Big Ten Focus #4 : Michigan

The previous focus was on Minnesota, so this time I focus on the opposing team in one o fthe oldest rivalries in college football -- the Battle of the Little Brown Jug.  That would be the University of Michigan.

Like Minnesota, Michigan was one of the seven founding member institutions of the Big Ten.  They found early success, winning or sharing six of the first ten conference titles.  They have been the most prolific conference leader, winning outright or sharing a part of 43 conference titles, including last year's.  Michigan also played in the very first Rose Bowl game.

Despite their long history, Michigan has had only 13 football coaches.  Most people remember Bo Schembechler, and his run was very successful in many ways.  He won more Big Ten titles than any other coach, but one coach was even more successful.  The school's second coach, Fielding Yost, was there for five more years than Bo, and began a tremendous string of national championships.  In Yost's 26 years, he led the Wolverines to eight national titles, half of their current total.  Yost also is one of the few Michigan coaches who won more bowl games than he lost.  A strange twist in Michigan's history is that fact that, for all of their success, they have lost more bowl appearances than they have won.

Michigan plays their home games in the Big House.  It is an aptly named stadium.  It is the largest capacity stadium in the country, and that is intentional.  Every time another school adds to their stadium, and makes theirs larger than the Big House, Michigan expands theirs to maintain their lead.

There have been way too many prominent players to emerge from Michigan's program, including the current undisputed greatest quarterback of all time, Tom Brady.  There are a few important ones, including Michigan's first Heisman Trophy winner, Tom Harmon.  The halfback broke Red Grange's touchdown record, both on the ground and in the air.  Michigan's other two Heisman Trophy winners were significant.  WR Desmond Howard had one of the highest yards after catch at the time, and set history by posing in Heisman form.  The final Heisman Trophy winner from Michigan was the first mostly defensive player to win the Heisman -- Charles Woodson.