Michigan Football Rivalries: A Look Into The Greatest

Oct 10, 2015; West Lafayette, IN, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers dance on the sideline after scoring a touchdown against the Purdue Boilermakers at Ross Ade Stadium. Minnesota defeats Purdue 41-13. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

To many who don’t know, this is a rivalry game. This game is played for the Little Brown Jug, which is the second oldest trophy in college football. The Little Brown Jug has some significance to it.

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See, most trophies are “territorial” trophies, or state trophies. This trophy was left on the field in a Michigan-Minnesota tie in 1903. Michigan head coach Fielding H. Yost had bought this jug prior to the game for water, and when he left it on the field, Oscar Munson, a Scandinavian janitor for Minnesota, “captured” it and took it to Minnesota’s head of athletics, L. J. Cooke. This is the start of the Little Brown Jug.

The rivalry was first played in 1892 and is one of the most played rivalry games with 101 games played. This is no easy game for either team, and this game has brought some truly spectacular games to watch. Both teams were in the founding committee of the Big Ten—known before as the Western Conference.

These are two very storied programs with 18 national titles, 59 bowl appearances, and 22 Rose Bowls between the two of them. Michigan holds the longest win streak at 16 games, which was finally broken in 2004 when Minnesota took back the Little Brown Jug.

It is said that the Little Brown Jug doesn’t mean much to the newer Michigan players, but it better start because Minnesota doesn’t have a rival quite like Michigan, and even though Michigan has dominated the series, Minnesota has never been known to back down from the Wolverines. Last year Minnesota beat Michigan in the Big House.

The game will be played in Minnesota this year, and I’m sure Michigan will be ready in a couple weeks. Michigan currently leads the series 73-25-3. This game should be good, as Michigan and Minnesota are both boasting some stout defenses.

Next: Notre Dame