The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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want them to dwell on negatives. But I was extremely bothered by it and I still am." Though it has long been rumored that Tennessee head coach Phillip Fulmer voted the Wolverines fourth — to exact a delusional revenge for the fact his quarterback, Peyton Manning, lost the Heisman Trophy to Michigan's Charles Woodson — coaches' votes were not made public in 1997, so Fulmer's culpability has never been proven. Such anonymity did not stop Michigan fans from directing their vitriolic animosity in the direction of Knoxville while forever branding Fulmer a sore loser. Within the anger, a myth began — propagating over 17 years since — that Fulmer alone cost U-M the unanimous championship. Ask a fan today why Michigan finished second to Nebraska and one will likely hear, "Because Phil Fulmer voted them fourth." The truth is, the fourth-place vote (or the potential of two third-place votes as the math would add up the same), while unscrupulous, was not to blame. Had Michigan received second-place votes from the 32 foot- ball coaches that ultimately ranked the Cornhuskers No. 1, U-M would have finished with 1,518 points to NU's 1,520-point final tally. Every first-place vote awards 25 points and every second-place vote is worth 24 and so on, and Nebraska received exactly 32 first-place votes and 30 second-place votes. Michigan received 30 first-place votes and at least 30 second-place votes. It may have received 31 and a fourth-place vote or 30 and two third-place votes. However, the only way the latter would have had an impact is if the co-champions had split the first- place votes 31-31. Then, and only then, would the man (men) in the shadows truly deserve the wrath of the Wolverines. Instead, 32 head coaches were swayed by the campaigning of the Huskers (and some media pundits, most famously ESPN's Lee Corso), including 21.5 that had previously voted the Maize and Blue No. 1 at the conclusion of the 1997 regular season. Carr is right to be mad after all these years. His team played a tougher schedule than Nebraska (according to football-reference. com), with U-M knocking off seven ranked teams (four top-10 squads) compared to four ranked teams (two top-10 squads) for the Cornhuskers, and the grandiose proclamations from those that played and coached the Big Red irritated a man that went about his business humbly, re- fusing to take a similar stage in front of the television cameras. But the shadowy figure lurking behind his ballot that cast the Maize and Blue fourth … he alone did not write the Wolverines' history. He sure makes a Hollywood-worthy villain, though. ❑ Associate Editor Michael Spath has been with The Wolverine since 2002. Contact him at mspath@thewolverine.com and follow him on Twitter @Spath_Wolverine.