C is for Conference

The Big Ten Conference is the only one that I really know. When I was growing up, I didn't realize that there were any other conferences. In fact, I don't think I realized that Michigan could even play any other teams.

I didn't watch a lot of the games while I was growing up. Honestly, we pretty much focused on watching the Michigan State and Ohio State games. My cousins attended Michigan State and of course the Ohio State game was the big one. All I ever heard was "Big Ten."

Even as a kid, I understood that the Big Ten was something special. It is more than just great sports and great rivalries. (The Michigan-Ohio State rivalry is arguably the biggest one in college sports.) All of the schools also have stellar academics. Their research facilities are well-known around the world. I can't tell you how many times I come across a study or educational information and find it came from a Big Ten school.

I always had dreams of attending a Big Ten school, specifically Michigan. Unfortunately, I had mono three times in my later high school years, so I was delayed in taking the SAT and ACT. I missed the PSAT (which based on my SAT score would have given me a free ride) because I was in France as an exchange student. Finances were not such that I could afford an out-of-state school.

Nevertheless, I still feel a sense of pride whenever the Big Ten is involved in something. Even though I despise Ohio State, I had a bit of excitement that a Big Ten school made it to the Final Four this year in basketball. At the same time, I was annoyed that it was OSU. And it was hard for me to accept them beating Syracuse. After all, I now live in Orange Country.

I still keep up with my beloved Wolverines, thanks to the wonders of the Big Ten Network. I was so grateful when it finally became available in my area a couple of years ago. Now, I never again have to miss games because they are not on national television, such as ESPN. I can even watch games on my computer. The app should soon be available for the Droid (if it isn't already - I have to check into that). I can stay connected wherever I go.

B is for Big House

You can't talk about Michigan football without mentioning the Big House. It is the largest venue in college football. In fact, I believe it is the largest sports venue of all. It is an impressive sight to behold.

When you are watching a home game on the TV, you can see how ginormous the Big House actually is. About 120,000 people can fit in the seats, but there is no such thing as a bad seat. Some people are lucky enough to have actual individual seats. The rest of us resort to sitting on a metal bench during the game. But when the action is hot, you aren't even sitting, anyway. What is amazing is how it doesn't seem so intimidating once you are actually there watching the game.

When you arrive at the Big House, you are greeted with all kinds of vendors. All kinds of food is available to consume. One of my favorites is Mr. Spot's. I am partial to them because there is also a location in Bowling Green, where I went to school. You can go shopping for souvenirs at the M Den. That is where I bought my earrings, glass and t-shirt.

There is a general air of excitement, without being obnoxious. Students and fans are super excited, but no one is really rude. When I took my mother, people treated us well. You see families as well as students. It is a community.

Sure, traffic can easily turn into a big clusterf*ck, but residents and police are seasoned veterans at directing the traffic. I don't think it really was too bad in either direction when we went. We elected to save money and simply park in someone's yard for a couple of bucks. I was amused that his hometown was actually a suburb of Rochester. The odds of that happening are quite large, I am sure.

I still get chills when I watch a home game on TV. I hope to have a chance to visit the Big House again.

A is for Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor is deeply ingrained into my very being. I grew up in Toledo, OH. To get home on the expressway, I always had to follow the signs toward Ann Arbor, which was only about 45 minutes away. It is also the site of my favorite University.

I wanted to attend U of M, but didn't get to apply until it was too late to qualify for enough scholarships to offset the out-of-state cost. (I had mono three times in high school and took my SATs and ACTs late.) But I still made it up there a few times to visit the campus, eat great foods and to go shopping. I also crossed the line a few times as I visited Ypsilanti to see friends at Eastern Michigan. I have fond memories of lots of shopping, lots of ridiculous binge eating, and visiting a couple of bars. But don't ask me to tell you the specific names of places I had gone, because I can no longer remember.

The last time that I was in Ann Arbor was the weekend in 2010 that my grandmother died. I was coming home, anyway, because I had gotten tickets to the Michigan-Bowling Green game. I took my mother with me. She suffers from Alzheimer's and this was the last time the two of us went out on a mother-daughter outing. It is a bittersweet memory. I terribly miss my mother and my grandmother. But I got to see my boys in the maize and blue play in person. I have been a fan for many, many years now.

I look forward to having the option to return some day. I get jealous when I read my friends' posts about visiting or going to games. Ann Arbor is a treasure trove of culture and fun of which I didn't take advantage when I was close enough.

Check out the visitor's page here to plan your own trip!

Welcome to the A to Z Challenge 2012...Maybe?

I went ahead and entered this blog into the A to Z Challenge for 2012. Am I going to be able to come up with an alphabet about Michigan football? I honestly have no idea. But I thought it would be a great way for me to try to get the ball rolling again. I started this blog back in the fall, thinking I could write about the team here and there when topics didn't fit into my sports beats for Yahoo! Sports. But I kind of fizzled out. We shall see what happens.

Good luck to my fellow writers who are undertaking this challenge. And thanks for stopping by! GO BLUE!

Michigan inches up to #11

It got hairy for a bit there in the first half of the Michigan Wolverines game at Northwestern last Saturday. I was listening to the second quarter on a spotty AM station as we were driving back from hiking at Letchworth State Park. I was swearing profusely at both the mistakes of the players as well as the station going in and out. By the time I got home, the second half was just starting and the game took a 180 degree turn.

It appears that a new trend is for the team to perform poorly in the first half of the game as they get to know their opposition. And then they seem to pull it off in the second half, performing almost miraculous comebacks from being way down. In this last game, Northwestern didn't even have a chance to score in the second half.

Is this the technique of a team ranked #11?

I'm not so sure about this, but it feels good to have a good ranking after a few crappy years. Last week I commented on whether or not they deserved their ranking of 11/12 for my fan beat on Yahoo! Sports.

I definitely believe that the offense is significantly better. I wish that they would stay more consistent and not give us all heart attacks in the first half of each game. Defense is getting quite good at stuffing the opposition. I would say that the most progress has been made in the defense. The offense was also able to post huge numbers last year.

What do you think? Are they a #11 team with their 6-0 record? How will they fare against upcoming rivals, such as Michigan State? I am hoping for the best and still trying to stay cautiously optimistic.

Football season opens

Football season is here, and that means it is time to resurrect this blog. I had every intention of sharing stories and links over this summer, but life had other plans for me. Now I will try again.

The first game for the Wolverines this season is against Western Michigan. I have always thought of WMU as being a less than stellar team. I thought this would be a high scoring, easy win. It isn't quite as high as I had originally thought, and WMU is stronger that I had thought. I'm just happy the game is back. More later. :-D

BFF - A New Blogging Group

Ahhhhh....I love to write and I love inspiration. I just came across a new blogging group tonight called BFF - Blogging for Fun. Stay tuned for more possible posts based on their topics each week, as well. :-D