The Countdown Returns! - A special thanks to all the readers who have emailed me regarding my disappearing act mid-June. I must admit I was surprised by the favorable response to 100 Days Till Football and 100 Reasons to Love Ann Arbor. So my apologies for letting it, and myself, fall off the map. I'm currently about twenty days behind in the Countdown, so over the next week or so I'm going to try to double up the days and locations. So today I present 72 days to football and reasons 92 and 91 to fall in love with Ann Arbor. It'll all make sense once I'm caught up. Promise!
72 Days till Football and Reasons #92 and #91 to Love Ann Arbor
#92 in our continuing Series of 100 Days to Football and 100 Reasons to Love Ann Arbor
#92 - Oosterbaan Field House
In all its years of service, Oosterbaan Field House has seen everything from Championship football teams, to the birth of soccer programs, to hosting IM competitions. If you played varsity field sports, or even played them just for fun, you probably set foot in Oosterbaan. It is also the home field for Michigan's national champion club Lacrosse Team (see below!). So in honor of the Lacrosse team's victory, #92 in the Countdown is Oosterbaan Field House and reason #92 to Fall in love with Ann Arbor!
#91 in our continuing Series of 100 Days to Football and 100 Reasons to Love Ann Arbor
#91 - The University of Michigan Museum of Art
Small, yet powerful. via www.tfaoi.com
The ultimate cheap date, I'm-deeper-than-I-appear, stop for the artist in you. Housing art from the American revolution, to provincial France, to the Far East, the UMMA is one of the deepest and most diverse collections of art housed by any university in the country. Situated in Alumni Memorial Hall, UMMA has been open at this location since 1946. The building itself dates back to 1910 and was constructed as a tribute to University of Michigan graduates who died or were wounded in the Civil War, the Mexican-American War, and the Spanish-American War. A significant house for significant works of art, and reason #91 to fall in love with Ann Arbor.
Welcome Back Johnny - If you haven't noticed, Johnny from RBUAS is back. Well, back in the sense that he posted something for the first time since November 2007. Stick around for a while John. Kick of your shoes. Get comfy. Write some more. We don't want to have to go all Misery on you.
Notre Dame Wins Staring Contest Against NBC - A season after going 3-9, posting NCAA record marks for offensive futility, and still retaining Charles Weis as their head Coach, Notre Dame was rewarded with a five-year extension of its contract with NBC to televise Notre Dame football home games, running from 2011 to 2015. The South Bend Tribune politely used the word "coax" when describing how things went down. Realistically though, the deal makes sense for both schools. Notre Dame can't be that bad again. It's simply not possible with the influx of talent coming to South Bend. The SBT also points out Notre Dame's upcoming prime time contests and travel games to "neutral site" areas where ND will be the home team as rationales for NBC picking up the option.
Speaking of TV, I Finally Get the Big Ten Network. Woo! - Comcast and TBTN finally reached an agreement. Woo. Now I can watch water polo!
Men's Varsity Club Lacrosse Wins National Championship
A belated, yet frosty cold one is raised to the University of Michigan's Varsity Club Lacrosse Team who hoisted their first National Championship in the Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association (MCLA) the governing body for club-varsity lacrosse in the US. The team also became the first squad in MCLA history to win the National Championship and finish the season with a perfect record. Michigan was 20-0 (7-0) this season, winning both their conference (by crushing Michigan State 21-5) and National Championship (beating Chapman 14-11 in Texas Stadium). The team was lead by senior captians Brekan Kohlitz and Graham Townsend, as well as freshman scoring sensation Trevor Yealy.
Congrats to the Lacrosse team on an outstanding year!
Both Photos via Cecil Copeland and Dave Adams www.umich.edu
