Editor-in-Chief

Phil Callihan

Photographer

Emma Callihan

Hockey Editor

Matt Ranville

Basketball Editor

Drew Montag

Contributor- Football

Andy Andersen

Contributor- Women's Basketball

Vince Prygoski
 

Phil Callihan

My name is Phil Callihan and I am Editor-in-Chief of UMGoBlue.COM.  I mainly focus on football and cover the UM athletic department but occasionally I'll write about other sports as well.  I'm a 1993 graduate of the University of Michigan and currently hold the position of Executive Director of MIS at the National Center for Manufacturing Sciences (NCMS) in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

I am a lifelong UM fan (33 years and counting) and an alumnus (LSA'93).  I've had some form of football season tickets since 1990.  I also attend many UM Hockey games.  I don't attend every football game since I am a volunteer statistician for a high school football team and our games sometime interfere with the UM schedule.  This site has existed in one form or another since 1995.  It started as a way for me to make comments on UM football.  Gradually it has grown to cover hockey, basketball, and the athletic department.

Here are some of my favorite memories:

Football:
- The first UM Football game I ever attended (UM/Iowa 1981)
- UM/Virginia 1995 (The catch by Mercury Hayes to win the game)
- The 1997 UM/PSU game (drove to Happy Valley to see the Wolverines destroy the Nittany Lions)
- The 1998 Rose Bowl (I had great seats to see UM win the National Championship).  WSU was driving down the field winning 7-0.  The WSU fans starting chanting OVER-RATED.  Of course, a few seconds later Charles Woodson made his incredible interception in the endzone to spark the Wolverines' comeback.  The UM fans chanted back HEISMAN TROPHY.

Hockey:
- The first UM Hockey game I ever attended (GLI 1979, UM lost in triple overtime)
- 1996 National Championship (My wedding day, I waited until UM won in OT to begin the ceremony)
- 1994 Final Four (I went to Minneapolis but the Wolverines didn't!)
- 2000 Final Four- The Wolverines didn't make the Championship Game but I did get to spend the weekend in New York City.

Basketball:
- 1989 National Championship

You can send me e-mail at phil@umgoblue.com

Emma Callihan

Emma Callihan is the newest member of the UMGoBlue.COM staff.  She brings her unique talents as a photographer to UM sports events

Matt Ranville

My name is Matt Ranville and am the Hockey Editor for UMGoblue.COM.  I'm going to explain how I became a huge UM Hockey fan.  Back in the fall of 1995, I had just graduated from the University of Michigan, and started my new job (also here at UM). One of the perks of the job is that you can get athletic tickets at a discount, so I ordered Football and Hockey tickets.

After my first time watching Marty Turco play in goal (my seats are right behind the net he defended for two periods), I had a revelation: I could do that: I wanted to do that!

There was only one obstacle: I couldn't skate. Not a bit. I bought a pair of skates, and began spending each and every lunch hour at Yost. By chance, I met someone who was a goalie on a women's ice hockey team. She owned Marty Turco's pads from his first year at UM. She brought them to skate and began to teach me to skate in them, to slide and move like a goalie. Shortly after that, she introduced me to another goalie who had an extra set of gear. Although he had never met me, he lent me an entire set of goalie gear, and soon I was learning to play.

Red Berenson often speaks about being a true "Michigan Man," and the importance of becoming a well rounded person and player, and I try and drive my team and myself toward those standards.

Needless to say, I am a huge Marty Turco fan, and a fan of all goaltenders that wear the Maize and Blue. I am also a big fan of Bob Gassoff, John Madden, and Bobby Hayes. My biggest admiration, though, is for Red Berenson, who runs a top notch program, and produces guys that go on to be great hockey players, but also professionals of other kinds. I have never met one of his players I didn't like, and wasn't proud to have represent my school, and that takes some good work on the part of Red and his staff.

My greatest UM hockey memory was being in the top of the second deck of Boston's Fleet Center, next to the UM Band, dancing to the music as Michigan prepared to take to the ice for overtime. Watching all the Boston people as we out-shouted and cheered them was great. After the game, the team came over to the glass and sang the Victors with all of us and the band, and it was awesome. Some of the locals (from other Boston schools) told us we weren't allowed to pay for our own drinks that night, showing some of the finest hospitality I've ever seen. The whole trip was great. But that one moment, when the band was playing, and the team was stepping onto the ice, you just knew. That was the best.

Please feel free to e-mail me at matt@umgoblue.com

Drew Montag

Hello. My name is Drew Montag, and I'm the Basketball Editor for the UMGoBlue.com Web Site. I'm 46 years old, and I live in York Township, which is about 6 miles south of Ann Arbor, down US-23. I work for a computer company in Ann Arbor as a Software Engineer.

I graduated from UM in 1978 with a B.S. in Computer and Communication
Science. Back then, it was part of LS&A, not Engineering. I've stayed
in the area ever since, at least partly so I could keep going to the home football and basketball games. I also really like the Ann Arbor area.

While I was in school, I managed to make it to every home football and
basketball game, and I kept my streak going after I graduated. For football, I made it all the way until the Miami (Ohio) game on September 30th, 1995. For basketball, I didn't miss a game (except when I was in Pasadena for the Rose Bowl) until the Purdue game on February 7th, 1993. What can I say? I like going to the games.

When I was a student, I used to camp out to get good season tickets. Now that I'm an alumnus, and not a rich one, I've got mediocre seats up in the Gold section. I can't see spending the $15,000 to join the Victor's Club to get seats in the Blue section. If you want to come up to "Nosebleed Territory" during a home game and say "hi", I'm in Section 57, Row 31, Seats 11 and 12.

I have several favorite Michigan Memories:

Basketball:
- Winning the National Championship in 1989.
- Beating Duke 62-61 at Cameron Indoor Stadium in 1996.
- Beating Indiana 80-52 at Crisler in 1986.

Football:
- Winning (most of) the National Championship in 1997.
- Tshimanga Biakabutuka shredding Ohio State for 313 yards in 1995.
- Beating MSU 42-0 in 1983, George Perles' first season.

Please feel free to drop me a line at: dmontag@umgoblue.com

Andy Andersen

Andy is a Michigan graduate and long time Michigan Football fan, having attended games during the tenures of Fritz Crisler, Bennie Oosterbaan, Bump Elliot, Bo Schembechler, Gary Moeller, and Lloyd Carr. He attempts to present articles consistent with the concerns and interests of Michigan Fans.

E-mail Andy

Vince Prygoski

I'm Vince Prygoski, the women's basketball columnist for UMGoBlue.com. I am a librarian at the University of Michigan Flint campus and also work part time at Flint Public Library. I went to college at Central
Michigan University and graduate school at the U of M Ann Arbor, and grew up in Wyandotte, Michigan.

I have been a fan of Michigan sports for as long as I can remember. On the day I was born (November 14, 1964) the Michigan football team defeated Iowa on the way to the Big Ten and Rose Bowl championships.
My uncle Phil Prygoski attended the U of M in the 70s, and was a major influence on me becoming a Wolverine fan. My first Michigan sports event was the 1976 football win over Stanford.

Some of my fondest Michigan sports memories include:

- The 1984 football win over Miami of Florida.
- 1989-90 women's basketball season, particularly the first round win in the NCAA tournament. My friend and fellow Wyandotter Carol Szczechowski was one of the leaders of this team.
- 1997 football national championship, especially the Colorado game which I attended.
- 2001 field hockey national championship.
- 1991 football game at Michigan State, watching Desmond Howard run circles around the Spartans. Also, the more recent 14-0 and 49-3 wins over MSU.
- The two Michigan-Ohio State games I have attended, 1983 and 1999.
- The success that the women's basketball team has had since Coach Guevara took over. Some specific games that stand out include 2000-01 vs. Louisiana Tech, that same season's "three peat" over Penn State, 2001-02 vs. Notre Dame, and 1999-00 win over Purdue.
- The thrilling overtime win against Penn State in 2002, and seeing Joe Paterno coach the Nittany Lions.
- Spring afternoons when you can watch a women's softball and men's baseball game at the same time.
- Meeting Bo Schembechler at the building that bears his name, and getting his autograph. Also, meeting many other coaches and players on various teams (women's and men's hoops, field hockey, ice hockey,
football) at autograph signing sessions.

I could think of many more great Michigan moments, but that would take up too much space. I always enjoy spending time in good ol' Ann Arbor town, especially when I can cheer on one of my favorite college sports teams.

I have written a book on the history of Michigan women's basketball that I am presently trying to get published. Hopefully this will happen soon, and you will find my book at your local Barnes and Noble,
Borders, or other book store.

E-mail Vince

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