Posted on Wed, Sep 23, 2009 : 12:23 p.m.
A fascinating history of The Little Brown Jug
By Pete Bigelow
"On November 19, 1931, a car rolled up to the Tuomy Hills gas station on the corner of Washtenaw and Stadium. For men wearing "dark goggles" rode inside. One of the disguised passengers rolled a freshly painted jug onto the pavement, where it was scooped up by gas station attendant K.D. Smith."
That's just one snippet from Greg Dooley's story on the history of The Little Brown Jug, the prize that belongs to the winner of the Michigan-Minnesota game.
This season marks the 100th anniversary of the schools playing for the jug. Although they're not scheduled to play each other, Dooley's excellent history lesson should help Wolverine fans fill the absence.
Comments
OutofYpsi
Thu, Sep 24, 2009 : 3:20 a.m.
"For" men? Proof reading (or lack of)is horrible on this site. I'm not a professional speller or English language expert, but.... I'm not being paid to write articles. Perhaps hire a 5th grader?
Greg Dooley
Wed, Sep 23, 2009 : 3:34 p.m.
Zulu and Michboy, as 81wolverine clarified, the story is not about the origins of the rivalry, it's about one slice of jug lore that is often cited. I drill down into that period and explain what actually happened. But....I have some additional writing about what happened in 1903 when the jug was left behind and challenge some of the conventional understanding of how the rivalry started. That will be published soon.
81wolverine
Wed, Sep 23, 2009 : 2:33 p.m.
Zulu and michboy40 are correct. But, this short post on AnnArbor.com fails to explain the context of the excerpt from Greg Dooley's story. You need to click on the link in the post to see what the heck the gas station incident is referring to. Apparently, it's referring to a period of 1931 to 1933 when the real jug was missing and a bogus copy of it was dropped off at the old gas station at Stadium and Washtenaw. Anyway, read the entire post on MVictors.com and it makes sense.
michboy40
Wed, Sep 23, 2009 : 2:17 p.m.
Did not read this, but my understanding is that UM brought the jug to the game, forgot it, called and asked that they send it back to AA. Minnesota said, "if you want it back, you will have to win it back." Something like that, but it was originally our jug, which only stands to reason since we pretty much own it.
KeepingItReal
Wed, Sep 23, 2009 : 2:02 p.m.
Are you sure that this is the correct story. It's my understanding that the Minnesota team supplied the jug for a visiting Michigan team and forget to retrieve it after the game. The Michigan team bought the jug back to Ann Arbor. When Minnesota team realized that it did not have the jug, it called the coach at UM and ask for it back. The Michigan coach in term told the Minnesota coach that if he wanted the jug they would have to come and get it. Thus begins the saga of the "Little Brown Jug."
KeepingItReal
Wed, Sep 23, 2009 : 2:01 p.m.
Are you sure that this is the correct story. It's my understanding that the Minnesota team supplied the jug for a visiting Michigan team and forget to retrieve it after the game. The Michigan team bought the jug back to Ann Arbor. When Minnesota team realized that it did not have the jug, it called the coach at UM and ask for it back. The Michigan coach in term told the Minnesota coach that if he wanted the jug they would have to come and get it. Thus begins the saga of the "Little Brown Jug."