Author: Jeff Cummins

Jeff Cummins has written about football since 1998, including nine years with The Record of Hackensack, N.J. He frequently contributes feature stories to Touchdown Illustrated, an insert in the national college football game program, published by University Sports Publications, and he has also written the official pregame stories for the game programs of the Rose Bowl, the Cotton Bowl, the Sugar Bowl, the Gator Bowl, and the BCS National Championship game. He has written the preview story for the official program for the NHL Winter Classic at MIchigan Stadium, and numerous college basketball feature stories for College Hoops Illustrated, another game program insert published by University Sports Publications. In addition, he has written stories about theater, music, physical therapy, and newsletter marketing. He’s an avid Michigan football fan and long-time New York Jets season ticket holder, and he can be reached at jeffcummins@optonline.net.
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Michigan vs Ohio State Football – Looking Back – 1976

The second installment in the series looking back at the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry takes us to 1976. Jimmy Carter was elected president of the United States, and the nation was celebrating the bicentennial of the Declaration of Independence, which gave Americans something to smile about, which was desperately needed in the 1970s.

On the gridiron, the Wolverines were desperately in need of a win against archrival Ohio State. The Wolverines had not beaten the Buckeyes since Billy Taylor ran around right end in 1971 and Bob Ufer famous screamed “Touchdown, Billy Taylor! Touchdown, Billy Taylor!” Growing up in the ‘70s, that stretch of non-victorious seasons seemed like an eternity, something that was accentuated by the sports media in an era before cable TV had taken over.

The Wolverines had entered 1976 with National Championship aspirations, but narrow loss at Purdue in Week Nine ended that dream. Two weeks later, the Wolverines charged onto the turf at Ohio Stadium, determined to capture at least a share of the Big Ten championship. While Michigan was favored against the Buckeyes, Ohio State had an undefeated conference record up to that point, and had clinched at least a share of the Big Ten championship. For Michigan, the surprising loss to Purdue meant that sharing the conference championship was all the Maize & Blue could hope for, at least in the regular season.

The first half proved frustrating for the Wolverines and their supporters, as the teams went to their respective locker rooms with the score tied at zero. Bad memories of recent disappointments plagued everyone who cheered for Michigan.

Things changed dramatically in the second half. While the Michigan defense continued to stifle the Ohio State offense, the Michigan offensive line began to pound away at the Buckeyes, who were determined to stop quarterback Rick Leach on the option, as well as halfback Rob Lytle. That obsession with stopping Leach and Lytle opened the way for fullback Russell Davis (“Lytle deep and Davis close”, famously intoned by Bob Ufer). David scored a pair of touchdowns in the third quarter, and as the fourth quarter began, it was clear that the Wolverines were in command. The game ended with Michigan players giving Bo Schembechler a ride off the field on their shoulders, and Wolverine fans celebrated a long-awaited win over their fierce rivals.

We hope you enjoy the video clips below. Many thanks to ABC Sports, youtube, youtube poster Wolverine Historian and youtube poster “Dr. Sap.” As always, I own nothing, and what is posted is done so strictly for your enjoyment.


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Michigan vs Ohio State Football – Looking Back – 1957

This year, for the first game of the “Looking Back” series on the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry, we’ll go back to 1957. Dwight D. Eisenhower was our president, the Korean War had ended several years before, the Vietnam War had yet to begin, and Americans enjoyed a rare combination of peace and affluence. A new phenomenon called “Rock and Roll” was appealing to American youth, and cities were experiencing a mass exodus, as many Americans entered the middle class for the first time and bought homes in the suburbs, and inevitably had children, lots and lots of children. And then there were the automobiles. Detroit certainly enjoyed the ‘50s, as the suburban American required an automobile to go almost everywhere.

Americans also found their attention increasingly turning to football. The 1957 iteration of “The Game” was notable, from a Michigan perspective, for only one thing: It marked the first time in the series that game attendance exceeded 100,000, which later became the standard for the rivalry.

As for the game itself, Michigan actually fared very well in the first half, leading at halftime, 14-10. The second half belonged to the Buckeyes, who scored three touchdowns to win, 31-14, but the game wasn’t the romp that score would seem to indicate. The Wolverines, led by Jim Pace, took a 7-0 lead when Pace scored on a 16-yard run. Ohio State responded promptly and tied the game on a Dick LeBeau run. (Yes, that Dick LeBeau, long-time Steelers defensive assistant.) Ohio State kicked a field goal a three-point lead, but when Jim Van Pelt connected with Brad Myers for a touchdown, Michigan went in at halftime with a 14-10 lead. Early in the third quarter, LeBeau put Ohio State ahead for good. Pace led Michigan with 164 yards on 22 carries, but it wasn’t enough, as the Buckeyes’ victory sent them to the Rose Bowl, where they beat Oregon 10-7, to claim the national championship, while Michigan finished with a 5-3-1 record.

So the ’57 football campaign ended poorly for everyone in the Great Lakes State, right? Well, not really. For once, Michiganders got a boost from their NFL team, and they rejoiced as their Lions trounced the Cleveland Browns, 59-14, to win the NFL championship. The championship also served to soothe the Wolverines’ loss to Ohio State, if not serve as outright revenge.
Couldn’t find any video of that game, so that will have to wait until next time.

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Michigan vs Michigan State Football – Looking Back – 1968

The fourth installment of this year’s series looking back at the Michigan-Michigan State football series takes us to 1968. The 1960s were a period of change for America, and Michigan was no exception. Gone were the days when the Maize & Blue would run roughshod over opponents just by showing up. In the 1960s, students in Ann Arbor were more likely to be interested in protests than in football, and other than 1964 and 1969, there wasn’t really a lot of great football for them to watch in Michigan Stadium.

But few Wolverine fans and alums remember much about 1968. By the ’68 season, coach Bump Elliott had amassed a roster that included running back Ron Johnson, offensive tackle Dan Dierdorf, defensive back Tom Curtis and tight end Jim Mandich, all future NFL stars, as well as Tom Goss, who went on to become Michigan’s athletic director in the late 1990s. After losing the opener to California, the Wolverines rallied for victories over Duke and Navy, setting the scene for their Big Ten opener against the Spartans, who had won the last three times they had met the Wolverines.

In front of 102,785 people at Michigan Stadium, the young Wolverines weren’t about to lose to the Spartans for a fourth consecutive year. With weapons like Johnson and Mandich, the Wolverines could do more than just trade blows with the Spartans. The Wolverines gained 420 yards in the game, with Johnson carrying the ball 19 times for 152 yards and a 38-yard touchdown run.

But by the fourth quarter, Michigan State had taken the lead, and that’s when Johnson did his most important work, grinding through the Spartan defense for short but critical gains, drawing the Spartans’ attention away from the pass and allowing Mandich to get open for a touchdown pass of more than 50 yards from quarterback Dennis Brown. Fullback Garvie Craw finished off the score when he ran for a 25-yard touchdown, and the Wolverines captured the bragging rights with a 28-14 win. The season ended with a loss to Ohio State, but Elliott had led Michigan to an 8-2 record in his final season. As the years have gone by, many Michigan fans have developed a new appreciation for Elliott, a loyal Wolverine who left Bo Schembechler a roster stocked with talented football players, much as Brady Hoke did for Jim Harbaugh. In time, maybe people will have a greater appreciation for Hoke, who loved Michigan every bit as much as Elliott did.

Many thanks to the producers of “Hail to the Victors”, which was released in 1995, and to Youtube poster WolverineHistorian. As always, I own nothing related to this content, and I’m sharing the video below strictly for the enjoyment of Michigan fans.

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Michigan vs Michigan State Football – Looking Back – 2012

The third installment of this year’s look back at the Michigan-Michigan State series takes us to 2013. Brady Hoke was in his second year at the helm of the Michigan football program, and in his first year, the Wolverines had beaten two of their three main rivals. But Michigan State remained a tricky puzzle to solve.

Denard Robinson was in his final season as Michigan’s quarterback, but this game was about defense. With Michigan State’s corners playing coverage so tight that an interference penalty could be called on almost any pass play; the Wolverines’ receivers had a brutal time getting open. But this time, Greg Mattison coached Michigan’s defense, so the Wolverines had their own defensive mastermind matching wits with Michigan State, resulting in a classic defensive struggle.

Still, the Wolverines showed flashes. Fitzgerald Toussaint had a less-than-spectacular day running the ball, but he exploded for one 38-yard gain deep into Spartan territory. And then there was Mister Clutch himself, Drew Dileo, who caught four passes for 92 yards, none more important than his catch late in the game that took the ball down to the Michigan State 22-yard line, setting up a 38-yard field goal by Brendan Gibbons with nine seconds left, which gave Michigan the 12-10 win in a game that certainly wasn’t pretty, but was a much-needed win against Michigan State, which had its with Michigan for the four years preceding that game. At the time, many people thought this meant that Michigan was on its way back. The ensuing seasons proved them wrong. That win over Michigan State was the last time Michigan would look that good that late in the season under Hoke.
The game also featured some interesting subplots. Michigan left offensive tackle Taylor Lewan and Michigan State defensive end William Gholston had waged a fierce personal battle for several years, one of the nastiest matchups in the long history of this series. Gholston had been tormenting Lewan for the past two years, but in 2012, Lewan had the last laugh. The game also marked the 900th win in the history of Michigan football. Here’s hoping the Wolverines reach 1,000 wins quickly under Jim Harbaugh!

Thanks to the Big Ten Network and Youtube poster Michigan Football Highlights for the following highlight film. As always, I own nothing, the following video clip is shared strictly for entertainment.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KdYaZURiqJw

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Michigan vs Michigan State Football –- Looking Back – 2003

The second installment of this year’s look back at the Michigan-Michigan State series takes us to 2003. The Spartans came into the game with a 4-0 record in the Big Ten, and they were hungry for a win. They also had a new coach, John L. Smith. Michigan countered with veteran coach Lloyd Carr, whose teams had a fair amount of success in this rivalry. With both rivals enjoying a resurgence, the stage was set for a classic showdown.

Immediately, Michigan went to work with core attack, running Chris Perry behind a fearsome offensive line that included Tone Pape, Adam Stenavich and David Baas. Early in the second quarter, Perry used the blocking from that offensive line to give him enough room to leap over the goal line for the game’s first score. Michigan State wasn’t about to go quietly, though. On a fourth-down and four yards to go in the third quarter, the Spartans faked the punt and Dave Rayner ran for the sticks, but he only got a yard before Pierre Woods drove him into the ground, giving Michigan prime field position with a 13-3 lead. Buoyed by the defensive stop and the two-score lead, the Wolverines’ offense went back to work. With the MSU determined to stop the run, Michigan quarterback John Navarre used a play-action fake to freeze the linebackers and found Andy Mignery all alone for a 26-yard touchdown on the same play that Michigan used to win the Rose Bowl in 1998.

And still, the Spartans kept plugging away. On the first play after the kickoff, Michigan State quarterback Jeff Smoker found Agim Shabai for a 73-yard touchdown that seemed as if it might turn the game in the Spartans’ favor.

Wrong. On Michigan’s ensuing possession, the Wolverines mixed the running of Perry with the passing of Navarre, and with 13:31 left in the game, Navarre completed a touchdown pass to Braylon Edwards that effectively ended the game, sending Michigan on to a 27-20 win. The victory continued the season-long momentum for Michigan, which won a share of the Big Ten title when it knocked off Ohio State in the final game of the regular season, 35-21. However, Michigan would not have won any championships if not for the victory over the Spartans in the middle of the season. Carr’s Wolverines continued to dominate the Spartans, while John L. Smith’s tenure in East Lansing lasted only four years.

As I do frequently, I’ll end with a Youtube clip from the ABC broadcast. Many thanks to ABC Sports and Youtube poster WolverineHistorian for the following video clips. As always, I don’t own any rights to this content, which is being used strictly for enjoyment.