on Saturdays. But dammit you better believe it dictates the way the rest of that Saturday night and all day Sunday will go...

Yep, it's almost like religion in where a person invests so much of themselves into something they have absolutely no control over. It's the high when things turn out right, like a big play or a win over a rival. And it's the absolute depth of despair when things go wrong, like the 2926 days between wins over OSU.

For all the glory and and defeat, it's good to feel that way. It makes you feel alive. That's why I'll never let it not be a part of my life.

Well said, sandy, very well said.