Whether they were running through the streets of Ann Arbor or dining on lobster and champagne in Boston on Saturday night, Michigan fans celebrated their hockey team's national championship in style.
From Beantown to the bars of Ann Arbor, the scene was pandemonium.
When the final goal was scored, the noise in Touchdown Cafe on South University Avenue escalated to a roar. Fans hugged, high-fived and stampeded into the street to get to University President Lee Bollinger's front lawn - an event that was reminiscent of the postgame celebration of the Michigan football team's victory over Penn State this past fall.
"This is the greatest thing on earth," Business senior Tammer Fahmy said. "It just doesn't get any better than this!"
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| SARA STILLMAN/Daily Engineering senior Nick Offredi celebrates Michigan hockey's national championship Saturday by waving a Michigan flag on the steps of the Union. |
"We're going nuts! We're all going nuts!" screamed University alumnus Rob Pollock, a hockey season ticket holder, as he hoisted a pitcher of beer into the air and toasted his friends. "This is the best final that's ever been played," Pollock said.
Even those who had never set foot inside Yost Ice Arena during the season or donned a Michigan hockey sweaters knew the win was something special.
"This is my first time being here for something like this," LSA junior Robert Stampes said. "I wasn't much of a hockey fan, but now I am."
The crowd swarmed around Michigan cheerleader Nick Offredi as he waved his giant Michigan flag through the air, running with hundreds of his fellow fans toward Bollinger's house. But unlike after the Penn State game, Bollinger was not in town to open his doors during the postgame celebration.
"It was one of the coolest things ever," said Offredi, an Engineering senior. "I got the flag and all these people were jumping all over me. It was crazy."
Although many University students celebrated the hockey team's victory in Ann Arbor, some die-hard fans traveled to Boston for the championship game.
Michigan enthusiasts were largely outnumbered by Boston College fans in Boston's FleetCenter, but their awe-filled voices rose to the rafters after Michigan forward Josh Langfeld scored the game-winning goal in overtime to squeak out a victory over the Eagles.
"I think the Boston College fans were intimidated by the quality of the (Michigan) fan participation," said Boston resident Mary Steinke, an Ann Arbor native. "It was all that we could hope for and more."
Engineering senior Brian Heidt left Ann Arbor with three friends early Saturday morning to arrive in Boston just one hour before faceoff. Heidt said he and his friends bought tickets on the street from a fellow Michigan fan for $150 apiece.
"I just gave (the scalper) a hug at the end of the game and said, 'Thank you. It was worth every penny,'" Heidt said, adding that he was so nervous during the game that he became "weak in the knees" every time he stood up.
University of Michigan and Boston College students and alumni crowded Boston bars to watch the game, with rivalries sparking some conflict between patrons, said Boston's Sullivan's Tap bouncer Bob McCauley.
"There was wildness on both sides," McCauley said, adding that opposing fans broke into fights and threw bottles to the floor. "It doesn't do our business any good and it is an embarrassment for both schools."
One Michigan fan who watched the game from a pub in downtown Boston said he faced the wrath of angry Boston College supporters.
University alumnus Rasim Oz said that although he was careful not to wear any Michigan apparel inside the bar to avoid being harassed by Boston College fans, he could not contain his excitement when Michigan won the game. As he jumped into the air in celebration, Oz said an Eagles fan intentionally burned his hand with her cigarette.
"East Coast people - do not mess with their sports teams," Oz said. "I got the hell out of there."
During the sudden death overtime period, fans at Touchdown Cafe in Ann Arbor chanted "Tur-co!," honoring Michigan's goaltender Marty Turco, while shouting at the referees. One man pounded a spoon against an empty beer bottle in the rhythmic pattern of the University's trademark "Go Blue" cheer.
Turco's parents, Gino and Alma, said that watching their son and his teammates capture the title was "awesome."
"It was the best thing I ever saw in my life," Gino Turco said.
While ESPN sports commentators gave the edge to Boston during the majority of the game, few fans in Ann Arbor doubted that the Wolverines would be the victors.
"No one else in the country can say they have two championships in one year," said Ryan Stayton, an Engineering sophomore, as he stood on South University, stretched out his arms and yelled into the street, "This is the greatest university in the world!"
Athletic Director Tom Goss said the team's perseverance allowed the Wolverine's to clinch the championship.
"History probably was made tonight," Goss said.
Engineering junior Mark Dub said he never doubted the Wolverines would win the championship.
Dub, who is working for NASA in Texas this semester, bought a plane ticket to Ann Arbor three weeks ago so he could toast the victory on campus.
"That's how good this team is - I had so much confidence," Dub said. "I gave up 85 degrees and sun just to stand on Bollinger's lawn."
As fans on campus streamed out of their homes, friends hoisted each other onto their shoulders and hugged police officers who attempted to keep the crowd under control.
"Too bad Lee's in Boston - I'm sure he'd love it here," Engineering senior Steve Stewart said. "It's been one hell of a senior year. Thank God we had Turco."
It was a sweet victory for the Wolverines who, after graduating a talented class of seniors, were not expected to advance to NCAA final four.
"This is our senior year," shouted one man in the Touchdown crowd. "We've lived through this before. This is a hell of a way to leave the University!"
After experiencing the Michigan football team's national championship earlier this year, fans said Saturday's hockey victory was the icing on the cake.
"The win was awesome," said Engineering sophomore Kevin Choo, who dressed for the occasion in a yellow wig. Choo said he and his friend wore the wigs at the Rose Bowl as well. "They need to re-vote that (football) coaches poll.
"We have more championships (than the University of Nebraska). We're the overall winners," he said.
04-06-98
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