Thursday Morning Brews: Thanksgiving grab bag

Happy Thanksgiving Thursday, folks. Welcome to Morning Brews. Since many are spending time with family today, this morning’s Brews will be a link roundup instead of the usual format. In the Brews this morning, we have a commemoration of the 100th consecutive playing of The Game, a check in with women’s basketball, and some recruiting notes. Also, given the holiday and the altered format, there isn’t a song referenced in this morning’s Brews. We’ll start that up again next Thursday.

Let’s get to it:

Saturday will be the 114th meeting between Michigan and Ohio State, and it will also be the 100th consecutive playing of The Game. The rivalry started in 1897 with a Michigan victory, and over the next 16 years The Game was played 14 times - resulting in 12 Michigan victories and two ties. The rivalry then took a six year hiatus (over years that roughly correspond with World War I, but I don’t know if that was the cause), before resuming, and it has been played every year since. To commemorate 100 consecutive years of The Game, check out the video above which contains memorable radio calls from over the years.

Rivalry games are typically some of the busiest from a recruiting standpoint, and Saturday will be no different. Steve Lorenz is reporting ($) that a foursome from Baltimore St. Frances, where former Michigan analyst Biff Poggi is now the head coach, will make their way to Ann Arbor for The Game. The group includes 2018 prospect Eyabi Anoba (No. 41 overall, No. 3 WDE) and 2019 prospects Shane Lee (No. 39 overall, No. 1 ILB), Darrian Dalcourt (No. 301 overall, No. 34 OG), and Joachim Bangda (No. 326 overall, No. 25 RB). All of the recruits are four-stars in the 247Composite rankings.

Closer to home, 2019 S prospect Marvin Grant will be visiting Ann Arbor this weekend according to Brice Marich. Grant is the No. 216 overall recruit in the 2019 cycle and the No. 12 safety. The four-star recruit checks in at 6’2” and 200 lbs. Grant has a smattering of offers from Big Ten schools, Notre Dame, and some MAC schools. Currently all six Crystal Ball predictions are in for the Wolverines.

There will also be a collection of current commits on campus this weekend. Rivalry games provide good opportunities for prospects who are already committed to use their official visits, allowing the host school to pay for their travel and accommodations. It also allows current commits to form bonds with each other and to help to recruit uncommitted prospects who may be visiting at the same time. This weekend Myles Sims, Jalen Mayfield, Aidan Hutchinson, and Sammy Faustin will be on campus.

Women’s basketball unfortunately came up short against No. 5 Louisville last week in the WNIT semifinals, but the Wolverines still find themselves ranked in the latest Coaches Poll. Senior standout Katelynn Flaherty also broke Michigan’s career scoring record during the matchup with the Cardinals. Last night, the Wolverines notched a bounce back—though closely contested—win over the Oakland Grizzlies by the score of 78-69. Michigan was led by Hallie Thome and Flaherty with 29 pts. and 26 pts., respectively. The victory puts Michigan at 3-1 on the year. The team will be back in action on Saturday when they play Ohio.

Attendees of The Game are in for a pre-game treat on Saturday. The University has announced that four F-16 Falcons from the 180th Fighter Wing (based in Toledo, OH) will conduct a flyover at the conclusion of the National Anthem. This will be the second flyover of the season at the Big House. The first was prior to the game against Air Force in September. Small sample size be damned, Michigan is undefeated in home games that have flyovers this season.