22nd
MUCK FICHIGAN
Originally published: March 26, 2010
Players come and go every year in college athletics, so I’ve always found it difficult to work up the enthusiasm so many others seem to have for any regular season matchups in any sport. While I understand the friends or family I know that have their alma maters of their own or perhaps their parents that they’ve rooted on for as long as they can remember, my own with the entire recruiting process and annual ensuing coaching carousel turns my stomach. I instead have found that when it comes to the NCAA, it was much easier for me to simply find a school to hate. And considering that my school of choice has been the University of Michigan (even before I bought that “Muck Fichigan” T-shirt when visiting Michigan State in high school), it also makes it more rewarding in my mind.
Intramurals is the extent of the athletics offered by my own alma mater, but who needs any sort of national championship when I’ve already accumulated so many priceless memories of the ways in which the Wolverines have broken their fans hearts. Consider Chris Webber’s attempted timeout with none remaining in the 1993 National Championship, a play that helped make Michigan back-to-back losers. And I imagine even Kordell Stewart can’t complain if generations from now he’s only remembered for his 76-yard Hail Mary that sank the Wolverines in 1994. While the university isn’t the powerhouse they were a decade ago, even then there’s still the occasional gem like the 2007 loss to unranked Appalachian State. While I’ve often been told not to take joy in the misery of others, cheering on whichever Michigan opponent has proven to me that the failures of a team you hate can feel just as satisfying as the success of a team you love.
