The Game

“My first game was 1951 and the rivalry was good, but not like now,” my neighbor Howard wrote in an email. “The Minnesota game was as intense as OSU, but nothing like when we played Michigan State.”

As you may recall, Howard Zeck is a retired Ann Arbor police officer who has been working the sidelines at U of M football games for over 50 years. He and his wife Dorothy are snowbirds, so like many fans they’ll be watching The Game on TV this Saturday. The internet is ablaze with the speculation and hysterics of much bigger sports brains than mine, so I emailed Howard inquiring about the old (better?) days.

“I met Woody Hayes, and of course was there to see him kick all the yard markers over,” Howard replied when I asked what it was like to be on the sidelines with two gargantua of college football. “About a year after Woody was fired, he and Bo spoke to our Law Enforcement group here in Ann Arbor,” he continued. “Woody told us a story about talking to one of his players. ‘Last week I was crossing the campus and this player ran up to me, hit me on the shoulder, and…(Woody then paused) now you heard what I just said, HE HIT ME!’ Of course everyone in the room came unglued, and Woody just smiled.”

“The teams under Bo and Woody were always disciplined and well behaved. Woody always told the players, ‘YOU will not protest anything. I will do all the protesting around here.’”

“I had tremendous respect for Woody Hayes and the way he treated his players, many very poor,” Howard continued. “There are stories of how he spent most of his salary on the kids and their families.”

I asked Howard (photo at right) what he would tell the team and coaches if he could send them a message. “Go out there and play like Michigan and win one for BO!!”

Amen, Howard. Amen.