17, 1956 THE MICHIGAN DAILY PA 17 1956 THE MIChIGAN DAILY PA This morning on STATE STREET .by'stee heilpern Michigan Leads Conference In Overall 1955-56 Recor The Big, Big Stadium THIS IS YOUR first football game at Michigan Stadium, and it'll be something to write home about. I'm assuming, of course, that you've never seen a game at Michigan Stadium. Okay, okay, so you're from Detroit and you used to come up all the time when you were in high school. So what're you reading this for-you know what it's like. Scram-I'm writing this column to the guy or gal from Pine Bluff, Ark., or White Plains, N.Y., or. . . okay, you get the idea now. t You're going to the game for one of four reasons: one, you like football; two, you're curious; three, it's gonna be awful dead in the dorms; or four, you're. a conformist. Okay, you're going, .and I don't care why. It's no skin off my nose-stay home and talk to your house mother if you want. Okay, you're going. You're walking toward the Stadium and you're wondering where all these people came from. Thousands, millions maybe. And this isn't even .a sellout. Where are they gonna fit 'em? You'll soon see- you're entering Michigan Stadium, the world's largest college owned enclosure for, the purposes of promoting mass confusion. It makes Yankee Stadium look like a chicken coop. One Hundred Thousand or r Thereabouts Capacity-tell this to your buddies back home next vacation. * * * * * Section 29, Row 84, Seat 15... yOU CLUTCH your season's ticket-section 29, row 84, seat 15. You look at the diagram of the place and you see you're in the end zone corner-but 'your upperelass friend tells you you can see from ANY- SPLACE-they built this place for the spectator. You go- in the gate, walk Up to your entrance, give the man your stub, get a piece of paper they call a program, and walk in. It's big, all right. You wish you had gone to that small college back East that they told you about, but you go in anyway. You have to go in-you're being pushed. You don't go towards your seat at first-you just look. You see. the band on the' field-more people in the brass section than there were in your whole high school. Everybody's yelling-and the game hasn't even started. You look around a little more, then you get pushed again, then you go find your seat. It takes a while, but you eventually find one square foot with a "15" on it, and you sit down... .,..and you look around you again. You feel small, smaller than you've ever felt before. But the band stasrts playing something slow and everybody starts to stand up. So you stand up too. They start singing: "Sing to the colors.. ." And you sing too. You don't know the words, but you will soon-and you'll never forget them. It's the Alma Mater. You begin to feel a part of this big place. Pretty soon a lot of guys dressed up in yellow and blue run out, and everyone stands up and yells-only real loud. It's your team. It's Michigan. "Hail to the victors . ." ... and you begin to feel a little better. You're set to watch the game, but you know you're watching something more than a football game. This is the patt of Michigan that fewpeople forget. You're not so sorry that you came here after all. You don't mind it when the fellow next to you lets some of the mustard from his hot dog drip onto your shirt. You don't mind it at all. .0 ., JOIN THE DAILY SPORTS STAFF -Daily-Dick uaskx i NOT STOPPED YET-Michigan's Jim Pace (43) seems about to be tackled by Army's Pete Lash (24) in last year's 26-2 Wolverine tri- umph, but looks are deceiving. Pace broke away several times during the game for long gains. WITH FLASH CARDS: Block M Provides Pep For Home Grid Contests I. By GARY PECK "CARDS UP!" will be 'the Block 'M's signal to action this fall as the Wolverines begin their 1956 football season. The Block 'M' is an institution containing 1161 of Michigan's most avid cheering fans. The Block 'M'- ers comprise Michigan's flash card section who perform at every home game, if weather permits. This season they will wear their felt capes, some yellow, some blue. They will flash their new pom- poms. But most important, they will help cheer our team to victory with their clever flash card stunts. Only Four Years Old The Block is only four years old but it still is rated nearly equal to the famed Illinois Block. Four cards with a different col- or painted on each side are passed out to each Block 'M'-er two min- utes before halftime. Then, when the band begins to .march, the Block takes to action. For instance, on some of the school songs the Block might pic- ture the traditional yellow 'M' on a blue background, or even spell out MICHIGAN. If, the band played the Star Spangled Banner,, then the Block might portray a flag waving in the breeze. The Block, in connection with the band, can create anything from a Hawaiian Hula Dancer swaying her hips to a football player (Michigan, of course, cock- ing his arm to throw.) The Block has a few basic stunts but it usually creates about forty new ones during the pro- gress of each season.. There are approximately 150 openings in the Block which are reserved for freshmen this fall. Any interested freshmen may sign up either at registration or at the booth on the diag. The positions will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis. Organized in Spring Dick Rusnak, chairman of the Block 'M' Committee, and his Central Committee organize the Block 'M' in the spring. They conduct the spring sign-ups, have the yellow and blue capes cleaned, and have new instruction cards printed. A mass meeting of the Block 'M', including freshmen, is held during orientation week in the fall at Hill Auditorium. Movies of pre- vious year's Block sections of this and other schools will be shown; cheerleaders will teach the cheers; and the football captain will give a little pep talk. *v DAVE GREY Daily Sports Editof Athletics at Michigan during the 1955-56 year again found theI phrase "Champions of the West"- champions of the Big Ten, at least-deservedly belonging in Ann Arbor. For the second straight year in the Western Conference (Big Ten), Michigan did better on a strictly mathematical basis 'than any other Conference school. The record speaks for itself with cham- pionships registered in indoor and outdoor track, wrestling, and ten- nis. Three Second Places Second places were earned by three Wolverine squads - swim- ming, gymnastics, and golf. The football team came in third in the Big Ten with a 5-2 record, and the baseball team finished fourth. Only one Michigan sport ended out of the hypothetical "first di- vision." Basketball was again doomed to a medicore year and a ninth place finish. Net included in the Big Ten rec- ord books is intercollegiate hock-. ey, since only three Conference schools -- Michigan, Michigan State, and Minnesota--compete in the Western Intercollegiate Hock- ey League that also has Michigan Tech, Colorado College, Denver University, and North Dakota Uni- versity as members. For the sixth time in nine years, Michigan copped the Na- tional Collegiate Athletic Associa- tion crown in hockey. This was Michigan's only NCAA title last year; but as the New York Yank- ees of baseball, Michigan has es- tablished a winning name in hock- ey that never seems to die. In comparison, only Illinois and Ohio State were able to capture more than one Big Ten champion- ship. The Illini won fencing (Michigan, Minnesota, and Purdue do not have teams) and gymnas- ties. The Buckeyes from Ohio came out on top in the coveted football scramble and also in swimming. The football season was an "al- HAIRSTYLING TO SUIT YOUR TASTE 715 N. UniYersity Ii most but not quite" with nearly every game one to be long re- membered. The rout of Army, the edging of Michigan State, the ral- lies to defeat Minnesota and Iowa, the crashing defeat by Illinois, and the final 17-4 loss to Ohio State all helped make for a dramatic season. Winter added more memorable events. Vic Heyliger's hockey team got off to a slow start and then fought back to take the season's last four games from runner-up Michigan Tech. MEN OF MICHIGAN Sam' SiS Welcomes you to WHY PAY) MILITARY OXFORDS for Army ROTC Navy ROTC Air Force ROTC Block and Brown $688 Meanwhile, the swimmers re- covered from some mid-season problems to show well, the basket- ballers had some tense, tight games, sophomore Ed Gagnier was nothing short of sensational for the gymnasts, and Captain Mike Rodriguez continued his reign as one of collegiate wrestling's most colorful performers. MacKay Draws Recognition Track under Coach Don Can- ham was to continue to be "the best," tennis Captain Barry Mac- , Kay backed up his being picked o the preliminary Davis Cup squa by sweeping through the Big Te championships. The golf team was to find itse and finish a strong second, whi the baseball squad got revenge b taking an important late-seaso double header from "eVer-rivals Michigan State. It was a big year for Michiga, and the triumps of 1955-56 seeme to forecast that 1956-57 could b even better and maybe just as ex citing. fore Ann Arbor MORE? LEVI'S The Original cowboy waistband Dungarees 2 3 65 rts..89C :30 P.M tore ngton Lit-Owner HANES "T" Shii Open Monday 'Til 8 Sani's S 122 East Washir Sam J. Benjamin,'27 I THE INTERFRATERNITY CU ICL wishes to announce i s SEPTEMBER 30-OCTOBER 14 * Whether you are rush fraternities. a freshman or a senior, you are eligible to * Register for Rushing in Room 1020 Administration Building from September 17 through October 3. * NO FEE-just sign the l.F.C. Rushing List. f