The Michigan Wolverines football team represents the University of Michigan in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. Michigan has the most all-time wins in college football history.[2][3] The team is known for its distinctive winged helmet, its fight song, its record-breaking attendance figures at Michigan Stadium,[4] and its many rivalries, particularly its annual, regular season-ending game against Ohio State, known simply as "The Game," once voted as ESPN's best sports rivalry.[5]
Michigan began competing in intercollegiate football in 1879. The Wolverines joined the Big Ten Conference at its inception in 1896, and other than a hiatus from 1907 to 1916, have been members since. Michigan has won or shared 44 league titles, and since the inception of the AP Poll in 1936, has finished in the top 10 a total of 39 times. The Wolverines claim 11 national championships, most recently that of the 1997 squad voted atop the final AP Poll.
From 1900 to 1989, Michigan was led by a series of nine head coaches, each of whom has been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame either as a player or as a coach. Fielding H. Yost became Michigan's head coach in 1901 and guided his "Point-a-Minute" squads to a streak of 56 games without a defeat, spanning from his arrival until the season finale in 1905, including a victory in the 1902 Rose Bowl, the first college football bowl game ever played. Fritz Crisler brought his winged helmet from Princeton University in 1938 and led the 1947 Wolverines to a national title and Michigan's second Rose Bowl win. Bo Schembechler coached the team for 21 seasons (1969–1989) in which he won 13 Big Ten titles and 194 games, a program record. The first decade of his tenure was underscored by a fierce competition with his former mentor, Woody Hayes, whose Ohio State Buckeyes squared off against Schembechler's Wolverines in a stretch of the Michigan–Ohio State rivalry dubbed the "Ten-Year War".
Following Schembechler's retirement, the program was coached by two of his former assistants, Gary Moeller and then Lloyd Carr, who maintained the program's overall success over the next 18 years. However, the program's fortunes declined under the next two coaches, Rich Rodriguez and Brady Hoke, who were both fired after relatively short tenures. Following Hoke's dismissal, Michigan hired Jim Harbaugh on December 30, 2014.[6] Harbaugh is a former quarterback of the team, having played for Michigan between 1982 and 1986 under Schembechler.
The Michigan Wolverines have featured 87 players that have garnered consensus selection to the College Football All-America Team. Three Wolverines have won the Heisman Trophy: Tom Harmon in 1940, Desmond Howard in 1991, and Charles Woodson in 1997. Gerald Ford, who later became the 38th president of the United States, started at center and was voted most valuable player by his teammates on the 1934 team.
History
See also: List of Michigan Wolverines football seasons
It has been suggested that portions of this section be split out into another article titled History of Michigan Wolverines football. (Discuss) (September 2019)
Early history (1879–1900)
Main article: History of Michigan Wolverines football in the early years
The 1879 squad, the first team fielded by the university
On May 30, 1879, Michigan played its first intercollegiate football game against Racine College at White Stocking Park in Chicago. The Chicago Tribune called it "the first rugby-football game to be played west of the Alleghenies."[7] Midway through "the first 'inning',"[8] Irving Kane Pond scored the first touchdown for Michigan.[9][10] According to Will Perry's history of Michigan football, the crowd responded to Pond's plays with cheers of "Pond Forever."[7] In 1881, Michigan played against Harvard in Boston. The game that marked the birth of intersectional football.[11] On their way to a game in Chicago in 1887, Michigan players stopped in South Bend, Indiana and introduced football to students at the University of Notre Dame. A November 23 contest marked the inception of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish football program and the beginning of the Michigan–Notre Dame rivalry.[12] In 1894, Michigan defeated Cornell, which was the "first time in collegiate football history that a western school defeated an established power from the east."[13]
The 1898 Michigan Wolverines, the first Michigan team to win a conference title
In 1896, the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representatives—then commonly known as the Western Conference and later as the Big Ten Conference—was formed by the University of Michigan, the University of Chicago, the University of Illinois, the University of Minnesota, the University of Wisconsin, Northwestern University, and Purdue University.[14] The first Western Conference football season was played in 1896, with Michigan going 9–1, but losing out on the inaugural Western Conference title with a loss to the Chicago Maroons to end the season.[15][16]
By 1898 Amos Alonzo Stagg was fast at work at turning the University of Chicago football program into a powerhouse. Before the final game of the 1898 season, Chicago was 9–1–1 and Michigan was 9–0; a game between the two teams in Chicago decided the third Western Conference championship. Michigan won, 12–11, capturing the program's first conference championship in a game that inspired "The Victors", which later became the school's fight song.[17] Michigan went 8–2 and 7–2–1 in 1899 and 1900, results that were considered unsatisfactory relative to the 10–0 season of 1898.[18]
Fielding Yost (1901–1926)
Main article: History of Michigan Wolverines football in the Yost era
Fielding Yost in 1902.
After the 1900 season, Charles A. Baird, Michigan's first athletic director, wrote to Fielding H. Yost, "Our people are greatly roused up over the defeats of the past two years", and gave Yost an offer to come to Michigan to coach the football team.[19] The New York Times reported that Michigan's margin of victory was "one of the most remarkable ever made in the history of football in the important colleges."[20] At the end of the season, Michigan participated in the inaugural Rose Bowl.[21] Michigan dominated the game so thoroughly that Stanford's captain requested the game be called with eight minutes remaining. Neil Snow scored five touchdowns in the game, which is still the all-time Rose Bowl record.[22]
The next year, 1902, Michigan outscored its opponents 644 to 12 and finished the season 11–0. In 1903, Michigan played a game against Minnesota that started the rivalry for the Little Brown Jug, the oldest rivalry trophy in college football.[23] The game marked the only time from 1901 to 1904 that Michigan failed to win.[18] Michigan finished the season at 11–0–1. In 1904, Michigan once again went undefeated at 10–0 while recording one of the most lopsided defeats in college football history, a 130–0 defeat of the West Virginia Mountaineers.[16]
From 1901 through 1904, Michigan didn't lose a single game.[18] The streak was finally halted at the end of the 1905 season by Amos Alonzo Stagg's Chicago Maroons, a team that went on to win two Big 9 (as the Western Conference was now being called with the addition of Iowa and Indiana) titles in the next three years.[15] The game, dubbed "The First Greatest Game of the Century,"[24] broke Michigan's 56-game unbeaten streak and marked the end of the "Point-a-Minute" years. The 1905 Michigan team had outscored opponents 495–0 in its first 12 games. The game was lost in the final ten minutes of play when Denny Clark was tackled for a safety as he attempted to return a punt from behind the goal line. Michigan tied for another Big 9 title in 1906 before opting to go independent for the 1907 season.[16]
The independent years were not as kind to Yost as his years in the Big 9. Michigan suffered one loss in 1907.[18] In 1908, Michigan got battered by Penn (a team that went 11–0–1 that year) in a game in which Michigan center Germany Schulz took such a battering as to have to be dragged off the field.[25] In 1909, Michigan suffered its first loss to Notre Dame, leading Yost to refuse to schedule another game against Notre Dame; the schools did not play again until 1942.[16] In 1910, Michigan played their only undefeated season of the independent years, going 3–0–3.[18] Overall from 1907 to 1916, Michigan lost at least one game every year (with the exception of 1910).[18]
Benny Friedman in 1929.
Michigan rejoined the Big 9 in 1917, after which it was called the Big Ten. Yost immediately got back to work. In 1918, Michigan played the first game against Stagg's Chicago Maroons since Chicago ended Michigan's winning streak in 1905.[16] Michigan defeated the Maroons, 18–0, on the way to a 5–0 record.[16][18] The next three years were lean, with Michigan going 3–4, 5–2, and 5–1–1, in 1919, 1920, and 1921.[18] However, in 1922 Michigan managed to spoil the "Dedication Day" for Ohio Stadium, defeating the Buckeyes 19–0.[16] Legend has it that the rotunda at Ohio Stadium is painted with maize flowers on a blue background due to the outcome of the 1922 dedication game.[26] Michigan went 5–0–1 in 1922, capturing a Big Ten title.[15][18] In 1923, Michigan went 8–0, winning another conference championship.[15][18] The 1924 Wolverines, coached by George Little, saw their 20-game unbeaten streak end at the hands of Red Grange.[16] After the 1924 season, Little left Michigan to accept the head coach and athletic director positions at Wisconsin, returning athletic director Yost to the head coaching position.[27] Although the 1925 and 1926 seasons did not include a conference title, they were memorable due to the presence of the famous "Benny-to-Bennie" combination, a reference to Benny Friedman and Bennie Oosterbaan. The two helped popularize passing the ball in an era when running held dominance. Oosterbaan became a three-time All-American and was selected for the All-Time All-American team in 1951,[28] while Friedman went on to have a Hall of Fame NFL career.[29] Also during 1926, Michigan was retroactively awarded national titles for the 1901 and 1902 seasons via the Houlgate System, the first national titles awarded to the program. Other major selectors[who?] later retroactively awarded Michigan with titles in the 1903, 1904, 1918, 1923, 1925, and 1926 seasons.[citation needed] Michigan claims titles in the 1901, 1902, 1903, 1904, 1918, and 1923 seasons.[30]
Yost stepped aside in 1926 to focus on being Michigan's athletic director, a post he had held since 1921, thus ending the greatest period of success in the history of Michigan football.[31] Under Yost, Michigan posted a 165–29–10 record, winning ten conference championships and six national championships.[15][16][30] One of his main actions as athletic director was to oversee the construction of Michigan Stadium. Michigan began playing football games in Michigan Stadium in the fall of 1927. At the time Michigan Stadium had a capacity of 72,000, although Yost envisioned eventually expanding the stadium to a capacity well beyond 100,000.[32] Michigan Stadium was formally dedicated during a game against the Ohio State Buckeyes that season to the tune of a 21–0 victory.[33]
Tad Wieman (1927–1928)
Tad Wieman became Michigan's head coach in 1927. That year, Michigan posted a modest 6–2 record.[18] However, the team ended 1928 with a losing 3–4–1 record and Wieman was fired.[34][35]
Harry Kipke (1929–1937)
Main article: History of Michigan Wolverines football in the Kipke years
Future U.S. president Gerald Ford during practice as a center on Wolverines football team, 1933
In 1929, Harry Kipke, a former player under Yost, took over as head coach.[36] From 1930 to 1933, Kipke returned Michigan to prominence. During that stretch, Michigan won the Big Ten title every year and the national championship in 1932 and 1933.[15][30] In 1932, quarterback and future College Football Hall of Famer Harry Newman was a unanimous first-team All-American, and the recipient of the Douglas Fairbanks Trophy as Outstanding College Player of the Year (predecessor of the Heisman Trophy), and the Helms Athletic Foundation Player of the Year Award, the Chicago Tribune Silver Football trophy as the Most Valuable Player in the Big Ten Conference.[37] During this span Kipke's teams only lost one game, to Ohio State.[16][18] After 1933, however, Kipke's teams compiled a 12–22 record from 1934 to 1937.[18] The 1934 Michigan team only won one game, against Georgia Tech in a controversial contest. Georgia Tech coach and athletic director W. A. "Bill" Alexander refused to allow his team to take the field if Willis Ward, an African-American player for Michigan, stepped on the field. Michigan conceded, and the incident reportedly caused Michigan player Gerald R. Ford to consider quitting the team.[38] Overall, Kipke posted a 49–26–4 record at Michigan, winning four conference championships and two national championships.[15][18][30]
Fritz Crisler (1938–1947)
Main article: History of Michigan Wolverines football in the Crisler years
In 1938, Michigan hired Fritz Crisler as Kipke's successor.[39] Crisler had been head coach of the Princeton Tigers and reportedly wasn't excited to leave Princeton.[39] Michigan invited him to name his price, and Crisler demanded what he thought would be unacceptable: the position of athletic director when Yost stepped down and the highest salary in college football.[40] Michigan accepted, and Crisler became the new head coach of the Michigan football program.[39]
Fritz Crisler in 1948.
Upon arriving at Michigan, Crisler introduced the winged football helmet, ostensibly to help his players find the receivers down field.[41] Whatever the reasoning, the winged helmet has since become one of the iconic marks of Michigan football.[42] Michigan debuted the winged helmet in a game against Michigan State in 1938.[43] Two years later in 1940, Tom Harmon led the Wolverines to a 7–1 record on his way to winning the Heisman Trophy.[18][44] Harmon ended the season by scoring three rushing touchdowns, two passing touchdowns, four extra points, intercepting three passes, and punting three times for an average of 50 yards in a game against the Ohio State Buckeyes.[45] The 1943 season included a No. 1 (Notre Dame) vs. No. 2 (Michigan) match-up against Notre Dame, a game the Wolverines lost 35–12.[16] Michigan ended the season at 8–1, winning Crisler's first Big Ten championship.[15][18]
Crisler had reversed the misfortune of the end of the Kipke era and returned Michigan to one and two-loss seasons. From 1938 to 1944, Michigan posted a 48–11–2 record,[46] although the period lacked a national title and only contained one conference title.[18] Yet, Crisler's biggest mark on the game of football was made in 1945, when Michigan faced a loaded Army squad that featured two Heisman trophy winners, Doc Blanchard and Glenn Davis. Crisler didn't feel that his Michigan team could match up with Army, so he opted to take advantage of a 1941 NCAA rule that allowed players to enter or leave at any point during the game.[40] Crisler divided his team into "offensive" and "defensive" specialists, an act that earned him the nickname "the father of two-platoon football."[47] Michigan still lost the game with Army 28–7,[16] but Crisler's use of two-platoon football shaped the way the game was played in the future. Eventually, Crisler's use of the platoon system propelled his team to a conference championship and a national title in 1947, his final season.[15][16][30] The 1947 team, nicknamed the "Mad Magicians" due to their use of two-platoon football, capped their season with a 49–0 victory over the USC Trojans in the 1948 Rose Bowl.[16] Crisler finished with a 116–32–9 record at Michigan, winning two conference titles and one national title.[15][18][30][46]
Bennie Oosterbaan (1948–1958)
Main article: History of Michigan Wolverines football in the Oosterbaan years
Crisler continued as athletic director while Bennie Oosterbaan, the same Bennie that had electrified the world while making connections with Benny Friedman 20 years earlier, took over the football program.[48] Things started off well for Oosterbaan in 1948 with the Wolverines earning a quality mid-season victory over No. 3 Northwestern.[16][48] Michigan finished the season undefeated at 9–0, thus winning another national championship.[18][30] Initially, Oosterbaan continued Crisler's tradition of on-field success, winning conference titles each year from 1948 to 1950 and the national title in 1948.[15][30] The 1950 season ended in interesting fashion, with Michigan and Ohio State combining for 45 punts in a game that came to be known as the "Snow Bowl." Michigan won the game 9–3, winning the Big Ten conference and sending the Wolverines off to the 1951 Rose Bowl.[15][16] Subsequently, Michigan's football team began to decline under Oosterbaan. From 1951 to 1958, Michigan compiled a record of 42–26–2, a far cry from the success under Crisler and Yost.[18] Perhaps more importantly, Oosterbaan posted a 2–5–1 record against Michigan State and a 3–5 record against Ohio State over the same time period.[16] Under mounting pressure, Oosterbaan stepped down after 1958.[48]
Bump Elliott (1959–1968)
Main article: History of Michigan Wolverines football in the Elliott years
In place of Oosterbaan stepped Bump Elliott, a former Michigan player of Crisler's. Elliott continued many of the struggles that began under Oosterbaan, posting a 51–42–2 record from 1959 through 1968 (including a 2–7–1 record against Michigan State and a 3–7 record against Ohio State).[18] Michigan's only Big Ten title under Elliott came in 1964, a season that included a win over Oregon State in the 1965 Rose Bowl.[15][16] Following a 50-14 drubbing at the hands of Ohio State in 1968,[16] Elliott resigned.
Bo Schembechler (1969–1989)
Bo Schembechler in 1975.
It took 15 minutes for Don Canham to be sold on Bo Schembechler, resulting in Schembechler becoming the 15th coach in Michigan football history.[49] At the time, Schembechler's employer, the Miami RedHawks, could have thrown more money at Schembechler, but Canham managed to sell Schembechler on Michigan's tradition and prestige.[50]
Schembechler's first team got off to a moderate start, losing to rival Michigan State and entering the Ohio State game with a 7–2 record.[18] Ohio State, coached by icon Woody Hayes, entered the game at 8–0 and poised to repeat as national champions.[51] The 1969 Ohio State team was hailed by some as being the "greatest college football team ever assembled" and came into the game favored by 17 points over Michigan.[52] Michigan shocked the Buckeyes, winning 24–12, going to the Rose Bowl, and launching The Ten Year War between Hayes and Schembechler.[16] From 1969 to 1978, one of either Ohio State or Michigan won at least a share of the Big Ten title and represented the Big Ten in the Rose Bowl every season.[15]
In 1970 Schembechler failed to repeat on the magic of 1969, that year losing to Ohio State 20–9 and finishing at 9–1.[16] However, in 1971, Schembechler led Michigan to an undefeated regular season, only to lose to the Stanford Indians in the Rose Bowl to finish at 11–1.[18] From 1972 to 1975, Michigan failed to win a game against Ohio State (powered by phenom running back Archie Griffin).[16] However, Michigan did tie Ohio State in 1973, only missing out on the Rose Bowl due to a controversial vote that sent Ohio State to the Rose Bowl and left Michigan at home.[16] Another notable event occurred during the 1975 season, with the first of Michigan's record streak of games with more than 100,000 people in attendance occurring during a game against the Purdue Boilermakers.
Rick Leach, who played quarterback for Michigan from 1975 through 1978.
From 1976 to 1978, Michigan asserted its own dominance of the rivalry, beating Ohio State, going to the Rose Bowl, and posting a 10–2 record every year.[16][18] After the 1978 season, Woody Hayes was fired for punching an opposing player during the 1978 Gator Bowl, thus ending The Ten Year War.[53] Michigan had a slight edge in the war, with Schembechler going 5–4–1 against Hayes. However, while Schembechler successfully placed great emphasis on the rivalry, Michigan's bowl performances were sub-par. Michigan failed to win their last game of the season every year during The Ten Year War.[16] The only year in which Michigan didn't lose its last game of the season was the 1973 tie against Ohio State.[16]
After the end of the Ten Year War, Michigan's regular season performance declined, but its post season performance improved. The 1979 season included a memorable game against Indiana that ended with a touchdown pass from John Wangler to Anthony Carter with six seconds left in the game.[54] Michigan went 8–4 on the season, losing to North Carolina in the 1979 Gator Bowl.[16][18]
In 1980, Michigan went 10–2 and got their first win in the Rose Bowl under Schembechler, a 23–6 win over Washington.[16][18] Michigan went 9–3 in 1981 to get Schembechler's second bowl win in the 1981 Bluebonnet Bowl.[16][18] In 1982, Michigan won the Big Ten championship while being led by three-time All-American wide receiver Anthony Carter.[15][55] Michigan fell to UCLA Bruins in the 1983 Rose Bowl.[16] Without Anthony Carter, the Wolverines did not win the Big Ten title in 1983, going 9–3.[18] In 1984, the Wolverines suffered their worst season under Schembechler, going 6–6 with a loss to national champion BYU in the 1984 Holiday Bowl.[16][18]
Michigan needed to reverse its fortunes in 1985, and they began doing so with new quarterback Jim Harbaugh.[56] Harbaugh led the Wolverines to a 5–0 record, propelling them to a No. 2 ranking heading into a game with the No. 1 Iowa Hawkeyes.[57] Michigan lost 12–10,[16] but did not lose another game the rest of the season to finish at 10–1–1 with a victory over Tom Osborne's Nebraska Cornhuskers in the 1986 Fiesta Bowl.[18] In 1986 Michigan won the Big Ten at 11–2, suffering a loss to the Arizona State Sun Devils in the 1987 Rose Bowl.[16][18]
The departure of Harbaugh after 1986 once again left Michigan on tough times as Schembechler's team stumbled to an 8–4 record in 1987.[18] However, Michigan bounced back again in 1988 and 1989, winning the Big Ten title outright both years at 9–2–1 and 10–2 with trips to Rose Bowl.[15][18] From 1981 through 1989, Michigan went 80–27–2, winning four Big Ten titles and going to a bowl game every year (with another Rose Bowl win obtained against USC Trojans after the 1988 season).[16] Bo Schembechler retired after the 1989 season, handing the job over to his offensive coordinator Gary Moeller.[58] Under Schembechler, Michigan posted a 194–48–5 record[59] (11–9–1 against Ohio State), and won 13 Big Ten championships.[59]
Gary Moeller (1990–1994)
Gary Moeller took over from Schembechler for the 1990 season, becoming the 16th head coach in Michigan football history.[60] Moeller inherited a talented squad that had just played in the 1990 Rose Bowl, including wide receiver Desmond Howard. Moeller led Michigan to a 9–3 record in his first season,[18] tying for the Big Ten championship but losing out on a Rose Bowl bid to Iowa.[15][16] The next two years, Moeller's teams won the conference outright, setting marks of 10–2 and 9–0–3.[15][18] In 1991, Desmond Howard had a memorable season that propelled him to win the Heisman Trophy, the award given to college football's most outstanding player.[61] The 1992 team, led by quarterback Elvis Grbac, posted a 9–0–3 record,[18] defeating Washington in the 1993 Rose Bowl.[16] Moeller led Michigan to 8–4 records in both 1993 and 1994.[18] The 1994 season was marked by an early-season loss to Colorado that included a Hail Mary pass from Kordell Stewart to Michael Westbrook to end the game, leading to the game being dubbed "The Miracle at Michigan."[62] Moeller was forced out after the 1994 season when intoxicated at a Southfield, MI restaurant in an incident in which Moeller was caught on tape throwing a punch in a police station. According to his lawyers, Moeller was fired, but allowed to publicly save face by resigning.[63][64][65][66][67]
Lloyd Carr (1995–2007)
Michigan's athletic director appointed Lloyd Carr, an assistant at Michigan since 1980, as interim head coach for the 1995 season.[68] However, after an 8–2 start, Michigan dropped the interim tag from Carr's title and named him its 17th head coach.[69] Michigan finished his first season at 9–4.[18][70] Carr had similar success in his second season, going 8–4 and earning a trip to the 1997 Outback Bowl.[18] Carr returned a strong squad for the 1997 season, led by cornerback and punt returner Charles Woodson.[71] Michigan went undefeated in 1997.[16][18] Overall, the Michigan defense only allowed 9.5 points per game and ended the season ranked No. 1 in the AP Poll, giving Michigan its first national championship since 1948 with a victory in the 1998 Rose Bowl.[72][73][16][30] For his efforts, Woodson won the Heisman Trophy and was selected 4th overall in the 1998 NFL Draft by the Oakland Raiders.[74]
With Tom Brady as quarterback, Michigan went 10–3 and repeated as Big Ten champions in 1998, but in 1999 Michigan lost out on the conference championship at 10–2 to the Wisconsin Badgers.[15][18] Drew Henson led Michigan to a 9–3 record and a tie for the Big Ten championship in 2000.[15][18]
Ohio State, Michigan's chief rival, fired their coach John Cooper, who was 2–10–1 against Michigan while at Ohio State, after the 2000 season and replaced him with Jim Tressel.[75][76] Tressel immediately ushered in a new era in the Ohio State-Michigan rivalry, upsetting the Wolverines 26–20 in 2001.[77] This came on the heels of another last-second loss in which Michigan State defeated Michigan with a pass in the last second of the game in a controversial finish that led to the game being referred to as "Clockgate."[78] Despite these setbacks, Michigan's 2001 squad, led by John Navarre, went 8–4 with an appearance in the 2002 Florida Citrus Bowl.[79][16][18] Again under Navarre in 2002, Michigan compiled a 10–3 record,[80] but included another loss to Ohio State, who went on to win the national championship.[81][16][18] Carr got over the hump against Tressel in 2003 as John Navarre and Doak Walker Award winner Chris Perry led the Wolverines to a 10–3 record,[82] a Big Ten championship, and an appearance in the 2004 Rose Bowl.[15][16][18]
2006 Michigan Wolverines huddle during a game against the Central Michigan Chippewas.
For the 2004 season, Carr turned to highly rated recruit Chad Henne to lead the Wolverines at quarterback.[83] Michigan went 9–3 in 2004[84] to tie for another Big Ten championship and earn a trip to the 2005 Rose Bowl, but the season again included a loss to Ohio State,[85] who only went 8–4 on the season.[15][16][18]
In 2005, Michigan struggled to make a bowl game, only going 7–5, with the season capped with another loss to Ohio State.[16][18] Expectations were tempered going into the 2006 season; however, a 47–21 blowout of No. 2 Notre Dame and an 11–0 start propelled Michigan to the No. 2 rankings going into "The Game" with No. 1 Ohio State.[86] The 2006 Ohio State-Michigan game was hailed by the media as the "Game of the Century." The day before the game, Bo Schembechler died, leading Ohio State to honor him with a moment of silence, one of the few Michigan Men to be so honored in Ohio Stadium.[87] The game itself was a back-and-forth affair, with Ohio State winning 42–39 for the right to play in the 2007 BCS National Championship Game.[16] Michigan lost to USC in the 2007 Rose Bowl, ending the season at 11–2.[16][18]
Going into 2007, Michigan had high expectations.[88] Standout players Chad Henne, Mike Hart, and Jake Long all opted to return for their senior seasons for one last crack at Ohio State and a chance at a national championship, causing Michigan to be ranked fifth in the preseason polls.[89] However, Michigan's struggles against the spread offense reared its ugly head again as the Wolverines shockingly lose the opener to the Appalachian State Mountaineers.[90][91][16] The game marked the first win by a Division I-AA team over a team ranked in the Associated Press Poll.[92] The next week, Michigan was blown out by Oregon.[93][16] Despite the early rough start, Michigan won their next eight games and went into the Ohio State game with a chance to win the Big Ten championship.[16] However, Michigan once again fell to the Buckeyes, this time 14–3.[94][16] After the game, Lloyd Carr announced that he would retire as Michigan head coach after the bowl game.[95] In the 2008 Capital One Bowl, Carr's final game, Michigan defeated the defending national champion Florida Gators, led by Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow, 41–35.[96] Carr's accomplishments at Michigan included a 122–40 record, five Big Ten championships, and one national championship.[15][16][30]
Rich Rodriguez (2008–2010)
Rich Rodriguez at Michigan in 2008.
Following Carr's retirement, Michigan launched a coaching search that ultimately saw Rich Rodriguez lured away from his alma mater, West Virginia.[97] Rodriguez's arrival marked the beginning of major upheaval in the Michigan football program. Rodriguez, a proponent of the spread offense, installed it in place of the pro-style offense that had been used by Carr. The offseason saw significant attrition in Michigan's roster. The expected starting quarterback Ryan Mallett departed the program, stating that he would be unable to fit in a spread offense. Starting wide receivers Mario Manningham and Adrian Arrington both decided to forgo their senior seasons and enter the NFL Draft.[98] Michigan lost a good deal of its depth and, when the 2008 season began, was forced to start players with very little playing experience.
The 2008 season was disappointing for Michigan, finishing at 3–9 and suffering its first losing campaign since 1967. Michigan also missed a bowl game invitation for the first time since 1974.
The week before the 2009 season began, the Detroit Free Press accused the team of violating the NCAA's practice time limits.[99] While the NCAA conducted investigations, Michigan won its first four games, including a last second victory against its rival Notre Dame. The season ended in disappointment, however, as Michigan went 1–7 in its last eight games and missed a bowl for the second straight season.
Rodriguez's final season began with new hope in the program, as Robinson was named the starting quarterback over Forcier. Robinson led the Wolverines to a 5–0 start, but after a defeat to Michigan State at home, the Wolverines finished the season 2–5 over their last seven games. Michigan did, however, qualify for a bowl game with a 7–5 record, and clinched its bowl berth in dramatic fashion against Illinois, with Michigan winning 67–65 in three overtime periods. The game was the highest combined scoring game in Michigan history, and saw Michigan's defense give up the most points in its history.[100] Michigan was invited to the Gator Bowl to face Mississippi State, losing 52–14. The Michigan defense set new school records as the worst defense in Michigan history. In the middle of the season, the NCAA announced its penalties against Michigan for the practice time violations. The program was placed on three of years probation and docked 130 practice hours, which was twice the amount Michigan had exceeded.[101]
Rodriguez was fired following the bowl game, with athletic director Dave Brandon citing Rodriguez's failure to meet expectations as the main reason for his dismissal.[102] Rodriguez left the program winless against rivals Michigan State and Ohio State and compiled a 15–22 record, the worst record of any head coach in Michigan history.[103]
Brady Hoke (2011–2014)
Athletic director Dave Brandon (left) with head coach Brady Hoke in 2011.
Michigan announced the hiring of head coach Brady Hoke on January 11, 2011.[104] He became the 19th head coach in Michigan football history. Hoke had previously been the head coach at his alma mater Ball State and then San Diego State after serving as an assistant at Michigan under Lloyd Carr from 1995 to 2002. In his first season, Hoke led the Wolverines to 11 wins, beating rival Notre Dame with a spectacular comeback in Michigan's first night game at Michigan Stadium. Despite losing to Iowa and Michigan State, the Wolverines finished with a 10–2 regular season record with their first win over Ohio State in eight years. The Wolverines received an invitation to the Sugar Bowl in which they defeated Virginia Tech, 23–20, in overtime. This was the program's first bowl win since the season of 2007.
In Hoke's second season, the Wolverines dropped their season opener to eventual national champions, Alabama in Dallas, Texas. U-M won the next two games at home in non-conference bouts against Air Force and UMass. Michigan then traveled to face eventual national runner-up Notre Dame. They fell to the Fighting Irish by a 13–6 final. After back-to-back wins over Purdue and Illinois, they defeated in-state rival Michigan State for the first time since 2007. The win was the 900th in program history, becoming the first program to reach the milestone. U-M finished the season with wins over Minnesota, Northwestern and Iowa as well as losses to Nebraska and Ohio State to finish the regular season. Michigan was selected to participate in the Outback Bowl, where they fell to South Carolina by a 33–28 score.
In the 2013 campaign, Michigan finished with a 7–6 record, including a 3–5 record in Big Ten play and a loss to Kansas State in the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl 31–14.[105]
On December 2, 2014, Hoke was fired as the head coach after four seasons following a 5–7 record in 2014. This marked only the third season since 1975 in which Michigan missed a bowl game. Hoke compiled a 31–20 record, including an 18–14 record in Big Ten play.[106]
Jim Harbaugh (2015–present)
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On December 30, 2014, the University of Michigan announced the hiring of Jim Harbaugh as the team's 20th head coach. Harbaugh, who was starting quarterback in the mid-1980s under Bo Schembechler, had most recently served as head coach of the San Francisco 49ers. In his first season in 2015, Harbaugh led Michigan to a 10–3 record, including a 41–7 win over the Florida Gators in the 2016 Citrus Bowl.[107]
The 2016 Wolverines won their first nine games of the season, including wins over then 8th-ranked Wisconsin and rival Michigan State, and reached number two in the College Football Playoff rankings. The team then lost at Iowa and again at Ohio State two weeks later. The season ended with a 33–32 loss to Florida State in the Orange Bowl on December 30, resulting in a second straight 10–3 record. Jabrill Peppers, who played linebacker and defensive back as well as special teams and offense, was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy, finishing fifth.[108]
The team lost many key players on the offensive and defensive side of the ball prior to Harbaugh's third season. The Wolverines went 8–4 in the regular season losing to their main rivals, Michigan State and Ohio State, and lost to South Carolina in the Outback Bowl, becoming the only team in the Big Ten Conference to lose its bowl game in the 2017–2018 bowl season and dropping the record on the year to 8–5.[109]
Harbaugh's fourth season in 2018 started with a loss to rival Notre Dame, followed by ten consecutive wins. Wins over ranked Big Ten opponents Michigan State, Wisconsin, and Penn State, all of whom beat Michigan the previous year, led to the team rallying around referring to the season as a "revenge tour."[110] The Wolverines rose to fourth in the College Football Playoff rankings, but the "revenge tour" came to an abrupt end when they were upset by rival Ohio State by a lopsided score of 62–39 to end the regular season. Ohio State's 62 points set a record for points against Michigan during regulation. A blowout loss to Florida in the Peach Bowl ended the season, and they finished at 10–3 for the third time in Harbaugh's four years.
During Harbaugh's fifth season in 2019, the Wolverines lost to Wisconsin 35–14 and to Penn State 28–21, both on the road. Michigan went on to beat rivals Notre Dame 45–14 and Michigan State 44–10, but once again lost to then No. 1 ranked Ohio State by a score of 56–27 to end the regular season. Michigan later lost to Alabama 16–35 in the Citrus Bowl to end the season with a record of 9–4.
For the 2020 season, COVID-19 precautions delayed the start of Big Ten play. The Wolverines started with a dominating 49–24 win against Minnesota. However, in a highly physical game against Michigan State, the Wolverines incurred many player injuries and narrowly lost 27–24. The next week, Michigan lost to Indiana 38–21. Michigan had beaten Indiana in the previous 24 matchups, not having lost to the Hoosiers since the 1987 season.[111] On November 14, 2020, Michigan hosted Wisconsin and suffered its largest halftime deficit at home since Michigan Stadium opened in 1927 (28–0), as well as its largest home loss (49–11) since 1935.[112][113] It was also Harbaugh's first loss at Michigan Stadium to a team other than Michigan State or Ohio State. On November 28, 2020, Michigan hosted Penn State and, for the first time in Michigan football history, lost to a team that was 0–5 or worse.[114] Michigan was winless at home during the 2020 season, marking the first time in program history that Michigan did not win any games at home.[115] The final three scheduled games of the season, against Maryland, Ohio State, and Iowa, were canceled due to COVID-19 concerns. Michigan did not play in a postseason bowl game for the first time under Harbaugh.
The Wolverines started the 2021 season unranked, but quickly found their footing to surge into the rankings. They won their first seven games, which included blowout wins against Washington and Wisconsin. The team rose to number six in the polls before a top-ten showdown with eighth ranked rival Michigan State. Michigan narrowly lost to their instate rival, but rebounded with wins against Indiana, Penn State, and Maryland in their subsequent three games to set up a winner-take-all for the Big Ten East division against arch-rival Ohio State. In a top-five showdown, Michigan used a dominant second half performance to rout Ohio State 42–27, giving the Wolverines their first win against the Buckeyes since 2011, and a berth to their first-ever Big Ten Championship Game. In the Big Ten Championship Game against Big Ten West champions Iowa, the second-ranked Wolverines dominated the Hawkeyes 42–3 to win their outright first Big Ten Championship since 2003. As the second seed in the College Football Playoff, the Wolverines lost the semifinal Orange Bowl to the eventual national champions Georgia Bulldogs 34–11 to finish the season 12–2. Michigan was ranked third in the final AP and Coaches Poll rankings of the season. Defensive end Aidan Hutchinson finished runner-up in voting for the Heisman Trophy.[116]
Michigan began the 2022 season ranked eighth.[117] They won a top-10 showdown against then 6-0 #10 Penn State 41-17[118] and beat Michigan State 29–7.[119] The Wolverines defeated then 11-0 #2 Ohio State 45–23 in Columbus, marking their first win there since 2000 and the first time Harbaugh's Michigan beat both Michigan State and Ohio State in the same season. Michigan's perfect 12–0 regular season earned them their second straight Big Ten East Division championship and appearance in the Big Ten Championship Game.[120] Michigan would defeat the West Division champions Purdue 43–22 to repeats as conference champions and head back to the College Football Playoff.[121] In the semifinal Fiesta Bowl, Michigan lost to TCU, 51–45, to finish the season 13–1. Michigan's 13 wins set a school record for most wins in a single season and it was again ranked third in the final AP and Coaches Poll rankings of the season. This marked the first time since 1947 and 1948 that Michigan finished consecutive seasons ranked in the top three.[122] Running back Blake Corum finished seventh in voting for the Heisman Trophy.[123]
In 2023, the NCAA opened an investigation into the allegations that Michigan was stealing signs from other teams.[124][125] Despite the scandal, which even resulted in the linebackers coach being dismissed from the team and Harbaugh being suspended from the final three games of the 2023 season,[126][127] the Wolverines continued to win games and even became the first team of either high school, college or professional football to achieve 1,000 victories after defeating Maryland on November 18, 2023.[128]
Conference affiliations
Independent (1879–1891)
Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the Northwest (1892–1893)
Independent (1894–1895)
Western Conference (1896–1906)
Independent (1907–1916)
Big Ten Conference (1917–present)
Big Nine Conference (1946–1949)
Big Ten Conference (1917–1945, 1950–present)
Bowl games
Michigan has played in 50 bowl games in its history, compiling a record of 21–29. Before missing a bowl game in 2008, Michigan had made a bowl game 33 years in a row. From the 1921 to 1945 seasons, the Big Ten Conference did not allow its teams to participate in bowls. From the 1946 to 1974 seasons, only a conference champion or a surrogate representative was allowed to attend a bowl, the Rose Bowl, and no team could go two years in a row until the 1972 Rose Bowl, with the exception of Minnesota in 1961 and 1962.
Michigan defeated Stanford 49–0 in the first ever Rose Bowl on January 1, 1902
Date Bowl Opponent Result
January 1, 1902 Rose Bowl Stanford W 49–0
January 1, 1948 Rose Bowl USC W 49–0
January 1, 1951 Rose Bowl California W 14–6
January 1, 1965 Rose Bowl Oregon State W 34–7
January 1, 1970 Rose Bowl USC L 3–10
January 1, 1972 Rose Bowl Stanford L 12–13
January 1, 1976 Orange Bowl Oklahoma L 6–14
January 1, 1977 Rose Bowl USC L 6–14
January 2, 1978 Rose Bowl Washington L 20–27
January 1, 1979 Rose Bowl USC L 10–17
December 28, 1979 Gator Bowl North Carolina L 15–17
January 1, 1981 Rose Bowl Washington W 23–6
December 31, 1981 Bluebonnet Bowl UCLA W 33–14
January 1, 1983 Rose Bowl UCLA L 14–24
January 2, 1984 Sugar Bowl Auburn L 7–9
December 21, 1984 Holiday Bowl BYU L 17–24
January 1, 1986 Fiesta Bowl Nebraska W 27–23
January 1, 1987 Rose Bowl Arizona State L 15–22
January 2, 1988 Hall of Fame Bowl Alabama W 28–24
January 2, 1989 Rose Bowl USC W 22–14
January 1, 1990 Rose Bowl USC L 10–17
January 1, 1991 Gator Bowl Ole Miss W 35–3
January 1, 1992 Rose Bowl Washington L 14–34
January 1, 1993 Rose Bowl Washington W 38–31
January 1, 1994 Hall of Fame Bowl NC State W 42–7
December 30, 1994 Holiday Bowl Colorado State W 24–14
December 28, 1995 Alamo Bowl Texas A&M L 20–22
January 1, 1997 Outback Bowl Alabama L 14–17
January 1, 1998 Rose Bowl Washington State W 21–16
January 1, 1999 Citrus Bowl Arkansas W 45–31
January 1, 2000 Orange Bowl Alabama W 35–34 (OT)
January 1, 2001 Citrus Bowl Auburn W 31–28
January 1, 2002 Citrus Bowl Tennessee L 17–45
January 1, 2003 Outback Bowl Florida W 38–30
January 1, 2004 Rose Bowl USC L 14–28
January 1, 2005 Rose Bowl Texas L 37–38
December 28, 2005 Alamo Bowl Nebraska L 28–32
January 1, 2007 Rose Bowl USC L 18–32
January 1, 2008 Capital One Bowl Florida W 41–35
January 1, 2011 Gator Bowl Mississippi State L 14–52
January 3, 2012 Sugar Bowl Virginia Tech W 23–20 OT
January 1, 2013 Outback Bowl South Carolina L 28–33
December 28, 2013 Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl Kansas State L 14–31
January 1, 2016 Citrus Bowl Florida W 41–7
December 30, 2016 Orange Bowl Florida State L 32–33
January 1, 2018 Outback Bowl South Carolina L 19–26
December 29, 2018 Peach Bowl Florida L 15–41
January 1, 2020 Citrus Bowl Alabama L 16–35
December 31, 2021 Orange Bowl (CFP Semifinal) Georgia L 11–34
December 31, 2022 Fiesta Bowl (CFP Semifinal) TCU L 45–51
Total 50 bowl games 21–29 1,184–1,142
Bowl record by game
Bowl # W L %
Alamo Bowl 2 0 2 .000
Bluebonnet Bowl 1 1 0 1.000
Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl 1 0 1 .000
Citrus Bowl (Capital One Bowl) 6 4 2 .667
Fiesta Bowl 2 1 1 .500
Gator Bowl 3 1 2 .333
Holiday Bowl 2 1 1 .500
Outback Bowl (Hall of Fame Bowl) 6 3 3 .500
Orange Bowl 4 1 3 .250
Peach Bowl 1 0 1 .000
Rose Bowl 20 8 12 .400
Sugar Bowl 2 1 1 .500
Venues
Washtenaw County Fairgrounds (1883–1892)
Main article: Washtenaw County Fairgrounds
In the early days of Michigan football, Michigan played smaller home games at the Washtenaw County Fairgrounds with larger games being held in Detroit at the Detroit Athletic Club.[129] The Fairgrounds were originally located at the southeast intersection of Hill and Forest, but in 1890 moved to what is now called Burns Park.[129]
Regents Field (1893–1905)
Main article: Regents Field
Regents Field just before kickoff during the 1904 game between Michigan and Chicago
In 1890, the Board of Regents authorized $3,000 ($78,947.37 in 2014 dollars) for the purchase of a parcel of land along South State Street.[130] In 1891 a further $4,500 ($118,421.05 in 2014 dollars) was authorized "for the purpose of fitting up the athletic field."[130] Michigan began play on Regents Field in 1893, with capacity being expanded to over 15,000 by the end of the field's use.[130]
Ferry Field (1906–1926)
Main article: Ferry Field
By 1902 Regents Field had grown inadequate for the uses of the football team as a result of the sport's increasing popularity.[131] Thanks to donations from Dexter M. Ferry, work began on planning the next home stadium for the Michigan football team. Powered by a $30,000 donation from Ferry, Ferry Field was constructed with a maximum temporary capacity of 18,000 for the 1906 season.[131] Ferry Field was expanded to a capacity of 21,000 in 1914 and 42,000 in 1921.[131] However, attendance was often over-capacity with crowds of 48,000 cramming into the small stadium.[131] This prompted athletic director Fielding Yost to contemplate the construction of a much larger stadium.
Michigan Stadium (1927–present)
Main article: Michigan Stadium
Michigan Stadium on September 17, 2011
Fielding H. Yost anticipated massive crowds as college football's popularity increased and wished to build a stadium with a capacity of at least 80,000.[32] Ultimately, the final plans authorized the construction of a stadium with a capacity of 72,000 with footings to be set in place to expand it beyond 100,000 later.[32] Michigan Stadium was dedicated in 1927 during a game against the Ohio State Buckeyes, drawing an over-capacity crowd of 84,401.[132] After World War II, crowd sizes increased, prompting another stadium expansion to a capacity of 93,894 in 1949.[132] Michigan Stadium cracked the 100,000 mark by expanding to 101,001 in 1955.[132] Michigan Stadium temporarily lost the title of "largest stadium" to Neyland Stadium of the Tennessee Volunteers in 1996, but recaptured the title in 1998 with another expansion to 107,501.[133] In 2007, the Board of Regents authorized a $226 million renovation to add a new press box, 83 luxury boxes, and 3,200 club seats.[134] For the 2011 season, lights were installed at Michigan Stadium at the cost of $1.8 million.[135] This allowed Michigan to play its first night game at home against Notre Dame in 2011.[136] Michigan Stadium underwent a renovation for the 2023–2024 season, installing new screens and LED stadium lighting with color-changing fixtures.[137]
Rivalries
Ohio State
Main article: Michigan–Ohio State football rivalry
Michigan and Ohio State first played each other in 1897. The rivalry was particularly enhanced during The Ten Year War, a period in which Ohio State was coached by Woody Hayes and Michigan was coached by Bo Schembechler. Overall, the Buckeyes and Wolverines football programs have combined for 19 national titles, 77 conference titles, and 10 Heisman Trophy winners. Michigan holds a 60–51–6 advantage through the 2022 season.[138]
Michigan State
Main article: Michigan–Michigan State football rivalry
Michigan and Michigan State first played each other in 1898. Since Michigan State joined the Big Ten Conference in 1953, the two schools have competed annually for the Paul Bunyan – Governor of Michigan Trophy. The winner retains possession of the trophy until the next year's game. Michigan leads the trophy series 40–28–2. Michigan is the holder of the trophy following a 2023 win over the Spartans, 49–0. Michigan holds a 73–38–5 advantage through the 2023 season.[139]
Minnesota
Main article: Michigan–Minnesota football rivalry
Michigan plays Minnesota for the Little Brown Jug trophy. The Little Brown Jug is the most regularly exchanged rivalry trophy in college football, the oldest trophy game in FBS college football, and the second oldest rivalry trophy overall.[140] Through the 2023 season, Michigan leads the overall series 77–25–3.[141]
Notre Dame
Main article: Michigan–Notre Dame football rivalry
Michigan and Notre Dame began playing each other in 1887 in Notre Dame's first football game.[142] The rivalry is notable due to the historical success of the football programs. Through the end of the 2017 season, Michigan is ranked No. 1 in wins and all-time winning percentage while Notre Dame is No. 2 in both categories.[143] Both schools also claim 11 national championships.[144] Michigan and Notre Dame have played in 42 contests, with Michigan holding a 25–17–1 advantage through the 2019 season.[145]
Northwestern
Main article: George Jewett Trophy
Michigan and Northwestern first played each other in 1892. In 2021, the two universities announced the creation of a new rivalry trophy to be awarded to the game's winner, the George Jewett Trophy. The trophy honors George Jewett, the first African-American player in Big Ten Conference history, who played for both schools. The game is the first FBS rivalry game named for an African-American player.[146] Michigan holds a 59–15–2 advantage in the all-time series through the 2021 season.[147]
Championships
National championships
Michigan has been selected 18 times as national champions by NCAA-designated major selectors, including three times by the major wire-service AP Poll. Michigan claims 11 (1901, 1902, 1903, 1904, 1918, 1923, 1932, 1933, 1947, 1948, and 1997) of these championships.[148][149] Before 1926, there were generally no contemporaneous selectors.[150]
Year Coach Selector Record Bowl Final AP Final Coaches
1901 Fielding H. Yost Billingsley,[151] Helms, Houlgate, NCF[152] 11–0 Won Rose
1902 Billingsley, Helms, Houlgate, NCF, Parke Davis[152] 11–0
1903 Billingsley,[151] NCF[152] 11–0–1
1904 10–0
1918 Billingsley, NCF[152] 5–0
1923 8–0
1932 Harry G. Kipke Dickinson, Parke Davis[152] 8–0
1933 Berryman (QPRS), Billingsley, Boand, CFRA, Dickinson, Helms, Houlgate, NCF, Parke Davis, Poling, Sagarin[152] 7–0–1
1947 Fritz Crisler Berryman (QPRS), Billingsley, Boand, CFRA, DeVold, Dunkel, Helms, Houlgate, Litkenhous, NCF, Poling, Sagarin,[152] Special post-bowl Associated Press poll[153][a] 10–0 Won Rose No. 2[153]
1948 Bennie Oosterbaan AP, Berryman (QPRS), Billingsley, CFRA, DeVold, Dunkel, Helms, Houlgate, Litkenhous, NCF, Poling, Sagarin, Williamson[152] 9–0 No. 1
1997 Lloyd Carr AP, Billingsley, FWAA, NCF, NFF, Sporting News[152] 12–0 Won Rose No. 1 No. 2
Not an NCAA-designated major selector.
Michigan has also been selected an additional seven times by various NCAA-designated "major selectors", in 1910,[154] 1925, 1926, 1964, 1973, 1976,[155] and 1985.
Conference championships
Michigan has won 44 conference championships, 18 outright and 26 shared.
Year Coach Overall record Big Ten record
1898 Gustave Ferbert 10–0 3–0
1901† Fielding H. Yost 11–0 4–0
1902 5–0
1903† 11–0–1 3–0–1
1904† 10–0 2–0
1906† 4–1 1–0
1918† 5–0 2–0
1922† 6–0–1 4–0
1923† 8–0
1925 7–1 5–1
1926† 5–0
1930† Harry Kipke 8–0–1
1931† 8–1–1 5–1
1932† 8–0 6–0
1933† 7–0–1 5–0–1
1943† Fritz Crisler 8–1 6–0
1947 10–0 6–0
1948 Bennie Oosterbaan 9–0 6–0
1949† 6–2–1 4–1–1
1950 6–3–1 4–1–1
1964 Bump Elliott 9–1 6–1
1969† Bo Schembechler 8–3
1971 11–1 8–0
1972† 10–1 7–1
1973† 10–0–1 7–0–1
1974† 10–1 7–1
1976† 10–2
1977†
1978†
1980 8–0
1982 8–4 8–1
1986† 11–2 7–1
1988 9–2–1 7–0–1
1989 10–2 8–0
1990† Gary Moeller 9–3 6–2
1991 10–2 8–0
1992 9–0–3 6–0–2
1997 Lloyd Carr 12–0 8–0
1998† 10–3 7–1
2000† 9–3 6–2
2003 10–3 7–1
2004† 9–3 7–1
2021 Jim Harbaugh 12–2 8–1
2022 13–1 9–0
† Co-champions
Division championships
Michigan has won three division titles.[156][157]
Year Division Coach Opponent CG result
2018† Big Ten – East Jim Harbaugh N/A; lost tiebreaker to Ohio State
2021† Iowa W 42–3
2022 Purdue W 43–22
† Co-champions
Program records and achievements
Team records
Most wins in college football history (1000)[158]
Most winning seasons of any program (121)[159]
Most undefeated seasons of any program currently competing in Division I FBS (23)
Most appearances in the final AP Poll (62)[160]
More conference titles in the Big Ten than any other program with a single conference (44)
November 18, 2023, Michigan beats Maryland 31-24 and becomes the first team in college and professional football to win 1,000 games
Head coaching history
Main article: List of Michigan Wolverines head football coaches
Personnel
Coaching staff
Michigan Wolverines
Name Position Consecutive season(s) at Michigan in current position Previous position
Sherrone Moore Offensive coordinator / offensive line 1st Michigan – Co-offensive coordinator / offensive line (2021–2022)
Jesse Minter Defensive coordinator 2nd Vanderbilt – Defensive coordinator / safeties (2021)
Steve Clinkscale Co–defensive coordinator / defensive backs 2nd Michigan – Defensive passing game coordinator / defensive backs (2021)
Jay Harbaugh Special teams coordinator / safeties 2nd Michigan – Special teams coordinator / tight ends (2021)
Chris Partridge Linebackers 1st Ole Miss – Co-defensive coordinator / safeties (2020–2022)
Mike Elston Defensive line / recruiting coordinator 2nd Notre Dame – Assistant head coach / defensive line (2018–2021)
Mike Hart Running backs / Run game coordinator 2nd Michigan – Running backs (2021)
Ronald Bellamy Wide receivers 2nd Michigan – Safeties (2021)
Grant Newsome Tight ends 2nd Michigan – Graduate assistant (2020–2021)
Kirk Campbell Quarterbacks 1st Michigan – Offensive analyst (2022)
Ben Herbert Director of strength & conditioning 6th Arkansas – Head strength & conditioning (2013–2017)
Reference:[161]
Individual awards and honors
See also: Michigan Wolverines football statistical leaders
National award winners
Players
Heisman Trophy
1940: Tom Harmon
1991: Desmond Howard
1997: Charles Woodson
Maxwell Award
1940: Tom Harmon
1991: Desmond Howard
Walter Camp Award
1991: Desmond Howard
1997: Charles Woodson
Chic Harley Award
1964: Bob Timberlake
1986: Jim Harbaugh
1991: Desmond Howard
1997: Charles Woodson
Dick Butkus Award
1991: Erick Anderson
Jack Lambert Trophy
1991: Erick Anderson
Paul Warfield Trophy
1991: Desmond Howard
2004: Braylon Edwards
Jim Parker Trophy
1991: Greg Skrepenak
2000: Steve Hutchinson
2007: Jake Long
Sammy Baugh Trophy
1992: Elvis Grbac
Jack Tatum Trophy
1997: Charles Woodson
Jim Thorpe Award
1997: Charles Woodson
Chuck Bednarik Award
1997: Charles Woodson
Bronko Nagurski Trophy
1997: Charles Woodson
Doak Walker Award
2003: Chris Perry
Jim Brown Trophy
2003: Chris Perry
Fred Biletnikoff Award
2004: Braylon Edwards
Rimington Trophy
2004: David Baas
2011: David Molk
2022: Olusegun Oluwatimi
Lombardi Award
2006: LaMarr Woodley
2021: Aidan Hutchinson
Ted Hendricks Award
2006: LaMarr Woodley
2021: Aidan Hutchinson
Ozzie Newsome Award
2015: Jake Butt
John Mackey Award
2016: Jake Butt
Lott IMPACT Trophy
2016: Jabrill Peppers
2021: Aidan Hutchinson
Paul Hornung Award
2016: Jabrill Peppers
Lou Groza Award
2021: Jake Moody
Joe Moore Award
2021: Offensive line
2022: Offensive line
Outland Trophy
2022: Olusegun Oluwatimi
Coaches
AFCA Coach of the Year
1947: Fritz Crisler
1948: Bennie Oosterbaan
1969: Bo Schembechler
1997: Lloyd Carr
Paul "Bear" Bryant Award
1997: Lloyd Carr
Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year
1969: Bo Schembechler
Walter Camp Coach of the Year Award
1969: Bo Schembechler
1997: Lloyd Carr
Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Award
1977: Bo Schembechler
2007: Lloyd Carr
Associated Press Coach of the Year
2021: Jim Harbaugh
Sporting News Coach of the Year
1985: Bo Schembechler
Woody Hayes Trophy
1985: Bo Schembechler
1997: Lloyd Carr
George Munger Award
1989: Bo Schembechler
1997: Lloyd Carr
2011: Brady Hoke
Broyles Award
1997: Jim Herrmann
2021: Josh Gattis
AFCA Assistant Coach of the Year
2001: Fred Jackson
Heisman Trophy voting
Twenty-nine Heisman Trophy candidates have played at Michigan. Three have won the award:
1939: Tom Harmon, 2nd
1940: Tom Harmon, 1st
1941: Bob Westfall, 8th
1943: Bill Daley, 7th
1947: Bob Chappuis, 2nd
1955: Ron Kramer, 8th
1956: Ron Kramer, 6th
1964: Bob Timberlake, 4th
1968: Ron Johnson, 6th
1974: Dennis Franklin, 8th
1975: Gordon Bell, 8th
1976: Rob Lytle, 3rd
1977: Rick Leach, 8th
1978: Rick Leach, 3rd
1980: Anthony Carter, 10th
1981: Anthony Carter, 7th
1982: Anthony Carter, 4th
1986: Jim Harbaugh, 3rd
1991: Desmond Howard, 1st
1993: Tyrone Wheatley, 8th
1994: Tyrone Wheatley, 12th
1995: Tim Biakabutuka, 8th
1997: Charles Woodson, 1st
2003: Chris Perry, 4th
2004: Braylon Edwards, 10th
2006: Mike Hart, 5th
2010: Denard Robinson, 6th
2016: Jabrill Peppers, 5th
2021: Aidan Hutchinson, 2nd
2022: Blake Corum, 7th
All-Americans
Main article: List of Michigan Wolverines football All-Americans
Team and conference MVP
Michigan Most Valuable Player Award (1926–1959), Louis B. Hyde Memorial Award (1960–1994),[162] Bo Schembechler Award (1995–present); winners of the Chicago Tribune Silver Football as the Big Ten's MVP also noted:[163]
1926: Benny Friedman (also Big Ten MVP)
1927: Bennie Oosterbaan
1928: Otto Pommerening
1929: James Simrall
1930: Jack Wheeler
1931: Bill Hewitt
1932: Harry Newman (also Big Ten MVP)
1933: Herman Everhardus
1934: Gerald Ford
1935: William Renner
1936: Matt Patanelli
1937: Ralph Heikkinen
1938: Ralph Heikkinen
1939: Tom Harmon
1940: Tom Harmon (also Big Ten MVP)
1941: Reuben Kelto
1942: Albert Wistert
1943: Bob Wiese
1944: Don Lund
1945: Harold Watts
1946: Bob Chappuis
1947: Bump Elliott (also Big Ten MVP)
1948: Dominic Tomasi
1949: Dick Kempthorn
1950: Don Dufek
1951: Don Peterson
1952: Ted Topor
1953: Tony Branoff
1954: Fred Baer
1955: Terry Barr
1956: Dick Hill
1957: Jim Pace (also Big Ten MVP)
1958: Bob Ptacek
1959: Tony Rio
1960: Dennis Fitzgerald
1961: John Walker
1962: Dave Raimey
1963: Tom Keating
1964: Bob Timberlake (also Big Ten MVP)
1965: Bill Yearby
1966: Jack Clancy
1967: Ron Johnson
1968: Ron Johnson (also Big Ten MVP)
1969: Jim Mandich
1970: Henry Hill and Don Moorhead
1971: Billy Taylor
1972: Randy Logan
1973: Paul Seal
1974: Steve Strinko
1975: Gordon Bell
1976: Rob Lytle (also Big Ten MVP)
1977: Russell Davis
1978: Rick Leach (also Big Ten MVP)
1979: Ron Simpkins
1980: Anthony Carter
1981: Butch Woolfolk
1982: Anthony Carter (also Big Ten MVP)
1983: Steve Smith
1984: Mike Mallory
1985: Mike Hammerstein
1986: Jim Harbaugh (also Big Ten MVP)
1987: Jamie Morris
1988: Mark Messner
1989: Tony Boles
1990: Tripp Welborne
1991: Desmond Howard (also Big Ten MVP)
1992: Chris Hutchinson
1993: Buster Stanley
1994: Todd Collins
1995: Tim Biakabutuka
1996: Rod Payne
1997: Charles Woodson (also Big Ten MVP)
1998: Tai Streets
1999: Tom Brady
2000: Anthony Thomas
2001: Marquise Walker
2002: B. J. Askew
2003: Chris Perry (also Big Ten MVP)
2004: Braylon Edwards (also Big Ten MVP)
2005: Jason Avant
2006: David Harris and Mike Hart
2007: Mike Hart
2008: Brandon Graham
2009: Brandon Graham (also Big Ten MVP)
2010: Denard Robinson (also Big Ten MVP)
2011: Denard Robinson
2012: Jordan Kovacs
2013: Jeremy Gallon
2014: Jake Ryan
2015: Jehu Chesson
2016: Jabrill Peppers
2017: Maurice Hurst Jr.
2018: Chase Winovich
2019: Shea Patterson
2020: No award presented
2021: Aidan Hutchinson (also Big Ten MVP)
2022: Blake Corum (also Big Ten MVP)
Big Ten Conference honors
Player of the Year
1982: Anthony Carter
1986: Jim Harbaugh
Graham–George Offensive Player of the Year
1990: Jon Vaughn (coaches)
1991: Desmond Howard
1992: Tyrone Wheatley
2003: Chris Perry
2004: Braylon Edwards
2010: Denard Robinson
Ameche–Dayne Running Back of the Year
2022: Blake Corum
Rimington–Pace Offensive Lineman of the Year
1991: Greg Skrepenak
1998: Jon Jansen
2000: Steve Hutchinson
2004: David Baas
2006: Jake Long
2007: Jake Long
2011: David Molk
2012: Taylor Lewan
2013: Taylor Lewan
Nagurski–Woodson Defensive Player of the Year
1997: Charles Woodson
2001: Larry Foote
2006: LaMarr Woodley
2016: Jabrill Peppers
2018: Devin Bush
2021: Aidan Hutchinson
Smith–Brown Defensive Lineman of the Year
1985: Mike Hammerstein
1988: Mark Messner
1992: Chris Hutchinson
2006: LaMarr Woodley
2021: Aidan Hutchinson
2022: Mike Morris
Thompson–Randle El Freshman of the Year
1995: Charles Woodson (coaches)
1997: Anthony Thomas (coaches and media)
2003: Steve Breaston (coaches)
2004: Mike Hart (coaches and media)
2015: Jabrill Peppers (coaches and media)
Dave McClain / Hayes–Schembechler Coach of the Year
1972: Bo Schembechler (media)
1976: Bo Schembechler (media)
1980: Bo Schembechler (media)
1982: Bo Schembechler (coaches)
1985: Bo Schembechler (media and coaches)
1989: Bo Schembechler (coaches)
1991: Gary Moeller (media and coaches)
1992: Gary Moeller (media)
2011: Brady Hoke (media and coaches)
2022: Jim Harbaugh (media and coaches)
Tatum–Woodson Defensive Back of the Year
2016: Jourdan Lewis
Butkus–Fitzgerald Linebacker of the Year
2016: Jabrill Peppers
2018: Devin Bush
Kwalick–Clark Tight End of the Year
2013: Devin Funchess
2015: Jake Butt
2016: Jake Butt
Bakken–Andersen Kicker of the Year
2021: Jake Moody
2022: Jake Moody
Eddleman–Fields Punter of the Year
2012: Will Hagerup
2018: Will Hart
Rodgers–Dwight Return Specialist of the Year
2016: Jabrill Peppers
Retired numbers
Main article: List of NCAA football retired numbers
The following jersey numbers have been retired by the program:[164]
from left to right: Francis Wistert, Gerald Ford, and Tom Harmon, some of the players who have had their numbers retired by Michigan
Michigan Wolverines retired numbers
No. Player Pos. Tenure No. Ret.
11 Francis Wistert T 1931–1933 1949
Albert Wistert T 1940–1942
Alvin Wistert T 1947–1949
21 Desmond Howard WR 1989–1991 2015
47 Bennie Oosterbaan E 1925–1927 1927
48 Gerald Ford C 1932–1934 1994
87 Ron Kramer E 1954–1956 1956
98 Tom Harmon HB 1938–1940 1940
Beginning in 2011, previously retired numbers of "Michigan Football Legends" were assigned to and worn by players selected by the head coach. The Legends program was discontinued in July 2015, and the numbers again permanently retired.[165][166]
Hall of Fame inductees
College Football Hall of Fame
See also: College Football Hall of Fame
Michigan inductees into the College Football Hall of Fame as of 2022.[167]
= Inducted primarily due to contributions at different university
Name Position Inducted
Albert Benbrook G 1971
Dave Brown S 2007
Lloyd Carr Coach 2011
Anthony Carter WR 2001
Bob Chappuis HB 1988
Fritz Crisler Coach 1954
Tom Curtis S 2005
Dan Dierdorf T 2000
Bump Elliott HB 1989
Jumbo Elliott T 2020
Pete Elliott QB 1994
Benny Friedman QB 1951
Tom Harmon HB 1954
Willie Heston C 1954
Elroy Hirsch HB 1974
Desmond Howard WR 2010
Ron Johnson RB 1992
Harry Kipke HB 1958
Ron Kramer E 1978
George Little Coach 1955
Rob Lytle RB 2015
Name Position Inducted
Jim Mandich TE 2004
Johnny Maulbetsch FB 1973
Reggie McKenzie G 2002
Mark Messner DT 2022
Bill Morley HB 1971
David M. Nelson Coach 1987
Harry Newman QB 1975
Bennie Oosterbaan E 1954
Merv Pregulman T 1982
Tubby Raymond Coach 2003
Bo Schembechler Coach 1993
Germany Schulz C 1951
Neil Snow E 1978
Ernie Vick C 1983
Tad Wieman Coach 1956
Bob Westfall FB 1987
Francis Wistert T 1967
Albert Wistert T 1968
Alvin Wistert T 1981
Charles Woodson CB 2018
Fielding H. Yost Coach 1951
Pro Football Hall of Fame
Michigan inductees to the Pro Football Hall of Fame as of 2021.[168]
Name Position Inducted
George Allen Coach 2002
Dan Dierdorf T 1996
Len Ford DE 1976
Benny Friedman QB 2005
Bill Hewitt E 1971
Elroy Hirsch HB/E 1968
Steve Hutchinson G 2020
Ty Law CB 2019
Tom Mack G 1999
Ralph Wilson Owner 2009
Charles Woodson CB 2021
Rose Bowl Hall of Fame
The Rose Bowl Hall of Fame has inducted the following Michigan players and coaches.[169]
Name Position Inducted
Mel Anthony FB 2002
Lloyd Carr Coach 2013
Bob Chappuis HB/QB 1992
Bump Elliott HB 1989
Brian Griese QB 2012
Chuck Ortmann HB 2008
Bo Schembechler Coach 1993
Ron Simpkins LB 2021
Neil Snow E/FB 1990
Tyrone Wheatley RB 2015
Charles Woodson CB 2017
Butch Woolfolk HB 1998
Alumni in the NFL
Updated as of September 8, 2023.[170]
Daylen Baldwin: Cleveland Browns
Ronnie Bell: San Francisco 49ers
Ben Bredeson: New York Giants
Devin Bush: Seattle Seahawks
Camaron Cheeseman: Washington Commanders
Frank Clark: Denver Broncos
Mason Cole: Pittsburgh Steelers
Nico Collins: Houston Texans
Mike Danna: Kansas City Chiefs
Michael Dwumfour: Tennessee Titans (PS)
Chris Evans: Cincinnati Bengals
Rashan Gary: Green Bay Packers
Zach Gentry: Cincinnati Bengals (PS)
Graham Glasgow: Detroit Lions
Brandon Graham: Philadelphia Eagles
Hassan Haskins: Tennessee Titans
Ryan Hayes: Indianapolis Colts
Daxton Hill: Cincinnati Bengals
Christopher Hinton: Los Angeles Chargers
Khaleke Hudson: Washington Commanders
Maurice Hurst: Cleveland Browns
Aidan Hutchinson: Detroit Lions
Jourdan Lewis: Dallas Cowboys
David Long: Las Vegas Raiders
Ben Mason: Baltimore Ravens (PS)
Jalen Mayfield: New York Giants (PS)
Cameron McGrone: Indianapolis Colts
Sean McKeon: Dallas Cowboys (PS)
Josh Metellus: Minnesota Vikings
Bryan Mone: Seattle Seahawks
Jake Moody: San Francisco 49ers
Mike Morris: Seattle Seahawks
David Ojabo: Baltimore Ravens
Olusegun Oluwatimi: Seattle Seahawks
Michael Onwenu: New England Patriots
Kwity Paye: Indianapolis Colts
Donovan Peoples-Jones: Detroit Lions
Jabrill Peppers: New England Patriots
Brad Robbins: Cincinnati Bengals
Josh Ross: Baltimore Ravens (PS)
Cesar Ruiz: New Orleans Saints
Jon Runyan: Green Bay Packers
Luke Schoonmaker: Dallas Cowboys
Mazi Smith: Dallas Cowboys
Andrew Steuber: New England Patriots (PS)
Benjamin St-Juste: Washington Commanders
Ambry Thomas: San Francisco 49ers
DJ Turner: Cincinnati Bengals
Josh Uche: New England Patriots
Luiji Vilain: Minnesota Vikings (PS)
Chase Winovich: Miami Dolphins (PS)
Future non-conference opponents
The University of Michigan (U-M, UMich, or just Michigan) is a public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Founded in 1817, the university is the oldest and largest in Michigan; it was established twenty years before the territory became a state. It is also a founding member of the Association of American Universities.
Since 1871, Michigan has been a coeducational institution. In 2021, it enrolled approximately 32,000 undergraduate students and 18,000 graduate students.[8] The university consists of 19 colleges and offers degree programs at undergraduate and graduate levels in some 250 disciplines. Michigan also has two regional universities, one in Flint and one in Dearborn, as well as a center in Detroit. Undergraduate admission to the university is categorized as "most selective"[9] and the university is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity".
The university's alumni include 8 domestic and foreign heads of state or heads of government; 47 U.S. senators; 218 members of the U.S. House of Representatives; 42 U.S. Cabinet secretaries; 41 U.S. governors; and 26 living billionaires.[10] As of 2022, Wolverine athletes have won 188 medals at the Olympic Games.[11]
History
Main article: History of the University of Michigan
1817–1837
The University of Michigan was established on August 26, 1817,[1] as Catholepistemiad, or Catholepistemiad Michigania, under an act of the Michigan Territory. The corporate existence of the university had its rise in the Act of 1817, and has been continuous throughout all subsequent changes of its organic law.[12]: 11 Catholepistemiad, a neologism, translates roughly as "School of Universal Knowledge."[13]
Catholepistemiad was not a university in the contemporary sense but rather a centralized system of schools, libraries, and other cultural institutions borrowing its model from the Imperial University of France founded by Napoleon I a decade earlier.[14][12]: 10 Besides carrying on the central institution, the President and Didactorium of Catholepistemiad were also authorized to establish private colleges, academies, libraries, etc., throughout the Michigan Territory.[12]: 10 It was only after the state of Michigan entered the Union in 1837 that a new plan was adopted to focus the corporation on higher education.[14] The charter of Catholepistemiad is an extraordinary example of the marked French influence upon American institutions which found its inception during the course of the Revolutionary War, and continued until it began to give way to German influence in the third or fourth decade of the 19th century.[12]: 10
Shortly after the passage of the Act of 1817, Rev. John Monteith became the first president of Catholepistemiad, and Father Gabriel Richard, a Catholic priest, was vice president. Monteith and Richard enacted that private schools should be established in Detroit, Monroe and Mackinaw, and before the end of September, 1817, the three private schools were in operation.[12]: 11 The cornerstone of the first school house, near the corner of Bates Street and Congress Street in Detroit, was laid on September 24, 1817. Subscriptions amounting to $5,000 payable in instalments running over several years were obtained to carry on the work.[12]: 12 Of the total amount subscribed to start the work two-thirds came from Zion Masonic Lodge and its members.[15] In August 1818, a private Lancasterian school taught by Lemuel Shattuck was opened in the building.[12]: 12
On April 30, 1821, the Michigan Territory passed a new act changing materially the appearance and nature of the existing educational organization.[12]: 13 A board of trustees was appointed to oversee the corporation; the positions of president and vice president were eliminated, and Monteith and Richard were appointed to the board.[1] University of Michigan took the place of Catholepistemiad Michigania as the legal name of the corporation.
Painting of a rolling green landscape with trees with a row of white buildings in the background
University of Michigan (1855) Jasper Francis Cropsey
1837–1900
After the state of Michigan entered the Union in 1837, its constitution granted the university an unusual degree of autonomy as a “coordinate branch of state government.” It delegated full powers over all university matters granted to its governing Board of Regents.[14] On June 3–5, the Board of Regents held its first meeting in Ann Arbor and formally accepted the proposal by the town to locate the university there.[1] The town of Ann Arbor had existed for only 13 years and had a population of about 2,000.[16] A grant of 40 acres (16 ha), obtained through the Treaty of Fort Meigs,[17] formed the basis of the present Central Campus.[18]
Since the founding period, the private sector has remained the primary provider of university financing to supplement tuition collected from students. Early benefactors of the university included businessman Dexter M. Ferry (donor of Ferry Field), Arthur Hill (regent, donor of Hill Auditorium), the Nichols family (regents, donors of the Nichols Arboretum), William E. Upjohn (donor of the Peony Garden), William P. Trowbridge, John S. Newberry, who funded the construction of Helen H. Newberry Residence, and Henry N. Walker, a politician who led a group of prominent Detroit businessmen to fund the Detroit Observatory. Clara Harrison Stranahan, a close friend of Scottish-American industrialist Andrew Carnegie, donated $25,000 to the university in 1895 as a memorial of her father, Seth Harrison. The Waterman Gymnasium was financed by donations from wealthy citizens and matched Joshua W. Waterman's pledge of $20,000. When opened, the total cost of the building was $61,876.49, to which private donors contributed $49,524.34.[12]: 67
Alexander J. Davis's original University of Michigan designs featured the Gothic Revival style. Davis himself is generally credited with coining the term "Collegiate Gothic."
In 1838, the Regents contracted with Alexander Jackson Davis, who according to Superintendent John Davis Pierce provided truly "magnificent designs" in the Gothic Revival style; but unfortunately the completion of them at that day would, as Pierce said, involve an expenditure of half a million dollars.[12]: 31 Although approving the designs, the tight budget of the fledgling university forced the Regents to ultimately abandon them and instead adopted a much less expensive plan.[19] The superintendent of construction on the first structure to be built for the university was Isaac Thompson, an associate of Davis.[20] Asa Gray was the first professor appointed to Michigan on July 17, 1837.[21] His position was also the first one devoted solely to botany at any educational institution in America.[22][23][24] The first classes in Ann Arbor were held in 1841, with six freshmen and a sophomore, taught by two professors. Eleven students graduated in the first commencement in 1845.[25]
Andrew Dickson White, founder and first president of Cornell University and among the earliest benefactors of Michigan, joined the Michigan faculty in 1858. He made his lasting mark on the grounds of the university by enrolling students to plant elms along the walkways on The Diag, resembling the "glorious elms" of Yale.[26]
The years 1837–1850 disclosed serious weakness in the organization and working of the university. Regents of the university discovered that the organic act from which they derived their powers, made them too dependent upon the legislature. The subject was brought to the attention of the legislature more than once but without securing the desired action in order to achieve increased independence. By the late 1840s, the Regents achieved a strong position relative to collective bargaining with the legislature as the opinion was becoming common among capitalists, clergymen and intellectual elites, since by then the state derived significant tax revenue through them. Such a situation ultimately led to a change in the organic act of the university. Remodeled, the act, which was approved April 8, 1851, emancipated the university from legislative control that would have been injudicious and harmful. The office of Regent was changed from an appointed one to an elected one, and the office of President was created, with the Regents directed to select one. As Hinsdale argued, "the independent position of the university has had much to do with its growth and prosperity. In fact, its larger growth may be dated from the time when the new sections began to take effect."[12]: 40
Michigan was the first university in the West to pursue professional education, establishing its medical school in 1850, engineering courses in 1854, and a law school in 1859.[14] The university was among the first to introduce instruction in fields as diverse as zoology and botany, modern languages, modern history, American literature, pharmacy, dentistry, speech, journalism, teacher education, forestry, bacteriology, naval architecture, aeronautical engineering, computer engineering, and nuclear engineering.[14] In 1856, Michigan built the nation's first chemical laboratory.[27] That laboratory was the first structure on the North American continent that was designed and equipped solely for instruction in chemistry.[27] In 1869 Michigan opened the first university hospital in the country. James Burrill Angell, who served as the university's president from 1871 to 1909, expanded the curriculum to include professional studies in dentistry, architecture, engineering, government, and medicine.
The University of Michigan conferred the degree of Bachelor of Science in 1855, four years after the Lawrence Scientific School at Cambridge conferred the degree in 1851, for the first time in the United States, making Michigan the second institution in the country to confer the degree.[12]: 48 The degree of Bachelor of Philosophy was conferred for the first time in the university's history upon six students in 1870.[12]: 79 The degrees of Master of Philosophy and Doctor of Philosophy was first offered in 1875.[12]: 88
Methods of instruction had also undergone important changes. The seminar method of study was first introduced into the university by Charles Kendall Adams in 1871–1872, making the university the first American institution to naturalize this product of the German soil.[28][12]: 71
By 1866, enrollment had increased to 1,205 students. Women were first admitted in 1870,[29] although Alice Robinson Boise Wood had become the first woman to attend classes (without matriculating) in 1866–7.[30] Among the early students in the School of Medicine was Jose Celso Barbosa, who in 1880 graduated as valedictorian and the first Puerto Rican to get a university degree in the United States. He returned to Puerto Rico to practice medicine and also served in high-ranking posts in the government.[31] Michigan was involved with the building of the Philippine education, legal, and public health systems during the era of the American colonization of the Philippines through the efforts of Michigan alumni that included Dean Conant Worcester and George A. Malcolm.[32]
Throughout its history, Michigan has been one of the nation's largest universities, vying with the largest private universities such as Harvard University and Columbia University (then known as Columbia College) during the 19th and early 20th centuries, and then holding this position of national leadership until the emergence of the statewide public university systems in the post-WWII years.[14] By the turn of the 19th century, the university was the second largest in the United States after Harvard University.[33]
Descendants of Massachusetts founding families made up a large portion of the university population in the 19th century; among them was Regent Charles Hebard, a lineal descendant of William Bradford, a founding father of Plymouth Colony.[12]: 204
20th century
The Diag, ca. 1900
From 1900 to 1920, the growth of higher education led the university to build numerous new facilities. The Martha Cook Building was constructed as an all-female residence in 1915 as the result of a gift from William Wilson Cook in honor of his mother, Martha Walford Cook.[34] Cook planned to endow a professorship of law of corporations, but eventually made possible the development of the Law Quadrangle.[35] The five buildings comprising the Law Quadrangle were constructed during the decade of 1923–33 on two city blocks purchased by the university: Lawyers Club, Dormitory Wing, John P. Cook Dormitory, William W Cook Legal Research Library, and Hutchins Hall.[35] The buildings, in the Tudor Gothic style, recalled the quadrangles of the two English ancient universities Oxford and Cambridge.[35]
Physicists George Uhlenbeck, Hendrik Kramers, and Samuel Goudsmit circa 1928 at Michigan.
West Engineering Building, 1905
From 1915 to 1941, the physics department was led by Harrison M. Randall, who established the importance of theoretical colleagues. Oskar Klein, Samuel Goudsmit, George Uhlenbeck, Otto Laporte and David Dennison joined the physics faculty during this time. Theoretical physicist Wolfgang Pauli, who became known as one of the pioneers of quantum physics, held a visiting professorship at the university in 1931.[36] Other physicists with ties to the university include the inventor of the Race Track Synchrotron H. Richard Crane and Hendrik Kramers. The Michigan Summer Symposia in Theoretical Physics occurred from 1927 to 1941 and provided lectures from theorists, including Niels Bohr, Paul Dirac, Enrico Fermi, Werner Heisenberg, and others.[36] J. Robert Oppenheimer lectured on the "General Quantum Theory of Transitions" at the university in 1931.[36]
In August 1946, Rensis Likert and his team formed the Survey Research Center at the University of Michigan. This became the Institute for Social Research (ISR) in 1949 when Dorwin Cartwright moved the Group Dynamics Research Center, the first institute devoted explicitly to group dynamics, from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to the University of Michigan.
The University of Michigan has been the birthplace of some important academic movements, establishing the Michigan schools of thought and developing the Michigan Models in various fields. John Dewey, Charles Horton Cooley, George Herbert Mead, and Robert Ezra Park first met at Michigan. There, they would influence each other greatly.[37] In political science, Angus Campbell, Philip Converse, Warren Miller and Donald Stokes, proposed the Michigan model of voting.[38] In business administration, Michigan Business School developed the Michigan model of human resource management in 1984.
Shortly after the war, in 1947, the Regents appointed a War Memorial Committee to consider establishing a war memorial in honor of students and alumni who fell in World War II, and in 1948, approved a resolution to "create a war memorial center to explore the ways and means by which the potentialities of atomic energy may become a beneficent influence in the life of man, to be known as the Phoenix Project of the University of Michigan", leading to the world's first academic program in nuclear science and engineering.[39][14] The Memorial Phoenix Project was funded by over 25,000 private contributors by individuals and corporations, such as the Ford Motor Company.[40]
During the 1960s, the university campus was the site of numerous protests against the Vietnam War and university administration. On March 24, 1965, a group of U-M faculty members and 3,000 students held the nation's first-ever faculty-led "teach-in" to protest against American policy in Southeast Asia.[41][42][43] In response to a series of sit-ins in 1966 by Voice, the campus political party of Students for a Democratic Society, U-M's administration banned sit-ins. In response, 1,500 students participated in a one-hour sit-in inside the Administration Building, now known as the LSA Building. In April 1968, following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., a group of several dozen black students occupied the Administration Building to demand that the university make public its three-year-old commitment as a federal contractor to affirmative action and to increase its efforts with respect to recruiting more African American students, faculty and staff. At that time there were no African American coaches, for instance, in the Intercollegiate Athletics Department. The university's Spectrum Center is the oldest collegiate LGBT student center in the U.S., pre-dating Penn's.[44]
Due to concerns over the university's financial situation there have been suggestions for the complete separation of the university and state through privatization.[45][46] Even though the university is a public institution de jure, it has embraced funding models of a private university that emphasize tuition funding and raising funds from private donors.[47] Considering that "the University of Michigan already has only minimal fiscal ties to the state," the legislature convened a panel in 2008 that recommended converting the University of Michigan from a public to a private institution.[48]
Historical links
John Dewey, founder of the University of Chicago Laboratory School
The University of Michigan was the first attempt in the New World to build a modern university in the European sense. The institution was the clearest and strongest presentation that had yet been made of what, in this country, at once came to be called the "Prussian ideas." It was a radically different approach to higher education; a complete civil system of education, in contradistinction to the ecclesiastical system made out of the colonial colleges. Michigan alumni and faculty members carried this newer concept of the university with them as they founded other institutions including Andrew Dixon White, a cofounder of Cornell University.[14] Cornell alumni David Starr Jordan and John Casper Branner passed the concept to Stanford University in the late 19th century.
Michigan also has many historical links to other American universities through its graduates.
University of California: had its early planning based upon the University of Michigan.[49][50]
University of Chicago: Michigan alumnus Robert Ezra Park played a leading role in the development of the Chicago School of sociology. The University of Chicago Laboratory School was founded in 1896 by John Dewey and Calvin Brainerd Cady, who were members of the Michigan faculty.
Cornell University: had its Law School founded by Michigan alumni Charles Kendall Adams and Harry Burns Hutchins.
Harvard University: Michigan alumnus Edwin Francis Gay was the founding dean of the Harvard Business School from 1908 to 1919,[51] instrumental in the school's planning.
Johns Hopkins University: had its pharmacology department established by John Jacob Abel, an alumnus of Michigan.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology: had its Media Lab, the world's leading research laboratory, founded by Michigan alumnus Jerome Wiesner.
Northwestern University: Michigan alumnus Henry Wade Rogers was instrumental in transforming Northwestern from a small cluster of colleges into a major, nationally recognized university. His wife, Emma Winner Rogers, founded the Northwestern University Settlement Association.[52]
Tufts University: had its College of Civic Life founded by John Angelo DiBiaggio, an alumnus of Michigan.[53]
Wellesley College: Michigan alumna Alice Freeman Palmer, the President of Wellesley College from 1881 to 1887, "transformed the fledgling school from one devoted to Christian domesticity into one of the nation's premier colleges for women."[54]
Yale University: had its residential college system co-organized by James Rowland Angell, a graduate of Michigan.[55] Michigan alumnus Henry Wade Rogers introduced the "case system" and the college degree requirement into the Yale Law School.
Campus
The Ann Arbor campus is divided into four main areas: the North, Central, Medical, and South campuses. The physical infrastructure includes more than 500 major buildings,[56] with a combined area of more than 37.48 million square feet (860 acres; 3.482 km2).[57] The Central and South Campus areas are contiguous, while the North Campus area is separated from them, primarily by the Huron River.[58] There is also leased space in buildings scattered throughout the city, many occupied by organizations affiliated with the University of Michigan Health System. An East Medical Campus was developed on Plymouth Road, with several university-owned buildings for outpatient care, diagnostics, and outpatient surgery.[59]
In addition to the U-M Golf Course on South Campus, the university operates a second golf course on Geddes Road called Radrick Farms Golf Course. The golf course is only open to faculty, staff and alumni.[60] Another off-campus facility is the Inglis House, which the university has owned since the 1950s. The Inglis House is a 10,000-square-foot (930 m2) mansion used to hold various social events, including meetings of the Board of Regents, and to host visiting dignitaries.[61] The university also operates a large office building called Wolverine Tower in southern Ann Arbor near Briarwood Mall. Another major facility is the Matthaei Botanical Gardens, which is located on the eastern outskirts of Ann Arbor.[62]
All four campus areas are connected by bus services, the majority of which connect the North and Central campuses. There is a shuttle service connecting the University Hospital, which lies between North and Central campuses, with other medical facilities throughout northeastern Ann Arbor.[63]
The 2021 state budget boosted University of Michigan funding by 5% across all 3 campuses.[64]
The university has also seen increases in their sustainability efforts through climate, energy, food systems, water, and construction.[65]
Central Campus
Further information: University of Michigan Central Campus Historic District
Central Campus was the original location of U-M when it moved to Ann Arbor in 1837. It originally had a school and dormitory building (where Mason Hall now stands) and several houses for professors on 40 acres (16 ha) of land bounded by North University Avenue, South University Avenue, East University Avenue, and State Street. The President's House, located on South University Avenue, is the oldest building on campus as well as the only surviving building from the original 40-acre (16 ha) campus.[18] Because Ann Arbor and Central Campus developed simultaneously, there is no distinct boundary between the city and university, and some areas contain a mixture of private and university buildings.[66] Residence halls located on Central Campus are split up into two groups: the Hill Neighborhood and Central Campus.[67]
Central Campus is the location of the College of Literature, Science and the Arts, and is immediately adjacent to the medical campus. Most of the graduate and professional schools, including the Ross School of Business, the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, the Law School and the School of Dentistry, are on Central Campus. Two prominent libraries, the Harlan Hatcher Graduate Library and the Shapiro Undergraduate Library (which are connected by a skywalk), are also on Central Campus.[68] as well as museums housing collections in archaeology, anthropology, paleontology, zoology, dentistry and art. Ten of the buildings on Central Campus were designed by Detroit-based architect Albert Kahn between 1904 and 1936 including Burton Memorial Tower and Hill Auditorium.[69]
North Campus
Earl V. Moore Building on North Campus
North Campus is the most contiguous campus, built independently from the city on a large plot of farmland—approximately 800 acres (3.2 km2)—that the university bought in 1952.[70] It is newer than Central Campus, and thus has more modernist architecture, whereas most Central Campus buildings are classical or Collegiate Gothic in style. The architect Eero Saarinen, based in Birmingham, Michigan, created one of the early master plans for North Campus and designed several of its buildings in the 1950s, including the Earl V. Moore School of Music Building.[71] North and Central Campuses each have unique bell towers that reflect the predominant architectural styles of their surroundings. Each of the bell towers houses a grand carillon, 2 of only 57 globally. The North Campus tower is called Lurie Tower.[72] The University of Michigan's largest residence hall, Bursley Hall, is located on North Campus.[67]
North Campus houses the College of Engineering, the School of Music, Theatre & Dance, the Stamps School of Art & Design, the Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning, and an annex of the School of Information.[73] The campus is served by the Duderstadt Center, which houses the Art, Architecture and Engineering Library. The Duderstadt Center also contains multiple computer labs, video editing studios, electronic music studios, an audio studio, a video studio, multimedia workspaces, and a 3D virtual reality room.[74] Other libraries located on North Campus include the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and the Bentley Historical Library.
South Campus
University of Michigan Golf Course was designed by Scottish golf course architect Alister MacKenzie and opened in 1931.
South Campus is the site for the athletic programs, including major sports facilities such as Michigan Stadium, Crisler Center, and Yost Ice Arena. South Campus is also the site of the Buhr library storage facility, Revelli Hall, home of the Michigan Marching Band, the Institute for Continuing Legal Education,[75] and the Student Theatre Arts Complex, which provides shop and rehearsal space for student theatre groups.[76] The university's departments of public safety and transportation services offices are located on South Campus.[75]
U-M's golf course is located south of Michigan Stadium and Crisler Center. It was designed in the late 1920s by Alister MacKenzie, the designer of Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia, home of the Masters Tournament.[77] The course opened to the public in the spring of 1931. The University of Michigan Golf Course was included in a listing of top holes designed by what Sports Illustrated calls "golf's greatest course architect". The U-M Golf Course's signature No. 6 hole—a 310-yard (280 m) par 4, which plays from an elevated tee to a two-tiered, kidney-shaped green protected by four bunkers—is the second hole on the Alister MacKenzie Dream 18 as selected by a five-person panel that includes three-time Masters champion Nick Faldo and golf course architect Tom Doak. The listing of "the best holes ever designed by Augusta National architect Alister MacKenzie" is featured in SI's Golf Plus special edition previewing the Masters on April 4, 2006.[78]
Organization and administration
See also: President of the University of Michigan and Board of Regents of the University of Michigan
College/school Year founded[79]
Literature, Science, and the Arts 1841
Medicine 1850
Engineering 1854
Law 1859
Dentistry 1875
Pharmacy 1876
Music, Theatre & Dance 1880
Nursing 1893
Architecture & Urban Planning 1906
Graduate Studies 1912
Government 1914
Education 1921
Business 1924
Environment and Sustainability 1927
Public Health 1941
Social Work 1951
Information 1969
Art & Design 1974
Kinesiology 1984
The University of Michigan consists of a flagship campus in Ann Arbor, with two regional campuses in Dearborn and Flint. The Board of Regents, which governs the university and was established by the Organic Act of March 18, 1837, consists of eight members elected at large in biennial state elections[80] for overlapping eight-year terms.[81][82] Between the establishment of the University of Michigan in 1837 and 1850, the Board of Regents ran the university directly; although they were, by law, supposed to appoint a Chancellor to administer the university, they never did. Instead, a rotating roster of professors carried out the day-to-day administration duties.[83]
The President of the University of Michigan is the principal executive officer of the university. The office was created by the Michigan Constitution of 1850, which also specified that the president was to be appointed by the Regents of the University of Michigan and preside at their meetings, but without a vote.[84] Today, the president's office is at the Ann Arbor campus, and the president has the privilege of living in the President's House, the university's oldest building.[85] Mark Schlissel was president from July 2014 to January 2022, when he was fired by the board after an investigation determined he "may have been involved in an inappropriate relationship with an employee of the university".[86]
Samuel Trask Dana Building (West Medical Building) houses the School for Environment and Sustainability
There are thirteen undergraduate schools and colleges.[87] By enrollment, the three largest undergraduate units are the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, the College of Engineering, and the Ross School of Business.[88] At the graduate level, the Rackham Graduate School serves as the central administrative unit of graduate education at the university.[89] There are 18 graduate schools and colleges. Professional degrees are conferred by the Schools of Architecture, Public Health, Dentistry, Law, Medicine, Urban Planning and Pharmacy.[88] The Medical School is partnered with the University of Michigan Health System, which comprises the university's three hospitals, dozens of outpatient clinics, and many centers for medical care, research, and education.[citation needed]
Student government
Housed in the Michigan Union, the Central Student Government (CSG) is the central student government of the university. With representatives from each of the university's colleges and schools, including graduate students, CSG represents students and manages student funds on the campus. CSG is a 501(c)(3) organization, independent from the University of Michigan.[90] In recent years CSG has organized Airbus, a transportation service between campus and the Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, and has led the university's efforts to register its student population to vote, with its Voice Your Vote Commission (VYV) registering 10,000 students in 2004. VYV also works to improve access to non-partisan voting-related information and increase student voter turnout.[91] CSG was successful at reviving Homecoming activities, including a carnival and parade, for students after a roughly eleven-year absence in October 2007,[92] and during the 2013–14 school year, was instrumental in persuading the university to rescind an unpopular change in student football seating policy at Michigan Stadium.[93] In 2017, CSG successfully petitioned the Ann Arbor City Council to create a Student Advisory Council to give student input into Ann Arbor city affairs.[94]
There are student governance bodies in each college and school, independent of Central Student Government. Undergraduate students in the LS&A are represented by the LS&A Student Government (LSA SG).[95] Engineering Student Government (ESG) manages undergraduate student government affairs for the College of Engineering. Graduate students enrolled in the Rackham Graduate School are represented by the Rackham Student Government (RSG), and law students are represented by the Law School Student Senate (LSSS) as is each other college with its own respective government. In addition, the students who live in the residence halls are represented by the University of Michigan Residence Halls Association (RHA), which contains the third most constituents after CSG and LSA SG.[96]
William W. Cook Legal Research Library and other buildings comprising the Law Quadrangle were built during 1923–33 and then donated to the university by William Wilson Cook. It was the university's most significant private gift at the time.
A longstanding goal of the student government is to create a student-designated seat on the Board of Regents, the university's governing body.[97] Such a designation would achieve parity with other Big Ten schools that have student regents. In 2000, students Nick Waun and Scott Trudeau ran for the board on the statewide ballot as third-party nominees. Waun ran for a second time in 2002, along with Matt Petering and Susan Fawcett.[98] Although none of these campaigns has been successful, a poll conducted by the State of Michigan in 1998 concluded that a majority of Michigan voters would approve of such a position if the measure were put before them.[97] A change to the board's makeup would require amending the Michigan Constitution.[99]
Finances
As of 2019, U-M's financial endowment (the "University Endowment Fund") was valued at $12.4 billion.[100]
In the 1980s, the university received increased grants for research in the social and physical sciences. During the 1980s and 1990s, the university devoted substantial resources to renovating its massive hospital complex and improving the academic facilities on the North Campus. In the early 2000s, Michigan faced declining state funding due to state budget shortfalls. In fact, the university did not receive direct state appropriations until 1867, and for most of its history, state support has been limited.[14] The state's annual contribution to the school's operating budget was less than 6%. In 2011 less than 5% of its support comes from state appropriations, a number continued to drop.[14]
Academics
Academic rankings
National
ARWU[101] 18
Forbes[102] 23
THE / WSJ[103] 28
U.S. News & World Report[104] 21
Washington Monthly[105] 23
Global
ARWU[106] 26
QS[107] 33
THE[108] 23
U.S. News & World Report[109] 19
The University of Michigan is a large, four-year, residential research university accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.[110][111][112] The four-year, full-time undergraduate program comprises the majority of enrollments and emphasizes instruction in the arts, sciences, and professions with a high level of coexistence between graduate and undergraduate programs. The university has "very high" research activity and the comprehensive graduate program offers doctoral degrees in the humanities, social sciences, and STEM fields as well as professional degrees in medicine, law, and dentistry.[110] U-M has been included on Richard Moll's list of Public Ivies.[113] With over 200 undergraduate majors, and 100 doctoral and 90 master's programs,[114] U-M conferred 6,490 undergraduate degrees, 4,951 graduate degrees, and 709 first professional degrees in 2011–2012.[115] Its most popular undergraduate majors, by 2021 graduates, were:[116]
Computer and Information Sciences (874)
Business Administration and Management (610)
Economics (542)
Behavioral Neuroscience (319)
Mechanical Engineering (316)
Experimental Psychology (312)
The 2021 U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges report ranked Michigan 3rd among public universities in the United States.[117] Michigan was ranked 6th in the 2021 U.S. News & World Report Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs Rankings.[118] Michigan was ranked 3rd in the 2021 U.S. News & World Report Best Undergraduate Business Programs Rankings.[119] The 2020 Princeton Review College Hopes & Worries Survey ranked Michigan as the No. 9 "Dream College" among students and the No. 7 "Dream College" among parents.[120] The 2022-23 edition of the CWUR rankings ranked Michigan 12th nationally and 15th globally[121]
[122][123][124][125] Graduation Rates Retention Rates
Recipients of a
Federal Pell Grant Recipients of a
Subsidized Stafford
Loan who did not
receive a Pell Grant Students who did not
receive either a Pell
Grant or a subsidized
Stafford Loan Total
4-year 6-year 4-year 6-year 4-year 6-year 4-year 6-year
Fall 2014 Cohort 70.0% 88.5% 80.2% 93.6% 83.0% 94.3% 80.9% 93.4% Increase 96.2% Decrease
Fall 2013 Cohort 70.6% 87.6% 78.6% 93.3% 82.3% 94.4% 80.0% 93.2% Increase 96.9% Decrease
Fall 2012 Cohort 68.6% 85.3% 78.4% 90.5% 81.4% 93.6% 79.0% 91.9% Increase 97.3% Increase
Fall 2011 Cohort 66.0% 86.9% 74.3% 90.5% 80.4% 93.0% 77.1% 91.6% Increase 97.1% Increase
Fall 2010 Cohort 67.4% 84.8% 72.0% 87.1% 79.6% 93.6% 76.5% 91.2% Increase 97.0% Decrease
USNWR Global Program Rankings[126]
Program Ranking
Social Sciences & Public Health 6
Surgery 11
Arts & Humanities 10
Oncology 15
Computer Science 18
Economics & Business 12
Clinical Medicine 12
Infectious Diseases 12
Biology & Biochemistry 17
Psychiatry/Psychology 13
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems 18
Gastroenterology and Hepatology 22
Engineering 21
Pharmacology & Toxicology 27
Molecular Biology & Genetics 15
Mathematics 21
Endocrinology and Metabolism 23
Public, Environmental and Occupational Health 22
Cell Biology 26
Physics 25
Mechanical Engineering 36
Space Science 25
Environment/Ecology 35
Immunology 31
Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Medical Imaging 37
Chemistry 46
Condensed Matter Physics 85
Optics 57
Physical Chemistry 84
Microbiology 43
Materials Science 44
Neuroscience & Behavior 40
Energy and Fuels 76
Civil Engineering 46
Biotechnology and Applied Microbiology 56
Geosciences 67
Chemical Engineering 94
Nanoscience and Nanotechnology 87
Plant and Animal Science 93
Electrical and Electronic Engineering 105
USNWR National Undergraduate Rankings[127]
Ranking
Engineering (overall) 6
Aerospace /Aeronautical / Astronautical 5
Biomedical 7
Chemical 11
Civil 7
Computer 7
Electrical / Electronic / Communications 5
Environmental / Environmental Health 2
Industrial / Manufacturing 3
Materials 5
Mechanical 6
Business (overall) 4
Accounting 5
Analytics 10
Entrepreneurship 5
Finance 3
International Business –
Management 2
Management Information Systems –
Marketing 1
Production / Operation Management 3
Quantitative Analysis 9
Supply Chain Management / Logistics 7
Computer Science (overall) 13
Artificial Intelligence 11
Computer Systems 7
Cybersecurity 10
Data Analytics/Science 10
Mobile/Web Applications 8
Programming Languages –
Theory –
Nursing 4
USNWR National Graduate Rankings[128]
Ranking
Social Work 1
Sociology 2
Biostatistics 4
Nursing–Midwifery 2
Health Care Management 3
Pharmacy 3
Psychology 3
Engineering 9
Political Science 4
Library and Information Studies 6
Medicine: Primary Care 20
Public Health 6
History 2
Education 8
English 8
Fine Arts 8
Public Affairs 8
Law 10
Nursing: Master's 8
Clinical Psychology 10
Earth Sciences 6
Computer Science 11
Statistics 7
Economics 12
Mathematics 11
Business 10
Nursing: Doctorate 7
Physics 15
Medicine: Research 17
Chemistry 14
Biological Sciences 23
Research
See also: List of University of Michigan faculty and staff
Science research output, by year[129][130][131][132] Share National Rank Global Rank
2020 398.64 Increase 4 11
2019 343.84 Decrease 5 14
2018 344.48 Increase 6 14
2017 336.06 Increase 5 11
Michigan is one of the founding members (in the year 1900) of the Association of American Universities. With over 6,200 faculty members, 73 of whom are members of the National Academy and 471 of whom hold an endowed chair in their discipline,[133] the university manages one of the largest annual collegiate research budgets of any university in the United States. According to the National Science Foundation, Michigan spent $1.639 billion on research and development in 2021, ranking it 3rd in the nation.[134] This figure totaled over $1 billion in 2009.[135] The Medical School spent the most at over $445 million, while the College of Engineering was second at more than $160 million.[135] U-M also has a technology transfer office, which is the university conduit between laboratory research and corporate commercialization interests.
The Thomas Henry Simpson Memorial Institute for Medical Research was constructed in 1924 as the result of a donation from the widow of iron magnate Thomas H. Simpson, in memory of her late husband, who had died of pernicious anemia
In 2009, U-M signed an agreement to purchase a facility formerly owned by Pfizer. The acquisition includes over 170 acres (0.69 km2) of property, and 30 major buildings comprising roughly 1,600,000 square feet (150,000 m2) of wet laboratory space, and 400,000 square feet (37,000 m2) of administrative space. At the time of the agreement, the university's intentions for the space were not fully articulated, but the expectation was that the new space would allow the university to ramp up its research and ultimately employ in excess of 2,000 people.[136]
The university is also a major contributor to the medical field with the EKG[137] and the gastroscope.[138] The university's 13,000-acre (53 km2) biological station in the Northern Lower Peninsula of Michigan is one of only 47 Biosphere Reserves in the United States.[139]
In the mid-1960s U-M researchers worked with IBM to develop a new virtual memory architectural model[140] that model became part of IBM's Model 360/67 mainframe computer (the 360/67 was initially dubbed the 360/65M where the "M" stood for Michigan).[141] The Michigan Terminal System (MTS), an early time-sharing computer operating system developed at U-M, was the first system outside of IBM to use the 360/67's virtual memory features.[142]
R&D statistics, by year[143][144][145][146] Total
Research
x $1000 National
Rank Federal
Research
x $1000 National
Rank National
Academy
Members National
Rank
2017 1,434,535 2 822,436 3 118 9
2016 1,357,228 2 780,080 3 113 12
2015 1,300,340 2 728,712 3 108 13
2014 1,279,603 2 733,779 3 106 13
U-M is home to the National Election Studies and the University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index. The Correlates of War project, also located at U-M, is an accumulation of scientific knowledge about war. The university is also home to major research centers in optics, reconfigurable manufacturing systems, wireless integrated microsystems, and social sciences. The University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute and the Life Sciences Institute are located at the university. The Institute for Social Research (ISR), the nation's longest-standing laboratory for interdisciplinary research in the social sciences,[147] is home to the Survey Research Center, Research Center for Group Dynamics, Center for Political Studies, Population Studies Center, and Inter-Consortium for Political and Social Research. Undergraduate students are able to participate in various research projects through the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP) as well as the UROP/Creative-Programs.[148]
The U-M library system comprises nineteen individual libraries with twenty-four separate collections—roughly 13.3 million volumes as of 2012.[149] U-M was the original home of the JSTOR database, which contains about 750,000 digitized pages from the entire pre-1990 backfile of ten journals of history and economics, and has initiated a book digitization program in collaboration with Google.[150] The University of Michigan Press is also a part of the U-M library system.
In the late 1960s U-M, together with Michigan State University and Wayne State University, founded the Merit Network, one of the first university computer networks.[151] The Merit Network was then and remains today administratively hosted by U-M. Another major contribution took place in 1987 when a proposal submitted by the Merit Network together with its partners IBM, MCI, and the State of Michigan won a national competition to upgrade and expand the National Science Foundation Network (NSFNET) backbone from 56,000 to 1.5 million, and later to 45 million bits per second.[152] In 2006, U-M joined with Michigan State University and Wayne State University to create the University Research Corridor. This effort was undertaken to highlight the capabilities of the state's three leading research institutions and drive the transformation of Michigan's economy.[153] The three universities are electronically interconnected via the Michigan LambdaRail (MiLR, pronounced 'MY-lar'), a high-speed data network providing 10 Gbit/s connections between the three university campuses and other national and international network connection points in Chicago.[154]
In May 2021, the university announced plans to cut carbon emissions from its campuses. The plan covers all of its operations and goals include removing emissions from direct, on-campus sources by 2040.[155]
Student body
Undergraduate admissions
Undergraduate admissions statistics
2021 entering
class[156]
Admit rate 19.5%
(16,235 out of 83,029)
Yield rate 46.4%
Test scores middle 50%
SAT EBRW 680–760
SAT Math 710–790
ACT Composite 32–35
High school GPA
Average 3.90
The requirements for admission to the freshman class were first published in August 1841, with fluency in ancient languages, such as Latin and Greek, being among the many requirements.[12]: 33 Candidates for admission to the freshman class were examined in English grammar, geography, arithmetic, algebra, Virgil, Cicero's Select Orations, Jacob's or Felton's Greek Reader, Andrews and Stoddard's Latin Grammar, and Sophocles's Greek Grammar. In 1851, the university dropped the requirement for students who did not wish to pursue the usual collegiate course embracing the ancient languages, permitting their admission without examination in such languages.[12]: 44 This provision may be considered a prelude to scientific education.
Requirements for admission varied from department to department in the early days, and admissions were mostly given by referral. Candidates were required to do no more than satisfying professors on such inquiry as professors saw fit to make of their ability to do the work to obtain admission to the university. Such a practice was deemed flawed, eventually leading to corruption. In 1863, a rigid generalized entrance examination was imposed, creating one standard of qualifications for admission to all the departments, academical and professional.[12]: 79 The early administration praised the then-new practice for its role in strengthening admission to the university.[12]: 44 The entrance examination imposed in 1863 had played a significant role in the admission process during the 19th century until the emergence of the nationwide standardized tests, which were not offered until 1900.
Admission is based on academic prowess, extracurricular activities, and personal qualities. U.S. News & World Report rates Michigan "Most Selective"[9] and The Princeton Review rates its admissions selectivity of 96 out of 99.[157] Admissions are characterized as "more selective, lower transfer-in" according to the Carnegie Classification.[110][158] The university is need-blind for domestic applicants.[159]
Michigan received over 83,000 applications for a place in the 2021–22 freshman class, making it one of the most applied-to universities in the United States.[158][160] In recent years, annual numbers of applications for freshman admission have exceeded 83,000. Around 16,000 students are offered admission annually, with a target freshman class of more than 7,000 students.[158] Students come from all 50 U.S. states and nearly 100 countries.[158] In academic year 2019–20 full-time undergraduate students made up about 97 percent of the undergraduate student body, with a first-time student retention rate of almost 97 percent.[156]
In 2003, two lawsuits involving U-M's affirmative action admissions policy reached the U.S. Supreme Court (Grutter v. Bollinger and Gratz v. Bollinger). President George W. Bush publicly opposed the policy before the court issued a ruling.[161] The court found that race may be considered as a factor in university admissions in all public universities and private universities that accept federal funding, but it ruled that a point system was unconstitutional. In the first case, the court upheld the Law School admissions policy, while in the second it ruled against the university's undergraduate admissions policy.[citation needed] The debate continued because in November 2006, Michigan voters passed Proposal 2, banning most affirmative action in university admissions. Under that law, race, gender, and national origin can no longer be considered in admissions.[162] U-M and other organizations were granted a stay from implementation of the law soon after that referendum. This allowed time for proponents of affirmative action to decide legal and constitutional options in response to the initiative results. In April 2014, the Supreme Court ruled in Schuette v. Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action that Proposal 2 did not violate the U.S. Constitution. The admissions office states that it will attempt to achieve a diverse student body by looking at other factors, such as whether the student attended a disadvantaged school, and the level of education of the student's parents.[162]
Enrollment
Student body composition as of May 2, 2022
Race and ethnicity[163] Total
White 55%
Asian 16%
Other[a] 10%
Hispanic 7%
Foreign national 7%
Black 5%
Economic diversity
Low-income[b] 18%
Affluent[c] 82%
In Fall 2016, the university had an enrollment of 44,718 students: 28,983 undergraduate students, 12,565 graduate students and 2,665 first professional students[8][88] in a total of 600 academic programs. Of all students, 37,954 (84.9%) are U.S. citizens or permanent residents and 6,764 (15.1%) are international students.[8]
In 2014, undergraduates were enrolled in 12 schools or colleges: About 61 percent in the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts; 21 percent in the College of Engineering; 5.3 percent in the Ross School of Business; 3.3 percent in the School of Kinesiology; 2.7 percent in the School of Music, Theatre & Dance; and 2 percent in the School of Nursing. Small numbers of undergraduates were enrolled in the colleges or schools of Art & Design, Architecture & Urban Planning, Dentistry, Education, Pharmacy, and Public Policy.[88] In 2014, the School of Information opened to undergraduates, with the new Bachelor of Science in Information degree. Among undergraduates, 70 percent graduate with a bachelor's degree within four years, 86 percent graduate within five years and 88 percent graduating within six years.[164]
West Hall at the Southeast corner of the Diag
Of the university's 12,714 non-professional graduate students, 5,367 are seeking academic doctorates and 6,821 are seeking master's degrees. The largest number of master's degree students are enrolled in the Ross School of Business (1,812 students seeking MBA or Master of Accounting degrees) and the College of Engineering (1,456 students seeking M.S. or M.Eng. degrees). The largest number of doctoral students are enrolled in the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts (2,076) and College of Engineering (1,496). While the majority of U-M's graduate degree-granting schools and colleges have both undergraduate and graduate students, a few schools only issue graduate degrees. Presently, the School for Environment and Sustainability, School of Public Health, and School of Social Work only have graduate students.[88]
In Fall 2014, 3,411 Michigan students were enrolled in U-M's professional schools: the School of Dentistry (628 students), Law School (1,047 students), Medical School (1,300 students), and College of Pharmacy (436 students).[88]
Student life
Residential life
Main article: University of Michigan Housing
Law Quadrangle
Law Quadrangle, constructed during the decade of 1923–33, was designed by York and Sawyer in the Tudor style and recalled the quadrangles of two ancient English universities, Oxford and Cambridge.
The University of Michigan's campus housing system can accommodate approximately 10,000 students, or nearly 25 percent of the total student population at the university.[165] The residence halls are located in three distinct geographic areas on campus: Central Campus, Hill Area (between Central Campus and the University of Michigan Medical Center) and North Campus. Family housing is located on North Campus and mainly serves graduate students. The largest residence hall has a capacity of 1,270 students,[166] while the smallest accommodates 25 residents.[167] A majority of upper-division and graduate students live in off-campus apartments, houses, and cooperatives, with the largest concentrations in the Central and South Campus areas.
Statue of Portia, above the front entrance to the Martha Cook Residence Hall
Lawyers Club Dining Hall
The residential system has a number of "living-learning communities" where academic activities and residential life are combined. These communities focus on areas such as research through the Michigan Research and Discovery Scholars, medical sciences, community service and the German language.[168] The Michigan Research and Discovery Scholars and the Women in Science and Engineering Residence Program are housed in Mosher-Jordan Hall. The Residential College (RC), a living-learning community that is a division of the College of Literature, Science and the Arts, also has its principal instructional space in East Quad. The Michigan Community Scholars Program, dedicated to civic engagement, community service learning and intercultural understanding and dialogue, is located in West Quad.[169] The Lloyd Hall Scholars Program (LHSP) is located in Alice Lloyd Hall. The Health Sciences Scholars Program (HSSP) is located in Couzens Hall. The North Quad complex houses two additional living-learning communities: the Global Scholars Program[170] and the Max Kade German Program.[171] It is "technology-rich," and houses communication-related programs, including the School of Information, the Department of Communication Studies, and the Department of Screen Arts and Cultures.[172][173] North Quad is also home to services such as the Language Resource Center and the Sweetland Center for Writing.[174]
Betsy Barbour Residence Hall, one of three all-female residence halls on campus, was designed by Albert Kahn in the English Georgian style.
The residential system also has a number of "theme communities" where students have the opportunity to be surrounded by students in a residential hall who share similar interests. These communities focus on global leadership, the college transition experience, and internationalism.[175] The Adelia Cheever Program is housed in the Helen Newberry House.[176] The First Year Experience is housed in the Baits II Houses and Markley Hall along with portions of all other buildings with the exception of North Quad, Northwood, and Stockwell Hall.[177] The Sophomore Experience is housed in Stockwell Hall and the Transfer Year Experience is housed in Northwood III.[178][179] The newly organized International Impact program is housed in North Quad.[180]
Stockwell Residence Hall
Groups and activities
The university lists 1,438 student organizations, including Omega Omega Omega (OOO), the nation's first mental health fraternity.[181][182] The student body is politically engaged, though, with 96% stating they intended to vote in the 2020 election. It is largely progressive, with 43% identifying as very liberal, 33% as somewhat liberal, and 13% moderate. 11% identified as conservative or very conservative.[183] With a history of student activism, some of the most visible groups include those dedicated to causes such as civil rights and labor rights, such as local chapters of Students for a Democratic Society and United Students Against Sweatshops. Conservative groups also organize, such as the Young Americans for Freedom.[184]
Michigan Union, an Art Deco building constructed on land wholly owned by the student society in 1917, was designed by Michigan alumni Irving Kane Pond and Allen Bartlit Pond.
There are also several engineering projects teams, including the University of Michigan Solar Car Team, which has placed first in the North American Solar Challenge six times and third in the World Solar Challenge four times.[185] Michigan Interactive Investments,[186] the TAMID Israel Investment Group, and the Michigan Economics Society[187] are also affiliated with the university.
The university also showcases many community service organizations and charitable projects, including Foundation for International Medical Relief of Children, Dance Marathon at the University of Michigan,[188] The Detroit Partnership, Relay For Life, U-M Stars for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, InnoWorks at the University of Michigan, SERVE, Letters to Success, PROVIDES, Circle K, Habitat for Humanity,[189] and Ann Arbor Reaching Out. Intramural sports are popular, and there are recreation facilities for each of the three campuses.[190]
Fraternities and sororities play a role in the university's social life; approximately seven percent of undergraduate men and 16% of undergraduate women are active in the Greek system.[191] Four different Greek councils—the Interfraternity Council, Multicultural Greek Council, National Pan-Hellenic Council, and Panhellenic Association—represent most Greek organizations. Each council has a different recruitment process.[192]
The Michigan Union and Michigan League are student activity centers located on Central Campus; Pierpont Commons is on North Campus. The Michigan Union houses a majority of student groups, including the student government. The William Monroe Trotter House, located east of Central Campus, is a multicultural student center operated by the university's Office of Multi-Ethnic Student Affairs.[193] The University Activities Center (UAC) is a student-run programming organization and is composed of 14 committees.[194] Each group involves students in the planning and execution of a variety of events both on and off campus.
Delta Sigma Delta, the first dental fraternity in the world
The Michigan Marching Band, composed of more than 350 students from almost all of U-M's schools,[195] is the university's marching band. Over 125 years old (with a first performance in 1897),[196] the band performs at every home football game and travels to at least one away game a year. The student-run and led University of Michigan Pops Orchestra is another musical ensemble that attracts students from all academic backgrounds. It performs regularly in the Michigan Theater. The University of Michigan Men's Glee Club, founded in 1859 and the second oldest such group in the country, is a men's chorus with over 100 members.[197] Its eight-member subset a cappella group, the University of Michigan Friars, which was founded in 1955, is the oldest currently running a cappella group on campus.[198] The University of Michigan is also home to over twenty other a cappella groups, including Amazin' Blue, The Michigan G-Men, and Compulsive Lyres, all of which have competed at the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella (ICCA) finals in New York City. Compulsive Lyres are the first and only group from Michigan to claim an ICCA title, having won in 2002.[199] The Michigan G-Men are one of only six groups in the country to compete at ICCA finals four times, one of only two TTBB ensembles to do so, and placed third at the competition in 2015.[200] Amazin' Blue placed fourth at ICCA finals in 2017. In 2020, The A Cappella Archive ranked The Michigan G-Men and Amazin' Blue at #7 and #13, respectively, out of all groups that have ever competed in ICCA.[201]
Phi Delta Phi, the oldest legal organization in continuous existence in the United States.
National honor societies such as Phi Beta Kappa, Phi Kappa Phi, and Tau Beta Pi have chapters at U-M.[202] Degrees "with Highest Distinction" are recommended to students who rank in the top 3% of their class, "with High Distinction" to the next 7%, and "with Distinction" to the next 15%. Students earning a minimum overall GPA of 3.4 who have demonstrated high academic achievement and capacity for independent work may be recommended for a degree "with Highest Honors", "with High Honors", or "with Honors."[202] Those students who earn all A's for two or more consecutive terms in a calendar year are recognized as James B. Angell Scholars and are invited to attend the annual Honors Convocation, an event which recognizes undergraduate students with distinguished academic achievements.[202]
The archway to the Law Quadrangle
The University of Michigan has over 380 cultural and ethnic student organizations on campus.[203] There are organizations for almost every culture from the Arab Student Association to Persian Student Association[204] to African Students Association[205] to even the Egyptian Student Association.[206] These organizations hope to promote various aspects of their culture along with raising political and social awareness around campus by hosting an assortment of events throughout the school year. These clubs also help students make this large University into a smaller community to help find people with similar interests and backgrounds.
Collegiate secret societies
The University of Michigan hosts three secret societies: Michigauma, Adara, and the Vulcans. Michigauma and Adara were once under the umbrella group "The Tower Society", the name referring to their historical locations in the Michigan Union tower. Michigauma was all-male while Adara was all-female, although both later became co-ed.
Michigauma, more recently known as the Order of Angell, was formed in 1902 by a group of seniors in coordination with University president James Burrill Angell. The group disbanded itself in 2021 due to public concerns about elitism and the society's history. The group was granted a lease for the top floor of the Michigan Union tower in 1932, which they referred to as the "tomb," but the society vacated the space in 2000. Until more recent reforms, the group's rituals were inspired by the culture of Native Americans.[207] Some factions on campus identified Michigauma as a secret society, but many disputed that characterization, as its member list has been published some years in The Michigan Daily and the Michiganensian, and online since 2006 reforms.
Adara, known as Phoenix, was formed in the late 1970s by women leaders on campus and disbanded itself in 2021 amid campus criticisms of secret societies.[208] In the early 1980s they joined the tower society and occupied the sixth floor of the tower just below Michigamua.
Vulcans, occupied the fifth floor of the Union tower though were not formally a part of the tower society. They draw their heritage from the Roman god Vulcan. The group which used to do its tapping publicly is known for its long black robes and for its financial contributions of the College of Engineering.
Media and publications
Several academic journals are published at the university:
The Law School publishes Michigan Law Review and six other law journals: The Michigan Journal of Environmental and Administrative Law, University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform, Michigan Journal of Race & Law, Michigan Telecommunications and Technology Law Review, Michigan Journal of International Law, and Michigan Journal of Gender and Law.[209]
The Ross School of Business publishes the Michigan Journal of Business.
Several undergraduate journals are also published at the university, including the Michigan Journal of Political Science, Michigan Journal of History, University of Michigan Undergraduate Research Journal, the Michigan Journal of International Affairs, and the Michigan Journal of Asian Studies.
The student newspaper is The Michigan Daily, founded in 1890 and editorially and financially independent of the university. The Daily is published five days a week during academic year, and weekly from May to August. The yearbook is the Michiganensian, founded in 1896. Other student publications at the university include the conservative The Michigan Review and the progressive Michigan Independent. The humor publication Gargoyle Humor Magazine is also published by Michigan students.
WCBN-FM (88.3 FM) is the student-run college radio station which plays in freeform format. WOLV-TV is the student-run television station that is primarily shown on the university's cable television system. WJJX was previously the school's student-run radio station. A carrier current station, it was launched in 1953.[210]
Safety
The University of Michigan Division of Public Safety and Security (DPSS) is responsible for law enforcement and safety on the main campus. The Division of Public Safety leadership team is made up of one executive director, three division deputy directors, three police chiefs and four directors. In addition, the team is also joined by two program managers and an executive assistant.[211]
The University of Michigan Police Department (UMPD) is a full-service community-oriented law enforcement agency under the DPSS. Its police officers are licensed by the Michigan Commission on Law Enforcement Standards (MCOLES), and have full authority to investigate, search, arrest and use reasonable force, if necessary, to protect people and property under Michigan law and the U-M Regents' Ordinance.[212] The Special Victims Unit (SVU) of the U-M Police Department (UMPD) assists those who have experienced interpersonal violence, such as sexual assault, intimate partner violence, dating violence, stalking or child abuse.[213]
Violent crime is rare on the campus though a few of the cases have been notorious including Theodore Kaczynski's attempted murder of professor James V. McConnell and research assistant Nicklaus Suino in 1985. Kaczynski, also known as the Unabomber, graduated from Michigan with his PhD in 1967.
A radical left-wing militant organization Weather Underground was founded at the university in 1969.[214] It was later designated a domestic terrorist group by the FBI.[215]
In 2014, the University of Michigan was named one of 55 higher education institutions under investigation by the Office of Civil Rights "for possible violations of federal law over the handling of sexual violence and harassment complaints." President Barack Obama's White House Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault was organized for such investigations.[216] Seven years later, in 2021, the university attracted national attention when a report commissioned by the university was released that detailed an investigation into sexual assault allegations against doctor Robert Anderson who reportedly abused at least 950 university students, many of whom were athletes, from 1966 to 2003.[217] Several football players from that time say legendary football coach Bo Schembechler ignored and enabled the abuse and told players to "toughen up" after being molested.[218] Schembechler reportedly punched his then 10-year-old son Matthew after he reported abuse by Anderson.[219] Following the exposure of a similar history of abuse at Ohio State University, male survivors of both Anderson at Michigan and Strauss at Ohio State spoke out to combat sexual abuse.[220] The University of Michigan settled with the survivors for $490 million.[221]
Athletics
Main article: Michigan Wolverines
Burgee of University of Michigan
The University of Michigan's sports teams are called the Wolverines. They participate in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision and in the Big Ten Conference in all sports except women's water polo, which is a member of the Collegiate Water Polo Association. U-M boasts 27 varsity sports, including 13 men's teams and 14 women's teams.[222] In 10 of the past 14 years concluding in 2009, U-M has finished in the top five of the NACDA Director's Cup, a ranking compiled by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics to tabulate the success of universities in competitive sports. U-M has finished in the top 10 of the Directors' Cup standings in 21 of the award's 29 seasons between 1993-2021 and has placed in the top six in nine of the last 10 seasons.[223]
More than 250 Michigan athletes or coaches have participated in Olympic events,[224] and as of 2021 its students and alumni have won 155 Olympic medals.[225]
Michigan Stadium is the largest college football stadium in the nation and one of the largest football-only stadiums in the world, with an official capacity of 107,601[226] (the extra seat is said to be "reserved" for Fritz Crisler[227]) though attendance—frequently over 111,000 spectators—regularly exceeds the official capacity.[228] The NCAA's record-breaking attendance has become commonplace at Michigan Stadium.
U-M is also home to 29 men's and women's club sports teams, such as rugby, hockey, volleyball, boxing, soccer, and tennis.
National championships
The Michigan football program ranks first in NCAA history in total wins (989 through the end of the 2022 season) and third among FBS schools in winning percentage (.731).[229][230] The team won the first Rose Bowl game in 1902. U-M had 40 consecutive winning seasons from 1968 to 2007, including consecutive bowl game appearances from 1975 to 2007.[231] The Wolverines have won a record 44 Big Ten championships. The program has 11 national championships, most recently in 1997,[232] and has produced three Heisman Trophy winners: Tom Harmon, Desmond Howard and Charles Woodson.[233]
The men's ice hockey team, which plays at Yost Ice Arena, has won nine national championships.[234]
The men's basketball team, which plays at the Crisler Center, has appeared in five Final Fours and won the national championship in 1989. The program also voluntarily vacated victories from its 1992–1993 and 1995–1999 seasons in which illicit payments to players took place, as well as its 1992 and 1993 Final Four appearances.[235] The men's basketball team has most recently won back-to-back Big Ten Tournament Championships.
In the Olympics
Through the 2012 Summer Olympics, 275 U-M students and coaches had participated in the Olympics, winning medals in each Summer Olympic Games except 1896, and winning gold medals in all but four Olympiads. U-M students/student-coaches (e.g., notably, Michael Phelps) have won a total of 185 Olympic medals: 85 golds, 48 silvers, and 52 bronzes.[236]
Fight songs and chants
The University of Michigan's fight song, "The Victors", was written by student Louis Elbel in 1898 following the last-minute football victory over the University of Chicago that won a league championship. The song was declared by John Philip Sousa to be "the greatest college fight song ever written."[237] The song refers to the university as being "the Champions of the West." At the time, U-M was part of the Western Conference, which would later become the Big Ten Conference. Michigan was considered to be on the Western Frontier when it was founded in the old Northwest Territory.
Although mainly used at sporting events, the Michigan fight song is often heard at other events as well. President Gerald Ford had it played by the United States Marine Band as his entrance anthem during his term as president from 1974 to 1977, in preference over the more traditional "Hail to the Chief",[238] and the Michigan Marching Band performed a slow-tempo variation of the fight song at his funeral.[239] The fight song is also sung during graduation commencement ceremonies. The university's alma mater song is "The Yellow and Blue." A common rally cry is "Let's Go Blue!" which has a complementary short musical arrangement written by former students Joseph Carl, a sousaphonist, and Albert Ahronheim, a drum major.[240]
Before "The Victors" was officially the university's fight song, the song "There'll Be a Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight" was considered to be the school song.[241] After Michigan temporarily withdrew from the Western Conference in 1907, a new Michigan fight song "Varsity" was written in 1911 because the line "champions of the West" was no longer appropriate.[242]
Museums
For a more comprehensive list, see List of museums and collections at the University of Michigan.
Newberry Hall (Kelsey Museum of Archeology)
The university is also home to several public and research museums including but not limited to the University Museum of Art, University of Michigan Museum of Natural History, Detroit Observatory, Sindecuse Museum of Dentistry, and the LSA Museum of Anthropological Archaeology.
Kelsey Museum of Archeology has a collection of Roman, Greek, Egyptian, and Middle Eastern artifacts.[243] Between 1972 and 1974, the museum was involved in the excavation of the archaeological site of Dibsi Faraj in northern Syria.[244] The Kelsey Museum re-opened November 1, 2009 after a renovation and expansion.[245]
The collection of the University of Michigan Museum of Art include nearly 19,000 objects that span cultures, eras, and media and include European, American, Middle Eastern, Asian, and African art, as well as changing exhibits. The Museum of Art re-opened in 2009 after a three-year renovation and expansion.[246] UMMA presents special exhibitions and diverse educational programs featuring the visual, performing, film and literary arts that contextualize the gallery experience.[247]
The University of Michigan Museum of Natural History began in the mid-19th century and expanded greatly with the donation of 60,000 specimens by Joseph Beal Steere in the 1870s. The building also houses three research museums: the Museum of Anthropology, Museum of Paleontology. Today, the collections are primarily housed and displayed in the Ruthven Museums Building which was completed in 1928.[248]
Notable alumni
For a more comprehensive list, see List of University of Michigan alumni.
In addition to U.S. President Gerald Ford, who played on the university's football team, the university is, as of 2020, associated with thirty-four Pulitzer Prize winners, twenty-seven Rhodes Scholars,[249] one Mitchell Scholar,[250] and ten Nobel laureates. As of 2012, the university had almost 500,000 living alumni.[251]
More than 250 Michigan graduates have served as legislators as either a United States Senator (47 graduates) or as a Congressional representative (over 215 graduates), including former House Majority Leader Dick Gephardt[252] and U.S. Representative Justin Amash, who represented Michigan's Third Congressional District.[253] Mike Duggan, Mayor of Detroit, earned his bachelor's degree and J.D. degree at Michigan, while the former Michigan Governor Rick Snyder earned his bachelor, M.B.A., and J.D. degrees from Michigan. Former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Ben Carson received his medical degree from the U-M medical school. Thomas E. Dewey, another Michigan alumnus, was the Governor of New York from 1943 to 1954 and was the Republican Party's presidential nominee in the 1944 and 1948 presidential elections. The 13th President of Pakistan, Arif Alvi, completed his master's degree in prosthodontics in 1975.
Clarence Darrow Lawyer (1878, Law)
Clarence Darrow
Lawyer
(1878, Law)
Frank Murphy Supreme Court Justice (1914, Law)
Frank Murphy
Supreme Court Justice
(1914, Law)
Arleigh Burke Admiral, namesake of destroyer class (1931, MS)
Arleigh Burke
Admiral, namesake of destroyer class
(1931, MS)
Gerald Ford President (1935, BA)
Gerald Ford
President
(1935, BA)
Raoul Wallenberg Diplomat and humanitarian (1935, BA)
Raoul Wallenberg
Diplomat and humanitarian
(1935, BA)
Arthur Miller Playwright (1938, BA)
Arthur Miller
Playwright
(1938, BA)
Mike Wallace Journalist (1939, BA)
Mike Wallace
Journalist
(1939, BA)
James Earl Jones Actor (1955, BA)
James Earl Jones
Actor
(1955, BA)
James Irwin Astronaut, co-founder of UM Club of the Moon (1957, MS)
James Irwin
Astronaut, co-founder of UM Club of the Moon (1957, MS)
Jessye Norman Opera singer (1968, MA)
Jessye Norman
Opera singer
(1968, MA)
Lawrence Kasdan Filmmaker (1971, M.Ed.)
Lawrence Kasdan
Filmmaker
(1971, M.Ed.)
Eugene Robinson Columnist (1974, BA)
Eugene Robinson
Columnist
(1974, BA)
Edmund White Author (1962, BA)
Edmund White
Author
(1962, BA)
Madonna Entertainer (No degree)
Madonna
Entertainer
(No degree)
Larry Page Co-founder of Google (1995, BS)
Larry Page
Co-founder of Google
(1995, BS)
Tom Brady Football player (1999, BGS)
Tom Brady
Football player
(1999, BGS)
Michael Phelps Olympic swimmer (No degree)
Michael Phelps
Olympic swimmer
(No degree)
U-M's contributions to aeronautics include aircraft designer Clarence "Kelly" Johnson of Lockheed Skunk Works fame,[254] Lockheed president Willis Hawkins, and several astronauts including the all-U-M crews of both Gemini 4[255] and Apollo 15.[256]
Robert E. Park
Alice Hamilton (MD, 1893)
Claude Shannon (BA, BSEE)
Numerous U-M graduates contributed to the field of computer science, including Claude Shannon (who made major contributions to the mathematics of information theory),[257] and Turing Award winners Edgar Codd, Stephen Cook, Frances E. Allen and Michael Stonebraker. U-M also counts among its alumni nearly two dozen billionaires, including prominent tech-company founders and co-founders such as J. Robert Beyster, who founded Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) in 1969[258] and Google co-founder Larry Page.[259]
Alice Freeman Palmer (BA, 1876, PhD Hon, 1882)
By 1900, nearly 150 women had received advanced degrees from U-M.[260] Sarah Dix Hamlin was the first female student accepted to the University of Michigan. She graduated in 1874.[261] Marjorie Lee Browne received her M.S. in 1939 and her doctoral degree in 1950, becoming the third African American woman to earn a PhD in mathematics.[262][263] Many, however, were forced to leave the university to continue their studies or to become faculty in their own right elsewhere, like Katharine Coman—when U-M President James Angell offered her a "Dean of Women" position, she told him that "'if the regents...wish to propose a chaperone for students, and propose to dignify that office by allowing the woman who holds it to do a little University teaching,' she was not interested. If, however, the regents accepted women as equal partners and as faculty, and if she were one of several women given proper rank and authority, she would consider it."[260] Michigan's Regents did not accept, so instead Coman became dean, founder of the Economics Department, and the first female statistics professor in the US at Wellesley College.[264]: 15
Notable writers who attended U-M include playwright Arthur Miller,[252] essayists Susan Orlean,[252] Jia Tolentino,[265] Sven Birkerts, journalists and editors Mike Wallace,[252] Jonathan Chait of The New Republic, Indian author and columnist Anees Jung, Daniel Okrent,[252] and Sandra Steingraber, food critics Ruth Reichl and Gael Greene, novelists Brett Ellen Block, Elizabeth Kostova, Marge Piercy,[252] Brad Meltzer,[252] Betty Smith,[252] and Charles Major, screenwriter Judith Guest,[252] Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Theodore Roethke, National Book Award winners Keith Waldrop and Jesmyn Ward, composer/author/puppeteer Forman Brown, Alireza Jafarzadeh (a Middle East analyst, author, and TV commentator), and memoirist and self-help book author Jerry Newport.
In Hollywood, famous alumni include actors Michael Dunn,[252] Darren Criss, James Earl Jones,[252] David Alan Grier,[252] actresses Lucy Liu,[252] Gilda Radner,[252] and Selma Blair,[252] television director Mark Cendrowski, and filmmaker Lawrence Kasdan.[252] Many Broadway and musical theatre actors, including Gavin Creel,[252] Andrew Keenan-Bolger, his sister Celia Keenan-Bolger, and Taylor Louderman attended U-M for musical theatre. The musical theatre group StarKid Productions had their start at the university, and staged multiple productions there.[266]
Musical graduates include operatic soprano Jessye Norman,[252] singer Joe Dassin, multiple members of the band Tally Hall, jazz guitarist Randy Napoleon, and Mannheim Steamroller founder Chip Davis.[252] Well-known composers who are alumni include Frank Ticheli, Andrew Lippa, and the Oscar and Tony Award-winning duo Benj Pasek and Justin Paul. Pop superstar Madonna[252] and rock legend Iggy Pop,[252] attended but did not graduate.
14th President of Yale University James Rowland Angell, an early proponent of eugenics, graduated from Michigan in 1890. His father, James Burrill Angell, was President of the University of Michigan from 1871 to 1909.
Other U-M graduates include former Dean of Harvard Law School Martha Minow, Dean of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania Erika H. James, current Dean of Yale Law School, Heather Gerken, assisted-suicide advocate Jack Kevorkian,[252] Weather Underground radical activist Bill Ayers,[267] activist Tom Hayden,[252] architect Charles Moore,[268] the Swedish Holocaust hero Raoul Wallenberg,[269] and Civil War General Benjamin D. Pritchard.[270] Neurosurgeon and CNN chief medical correspondent Sanjay Gupta attended both college and medical school at the university.[271] Clarence Darrow attended law school at U-M at a time when many lawyers did not receive any formal education.[252] Frank Murphy, who was mayor of Detroit, governor of Michigan, attorney general of the United States, and Supreme Court justice was also a graduate of the Law School.[252] Conservative pundit Ann Coulter is another U-M law school graduate (J.D. 1988).[252]
Vaughn R. Walker, a federal district judge in California who overturned the controversial California Proposition 8 in 2010 and ruled it unconstitutional, received his undergraduate degree from U-M in 1966.[272]
Kenneth Marin, who became a professor of economics after he graduated from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, was appointed by President Lyndon B. Johnson as a member of the White House Consumer Advisory Council where he served on Wage and Price Control in the mid-1960s. He went to Tanzania in the late sixties and worked as an economic advisor to the government of President Julius Nyerere until the early 1970s.
U-M athletes have starred in Major League Baseball, the National Football League and National Basketball Association as well as other professional sports. Notable among recent players is Tom Brady of the New England Patriots and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.[252] Three players have won college football's Heisman Trophy, awarded to the player considered the best in the nation: Tom Harmon (1940), Desmond Howard (1991) and Charles Woodson (1997).[233] Professional golfer John Schroeder and Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps also attended the University of Michigan, with the latter studying Sports Marketing and Management. Phelps also swam competitively for Club Wolverine, a swimming club associated with the university.[273] National Hockey League players Marty Turco, Luke Hughes, Chris Summers, Max Pacioretty, Carl Hagelin, Dylan Larkin, Zach Hyman, Brendan Morrison,[252] Jack Johnson, and Michael Cammalleri[252] all played for U-M's ice hockey team. Baseball Hall of Famers George Sisler and Barry Larkin also played baseball at the university.[252] Several team owners have also been alumni, including multiple-team owner Bill Davidson (NBA Detroit Pistons, NHL Tampa Bay Lightning, WNBA Detroit Shock, among others) and NFL owners Stephen M. Ross (Miami Dolphins), Preston Robert Tisch (New York Giants), and Ralph Wilson (Buffalo Bills).
The university claims the only alumni association with a chapter on the Moon, established in 1971 when the crew of Apollo 15 (two of whom had engineering degrees from U-M; the third had attended for a year before transferring[256]) placed a charter plaque for a new U-M Alumni Association on the lunar surface.[252] The plaque states: "The Alumni Association of The University of Michigan. Charter Number 1. This is to certify that The University of Michigan Club of The Moon is a duly constituted unit of the Alumni Association and entitled to all the rights and privileges under the Association's Constitution." Several small U-M flags were also brought on the mission; a persistent campus legend claims at least one flag was left on the Moon.[256]
Notes
Other consists of Multiracial Americans & those who prefer to not say.
The percentage of students who received an income-based federal Pell grant intended for low-income students.
The percentage of students who are a part of the American middle class at the bare minimum.
Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the seat of government of Washtenaw County.[7] The 2020 census recorded its population to be 123,851, making it the fifth-largest city in Michigan.[8] It is the principal city of the Ann Arbor Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Washtenaw County. Ann Arbor is also included in the Greater Detroit Combined Statistical Area and the Great Lakes megalopolis, the most populated and largest megalopolis in North America.
Ann Arbor is home to the University of Michigan. The university significantly shapes Ann Arbor's economy as it employs about 30,000 workers, including about 12,000 in its medical center. The city's economy is also centered on high technology, with several companies drawn to the area by the university's research and development infrastructure.[9]
Ann Arbor was founded in 1825. It was named after the wives of the village's founders, both named Ann, and the stands of bur oak trees they found at the site of the town.[10] The city's population grew at a rapid rate in the early to mid-20th century.
History
Main article: History of Ann Arbor, Michigan
See also: History of the University of Michigan
Before founding as Ann Arbor
The lands of present-day Ann Arbor were part of Massachusetts's western claim after the French and Indian War (1754–1763), bounded by the latitudes of Massachusetts Bay Colony's original charter, to which it was entitled by its interpretation of its original sea-to-sea grant from The British Crown. Massachusetts ceded the claim to the federal government as part of the Northwest Territory after April 19, 1785.[11][12]
In about 1774, the Potawatomi founded two villages in the area of what is now Ann Arbor.[13]
19th century
Ann Arbor was founded in 1825 by land speculators John Allen and Elisha Walker Rumsey. On May 25, 1825, the town plat was registered with Wayne County as the Village of Ann arbor, the earliest known use of the town's name.[14][15] Allen and Rumsey decided to name it for their wives, both named Ann, and for the stands of bur oak in the 640 acres (260 ha) of land they purchased for $800 from the federal government at $1.25 per acre.[10] The local Ojibwa named the settlement kaw-goosh-kaw-nick, after the sound of Allen's sawmill.[16]
Ann Arbor became the seat of Washtenaw County in 1827[17] and was incorporated as a village in 1833.[18] The Ann Arbor Land Company, a group of speculators, set aside 40 acres (16 ha) of undeveloped land and offered it to the state of Michigan as the site of the state capitol, but lost the bid to Lansing. In 1837, the property was accepted instead as the site of the University of Michigan.[19]
Main Street in Ann Arbor c. 1908
Since the university's establishment in the city in 1837, the histories of the University of Michigan and Ann Arbor have been closely linked.[20] The town became a regional transportation hub in 1839 with the arrival of the Michigan Central Railroad, and a north–south railway connecting Ann Arbor to Toledo and other markets to the south was established in 1878.[21] Throughout the 1840s and the 1850s settlers continued to come to Ann Arbor. While the earlier settlers were primarily of British ancestry, the newer settlers also consisted of Germans, Irish,[22] and Black people.[23] In 1851, Ann Arbor was chartered as a city,[24] though the city showed a drop in population during the Depression of 1873.[21] It was not until the early 1880s that Ann Arbor again saw robust growth,[25] with new immigrants from Greece, Italy, Russia, and Poland.
20th century
Ann Arbor saw increased growth in manufacturing, particularly in milling.[26] Ann Arbor's Jewish community also grew after the turn of the 20th century, and its first and oldest synagogue, Beth Israel Congregation, was established in 1916.[27]
In 1960, Ann Arbor voters approved a $2.3 million bond issue to build the current city hall, which was designed by architect Alden B. Dow. The City Hall opened in 1963. In 1995, the building was renamed the Guy C. Larcom, Jr. Municipal Building in honor of the longtime city administrator who championed the building's construction.[28]
Ann Arbor station in 1975
During the 1960s and 1970s, the city gained a reputation as an important center for liberal politics. Ann Arbor also became a locus for left-wing activism and anti-Vietnam War movement, as well as the student movement. The first major meetings of the national left-wing campus group Students for a Democratic Society took place in Ann Arbor in 1960; in 1965, the city was home to the first U.S. teach-in against the Vietnam War.[29] During the ensuing 15 years, many countercultural and New Left enterprises sprang up and developed large constituencies within the city.[30] These influences washed into municipal politics during the early and mid-1970s when three members of the Human Rights Party (HRP) won city council seats on the strength of the student vote. During their time on the council, HRP representatives fought for measures including pioneering antidiscrimination ordinances, measures decriminalizing marijuana possession, and a rent-control ordinance;[31] many of these progressive organizations remain in effect today in modified form.
Two religious-conservative institutions were created in Ann Arbor; the Word of God (established in 1967), a charismatic inter-denominational movement;[27] and the Thomas More Law Center (established in 1999).[32]
Following a 1956 vote, the city of East Ann Arbor merged with Ann Arbor to encompass the eastern sections of the city.[33]
21st century
In the past several decades, Ann Arbor has grappled with the effects of sharply rising land values, gentrification, and urban sprawl stretching into outlying countryside.[citation needed] On November 4, 2003, voters approved a greenbelt plan under which the city government bought development rights on agricultural parcels of land adjacent to Ann Arbor to preserve them from sprawling development.[34] Since then, a vociferous local debate has hinged on how and whether to accommodate and guide development within city limits.[35] Ann Arbor consistently ranks in the "top places to live" lists published by various mainstream media outlets every year. In 2008, it was ranked by CNNMoney.com 27th out of 100 "America's best small cities".[36] And in 2010, Forbes listed Ann Arbor as one of the most liveable cities in the United States.[37]
In 2016, the city changed mayoral terms from two years to four.[38] Until 2017, City Council held annual elections in which half of the seats (one from each ward) were elected to 2-year terms. These elections were staggered, with each ward having one of its seats up for election in odd years and its other seat up for election in even years.[39] Beginning in 2018 the city council has had staggered elections to 4-year terms in even years. This means that half of the members (one from each ward) are elected in presidential election years, while the other half are elected in mid-term election years.[39] To facilitate this change in scheduling, the 2017 election elected members to terms that lasted 3-years.[39]
Geography
University of Michigan Central Campus Historic District
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. Historic district
Location University of Michigan campus, Ann Arbor, Michigan
Area 85 acres (34 ha)
Built 1840
Architectural style Late 19th and 20th Century Revivals
Late Victorian
Art Deco
NRHP reference No. 78001514[40]
Added to NRHP June 15, 1978
Ann Arbor is located along the Huron River, which flows southeast through the city on its way to Lake Erie. It is the central core of the Ann Arbor, MI Metropolitan Statistical Area, which consists of the whole of Washtenaw County, but is also a part of the Metro Detroit Combined Statistical Area designated by the U.S. Census Bureau.[41] While it borders only Townships, the built-up nature of the sections of Pittsfield and Ypsilanti townships between Ann Arbor and the city of Ypsilanti make the two effectively a single urban area.[42][43]
Huron River National Water Trail in Ann Arbor
Landscape
The landscape of Ann Arbor consists of hills and valleys, with the terrain becoming steeper near the Huron River. The elevation ranges from about 750 feet (230 m) along the Huron River to 1,015 feet (309 m) on the city's west side, near the intersection of Maple Road and Pauline Blvd.[44] Ann Arbor Municipal Airport, which is south of the city at 42°13.38′N 83°44.74′W, has an elevation of 839 feet (256 m).[45]
Ann Arbor is nicknamed "Tree Town," both due to its name and to the dense forestation of its parks and residential areas. The city contains more than 50,000 trees along its streets and an equal number in parks.[46] In recent years, the emerald ash borer has destroyed many of the city's approximately 10,500 ash trees.[47] The city contains 157 municipal parks ranging from small neighborhood green spots to large recreation areas. Several large city parks and a university park border sections of the Huron River.[48] Fuller Recreation Area, near the University Hospital complex, contains sports fields, pedestrian and bike paths, and swimming pools. The Nichols Arboretum, owned by the University of Michigan, is a 123-acre (50 ha) arboretum that contains hundreds of plant and tree species. It is on the city's east side, near the university's Central Campus.[49] Located across the Huron River just beyond the university's North Campus is the university's Matthaei Botanical Gardens, which contains 300 acres of gardens and a large tropical conservatory as well as a wildflower garden specializing in the vegetation of the southern Great Lakes Region.
Saint Thomas the Apostle Church, Ann Arbor
Bethlehem United Church of Christ
Cityscape
The cityscape of Ann Arbor is heavily influenced by the University of Michigan, with 22% of downtown and 9.4% of the total land owned by the university.[50][51] The downtown Central Campus contains some of the oldest extant structures in the city — including the President's House, built in 1840 — and separates the South University District from the other three downtown commercial districts.[52][53] These other three districts, Kerrytown, State Street, and Main Street are contiguous near the northwestern corner of the university.[54]
Three commercial areas south of downtown include the areas near I-94 and Ann Arbor-Saline Road, Briarwood Mall, and the South Industrial area. Other commercial areas include the Arborland/Washtenaw Avenue and Packard Road merchants on the east side, the Plymouth Road area in the northeast, and the Westgate/West Stadium areas on the west side.[55] Downtown contains a mix of 19th- and early-20th-century structures and modern-style buildings, as well as a farmers' market in the Kerrytown district.[56] The city's commercial districts are composed mostly of two- to four-story structures, although downtown and the area near Briarwood Mall contain a small number of high-rise buildings.[57]
Ann Arbor's residential neighborhoods contain architectural styles ranging from classic 19th- and early 20th-century designs to ranch-style houses. Among these homes are a number of kit houses built in the early 20th century. Contemporary-style houses are farther from the downtown district.[55] Surrounding the University of Michigan campus are houses and apartment complexes occupied primarily by student renters. Tower Plaza, a 26-story condominium building located between the University of Michigan campus and downtown, is the tallest building in Ann Arbor.[58] The 19th-century buildings and streetscape of the Old West Side neighborhood have been preserved virtually intact; in 1972, the district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and it is further protected by city ordinances and a nonprofit preservation group.[59]
Climate
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Climate chart (explanation)
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
2.6
31
18
2.4
35
20
2.7
46
27
3.3
60
38
3.4
71
48
3.7
80
58
3.6
83
62
3.7
81
61
3.5
74
53
2.8
61
42
3.1
48
33
2.9
35
23
█ Average max. and min. temperatures in °F
█ Precipitation totals in inches
Metric conversion
Ann Arbor has a typically Midwestern humid continental climate (Köppen Dfa), which is influenced by the Great Lakes. There are four distinct seasons: winters are cold and snowy, with average highs around 34 °F (1 °C). Summers are warm to hot and humid, with average highs around 81 °F (27 °C) and with slightly more precipitation. Spring and autumn are transitional between the two. The area experiences lake effect weather, primarily in the form of increased cloudiness during late fall and early winter.[60] The monthly daily average temperature in July is 72.6 °F (22.6 °C), while the same figure for January is 24.5 °F (−4.2 °C). Temperatures reach or exceed 90 °F (32 °C) on 10 days,[61] and drop to or below 0 °F (−18 °C) on 4.6 nights.[61] Precipitation tends to be the heaviest during the summer months, but most frequent during winter. Snowfall, which normally occurs from November to April but occasionally starts in October, averages 58 inches (147 cm) per season. The lowest recorded temperature was −23 °F (−31 °C) on February 11, 1885, and the highest recorded temperature was 105 °F (41 °C) on July 24, 1934.[61]
Climate data for Ann Arbor, Michigan (UMich, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1881–present)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °F (°C) 72
(22) 68
(20) 85
(29) 88
(31) 95
(35) 103
(39) 105
(41) 104
(40) 99
(37) 91
(33) 78
(26) 67
(19) 105
(41)
Mean maximum °F (°C) 51.7
(10.9) 53.7
(12.1) 68.2
(20.1) 78.0
(25.6) 86.4
(30.2) 91.7
(33.2) 92.7
(33.7) 91.4
(33.0) 88.7
(31.5) 80.5
(26.9) 65.5
(18.6) 54.3
(12.4) 94.3
(34.6)
Average high °F (°C) 31.9
(−0.1) 35.4
(1.9) 46.2
(7.9) 59.7
(15.4) 71.4
(21.9) 80.1
(26.7) 83.7
(28.7) 81.7
(27.6) 75.1
(23.9) 62.2
(16.8) 48.0
(8.9) 36.3
(2.4) 59.3
(15.2)
Daily mean °F (°C) 24.0
(−4.4) 26.5
(−3.1) 35.7
(2.1) 47.6
(8.7) 59.0
(15.0) 68.0
(20.0) 71.9
(22.2) 70.3
(21.3) 63.3
(17.4) 51.4
(10.8) 39.2
(4.0) 29.2
(−1.6) 48.8
(9.3)
Average low °F (°C) 16.2
(−8.8) 17.7
(−7.9) 25.2
(−3.8) 35.5
(1.9) 46.6
(8.1) 55.9
(13.3) 60.1
(15.6) 58.8
(14.9) 51.6
(10.9) 40.7
(4.8) 30.5
(−0.8) 22.1
(−5.5) 38.4
(3.6)
Mean minimum °F (°C) −1.5
(−18.6) 1.1
(−17.2) 8.5
(−13.1) 22.8
(−5.1) 33.9
(1.1) 43.7
(6.5) 50.3
(10.2) 49.5
(9.7) 38.4
(3.6) 28.6
(−1.9) 17.2
(−8.2) 6.2
(−14.3) −5.6
(−20.9)
Record low °F (°C) −22
(−30) −23
(−31) −8
(−22) 7
(−14) 20
(−7) 35
(2) 37
(3) 39
(4) 27
(−3) 19
(−7) −3
(−19) −20
(−29) −23
(−31)
Average precipitation inches (mm) 2.96
(75) 2.51
(64) 2.82
(72) 3.44
(87) 3.84
(98) 3.91
(99) 3.52
(89) 3.52
(89) 3.18
(81) 2.99
(76) 2.82
(72) 2.75
(70) 38.26
(972)
Average snowfall inches (cm) 18.3
(46) 15.3
(39) 8.3
(21) 2.6
(6.6) 0.0
(0.0) 0.0
(0.0) 0.0
(0.0) 0.0
(0.0) 0.0
(0.0) 0.1
(0.25) 4.1
(10) 12.7
(32) 61.4
(156)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) 18.3 14.4 14.3 14.4 14.7 12.4 11.7 11.2 10.6 13.3 13.5 16.9 165.7
Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) 15.2 12.1 7.5 2.8 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.4 4.9 11.5 54.5
Source: NOAA[62][63]
Demographics
Racial composition 2020[64] 2010[65] 1990[66] 1970[66] 1940[66]
White 67.6% 73.0% 82.0% 91% 95.5%
—Non-Hispanic 65.9% 70.4% 80.4% - -
Black or African American 6.8% 7.7% 9.0% 6.7% 4.1%
Hispanic or Latino (of any race) 5.5% 4.1% 2.6% 1.3%[note 1] -
Asian 15.7% 14.4% 7.7% 1.5% 0.3%
Historical population Census Pop. Note %±
1860 5,097 —
1870 7,363 44.5%
1880 8,061 9.5%
1890 9,431 17.0%
1900 14,509 53.8%
1910 14,817 2.1%
1920 19,516 31.7%
1930 26,944 38.1%
1940 29,815 10.7%
1950 48,251 61.8%
1960 67,340 39.6%
1970 100,035 48.6%
1980 107,969 7.9%
1990 109,592 1.5%
2000 114,024 4.0%
2010 113,934 −0.1%
2020 123,851 8.7%
2021 (est.) 121,536 [4] −1.9%
Before 1860[67]
1900–2000[68]
U.S. Census Bureau[69][70]
As of the 2020 U.S. Census, there were 123,851 people and 49,948 households residing in the city.[64] The population density was 4,435.9 inhabitants per square mile (1,712.7/km2),[8] making it less densely populated than Detroit proper and its inner-ring suburbs like Oak Park and Ferndale, but more densely populated than outer-ring suburbs like Livonia and Troy.[71] The racial makeup of the city was 67.6% White, 6.8% Black, 0.2% Native American, 15.7% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, 1.8% from other races, and 7.9% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race made up 5.5% of the population.[64] Ann Arbor has a small population of Arab Americans, including students as well as local Lebanese and Palestinians.[72]
The Ann Arbor Unitarian Universalist Church was designed by Donaldson & Meier and built in 1881-2 by the Walker Brothers. The buildings were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. It currently houses the architecture firm of Hobbs and Black.
As of the 2010 U.S. Census, there were 113,934 people, 20,502 families, and 47,060 households residing in the city.[73] The population density was 4,093.9 inhabitants per square mile (1,580.7/km2).[74] The racial makeup of the city was 73.0% White (70.4% non-Hispanic White), 7.7% Black, 0.3% Native American, 14.4% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, 1.0% from other races, and 3.6% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race made up 4.1% of the population.[75]
In 2013, Ann Arbor had the second-largest community of Japanese citizens in the state of Michigan, at 1,541; this figure trailed only that of Novi, which had 2,666 Japanese nationals.[76]
In 2010, out of 47,060 households, 43.6% were family households, 20.1% had individuals under the age of 18 living in them, and 17.0% had individuals over age 65 living in them. Of the 20,502 family households, 19.2% included children under age 18, 34.2% were husband-wife families (estimates did not include same-sex married couples), and 7.1% had a female householder with no husband present. The average household size was 2.17 people, and the average family size was 2.85 people. The median age was 27.8; 14.4% of the population was under age 18, and 9.3% was age 65 or older.[75] By the 2022 American Community Survey, the percentage of married couple households was 33.8%, while male householders with no spouse present (family households) were 26.1%, and female householders with no spouse present (family households) were 30.4%.[77]
According to the 2012–2016 American Community Survey estimates, the median household income was $57,697, and the median family income was $95,528.[78] Males over age 25 and with earnings had a median income of $51,682, versus $39,203 for females.[79] The per capita income for the city was $37,158.[74] Nearly a quarter (23.4%) of people and 6.7% of families had incomes below the poverty level.[80]
Economy
The University of Michigan shapes Ann Arbor's economy significantly. It employs about 30,000 workers, including about 12,000 in the medical center.[81] Other employers are drawn to the area by the university's research and development money, and by its graduates. High tech, health services and biotechnology are other major components of the city's economy; numerous medical offices, laboratories, and associated companies are located in the city. Automobile manufacturers, such as General Motors and Visteon, also employ residents.[81]
Atrium of a shopping arcade, with green and yellow banners hanging overhead with the words "Nickels Arcade"
Nickels Arcade interior, looking towards the east
High tech companies have located in the area since the 1930s, when International Radio Corporation introduced the first mass-produced AC/DC radio (the Kadette, in 1931) as well as the first pocket radio (the Kadette Jr., in 1933).[82] The Argus camera company, originally a subsidiary of International Radio, manufactured cameras in Ann Arbor from 1936 to the 1960s. Current firms include Arbor Networks (provider of Internet traffic engineering and security systems), Arbortext (provider of XML-based publishing software), JSTOR (the digital scholarly journal archive), MediaSpan (provider of software and online services for the media industries), Truven Health Analytics, and ProQuest, which includes UMI.[83] Ann Arbor Terminals manufactured a video-display terminal called the Ann Arbor Ambassador during the 1980s.[84] Barracuda Networks, which provides networking, security, and storage products based on network appliances and cloud services, opened an engineering office in Ann Arbor in 2008 on Depot St.[85] and currently occupies the building previously used as the Borders headquarters on Maynard Street.[86] Duo Security, a cloud-based access security provider protecting thousands of organizations worldwide through two-factor authentication, is headquartered in Ann Arbor.[87] It was formerly a unicorn and continues to be headquartered in Ann Arbor after its acquisition by Cisco Systems.[88] In November 2021, semiconductor test equipment company KLA Corporation opened a new North American headquarters in Ann Arbor.[89]
Weinmann Block, located at 219-223 East Washington Street, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983
Germania Building Complex, located at 119-123 West Washington Street and 209-211 Ashley Street, were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983
Websites and online media companies in or near the city include All Media Guide, the Weather Underground, and Zattoo. Ann Arbor is the home to Internet2 and the Merit Network, a not-for-profit research and education computer network. Both are located in the South State Commons 2 building on South State Street, which once housed the Michigan Information Technology Center Foundation.[90] The city is also home to a secondary office of Google's AdWords program—the company's primary revenue stream.[91] The recent surge in companies operating in Ann Arbor has led to a decrease in its office and flex space vacancy rates. As of December 31, 2012, the total market vacancy rate for office and flex space is 11.80%, a 1.40% decrease in vacancy from one year previous, and the lowest overall vacancy level since 2003. The office vacancy rate decreased to 10.65% in 2012 from 12.08% in 2011, while the flex vacancy rate decreased slightly more, with a drop from 16.50% to 15.02%.[92]
As of 2022, Ann Arbor is home to more than twenty video game and XR studios of varying sizes.[93] The city plays host to a regional chapter of the International Game Developers Association (IGDA) which hosts monthly meetups, presentations, and educational events.[94]
Pfizer, once the city's second-largest employer, operated a large pharmaceutical research facility on the northeast side of Ann Arbor. On January 22, 2007, Pfizer announced it would close operations in Ann Arbor by the end of 2008.[95] The facility was previously operated by Warner-Lambert and, before that, Parke-Davis. In December 2008, the University of Michigan Board of Regents approved the purchase of the facilities, and the university anticipates hiring 2,000 researchers and staff during the next 10 years.[96] It is now known as North Campus Research Complex. The city is the home of other research and engineering centers, including those of Lotus Engineering, General Dynamics and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Other research centers sited in the city are the United States Environmental Protection Agency's National Vehicle and Fuel Emissions Laboratory[97] and the Toyota Technical Center.[98] The city is also home to National Sanitation Foundation International (NSF International), the nonprofit non-governmental organization that develops generally accepted standards for a variety of public health related industries and subject areas.[99]
Nickels Arcade was the only remaining example in Michigan of a free-standing commercial arcade building of a type that was popularized by the Cleveland Arcade. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987
Borders Books, started in Ann Arbor, was opened by brothers Tom and Louis Borders in 1971 with a stock of used books. The Borders chain was based in the city, as was its flagship store until it closed in September 2011.[100] Domino's Pizza's headquarters is near Ann Arbor on Domino's Farms, a 271-acre (110 ha) Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired complex just northeast of the city.[101] Another Ann Arbor-based company is Zingerman's Delicatessen, which serves sandwiches and has developed businesses under a variety of brand names. Zingerman's has grown into a family of companies which offers a variety of products (bake shop, mail order, creamery, coffee) and services (business education).[102] Flint Ink Corp., another Ann Arbor-based company, was the world's largest privately held ink manufacturer until it was acquired by Stuttgart-based XSYS Print Solutions in October 2005.[103] Avfuel, a global supplier of aviation fuels and services, is also headquartered in Ann Arbor.[104]
The controversial detective and private security firm, Pinkerton is headquartered in Ann Arbor, being located on 101 N Main St.[105]
Many cooperative enterprises were founded in the city; among those that remain are the People's Food Co-op and the Inter-Cooperative Council at the University of Michigan, a student housing cooperative founded in 1937.[106] There are also three cohousing communities—Sunward, Great Oak, and Touchstone—located immediately to the west of the city limits.[107]
Culture
Main article: Culture of Ann Arbor, Michigan
Michigan Theater is the current home of the annual Ann Arbor Film Festival, the Ann Arbor Symphony, and the Ann Arbor Concert Band
Several performing arts groups and facilities are on the University of Michigan's campus, as are museums dedicated to art, archaeology, and natural history and sciences. Founded in 1879, the University Musical Society is an independent performing arts organization that presents over 60 events each year, bringing international artists in music, dance, and theater. Since 2001 Shakespeare in the Arb has presented one play by Shakespeare each June, in a large park near downtown.[108] Regional and local performing arts groups not associated with the university include the Ann Arbor Civic Theatre, the Arbor Opera Theater, the Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra, the Ann Arbor Ballet Theater, the Ann Arbor Civic Ballet (established in 1954 as Michigan's first chartered ballet company),[109] The Ark, and Performance Network Theatre.[110] Another unique piece of artistic expression in Ann Arbor is the fairy doors. These small portals are examples of installation art and can be found throughout the downtown area.[111]
The Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum is located in a renovated and expanded historic downtown fire station. Multiple art galleries exist in the city, notably in the downtown area and around the University of Michigan campus. Aside from a large restaurant scene in the Main Street, South State Street, and South University Avenue areas, Ann Arbor ranks first among U.S. cities in the number of booksellers and books sold per capita.[112] The Ann Arbor District Library maintains four branch outlets in addition to its main downtown building. The city is also home to the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.[113]
Several annual events—many of them centered on performing and visual arts—draw visitors to Ann Arbor. One such event is the Ann Arbor Art Fairs, a set of four concurrent juried fairs held on downtown streets. Scheduled on Thursday through Sunday of the third week of July, the fairs draw upward of half a million visitors.[114] Another is the Ann Arbor Film Festival, held during the third week of March, which receives more than 2,500 submissions annually from more than 40 countries and serves as one of a handful of Academy Award–qualifying festivals in the United States.[115]
Ann Arbor has a long history of openness to marijuana, given Ann Arbor's decriminalization of cannabis, the large number of medical marijuana dispensaries in the city (one dispensary, called People's Co-op, was directly across the street from Michigan Stadium until zoning forced it to move one mile to the west), the large number of pro-marijuana residents, and the annual Hash Bash: an event that is held on the first Saturday of April. Until (at least) the successful passage of Michigan's medical marijuana law, the event had arguably strayed from its initial intent, although for years, a number of attendees have received serious legal responses due to marijuana use on University of Michigan property, which does not fall under the city's progressive and compassionate ticketing program.[116]
Ann Arbor is a major center for college sports, most notably at the University of Michigan. Several well-known college sports facilities exist in the city, including Michigan Stadium, the largest American football stadium in the world and the third-largest stadium of any kind in the world.[117] Michigan Stadium has a capacity of 107,601, with the final "extra" seat said to be reserved for and in honor of former athletic director and Hall of Fame football coach Fitz Crisler.[118] The stadium was completed in 1927 and cost more than $950,000 to build. The stadium is colloquially known as "The Big House" due to its status as the largest American football stadium.[119] Crisler Center and Yost Ice Arena play host to the school's basketball (both men's and women's) and ice hockey teams, respectively.[120] Concordia University, a member of the NAIA, also fields sports teams.[121]
A fairy door at Red Shoes, 332 South Ashley
Ann Arbor is represented in the NPSL by semi-pro soccer team AFC Ann Arbor, a club founded in 2014 who call themselves The Mighty Oak.
A person from Ann Arbor is called an "Ann Arborite", and many long-time residents call themselves "townies". The city itself is often called "A²" ("A-squared") or "A2" ("A two") or "AA", "The Deuce" (mainly by Chicagoans), and "Tree Town".[122] With tongue-in-cheek reference to the city's liberal political leanings, some occasionally refer to Ann Arbor as "The People's Republic of Ann Arbor"[123] or "25 square miles surrounded by reality",[124] the latter phrase being adapted from Wisconsin Governor Lee Dreyfus's description of Madison, Wisconsin. In A Prairie Home Companion broadcast from Ann Arbor, Garrison Keillor described Ann Arbor as "a city where people discuss socialism, but only in the fanciest restaurants." Ann Arbor sometimes appears on citation indexes as an author, instead of a location, often with the academic degree MI, a misunderstanding of the abbreviation for Michigan.[125]
Government and politics
See also: List of mayors of Ann Arbor, Michigan
Washtenaw County Courthouse
As the county seat of Washtenaw County, the Washtenaw County Trial Court (22nd Circuit Court) is located in Ann Arbor at the Washtenaw County Courthouse on Main Street. Seven judges serve on the court.[126] The 15th Michigan district court, which serves only the city itself, is located within the Ann Arbor Justice Center, immediately next to city hall. The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan and Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit are also located in downtown Ann Arbor, at the federal building on Liberty Street.[127][128][129][130]
Washtenaw County Administration Building
Government
Current Mayor Christopher Taylor
Ann Arbor has a council-manager form of government, with 11 voting members: the mayor and 10 city council members. Each of the city's five wards are represented by two council members, with the mayor elected at-large during midterm years. Half of the council members are elected in midterm years, with the other in general election years.[131] The mayor is the presiding officer of the city council and has the power to appoint all council committee members as well as board and commission members, with the approval of the city council. The current mayor of Ann Arbor is Christopher Taylor, a Democrat who was elected as mayor in 2014.[132] Day-to-day city operations are managed by a city administrator chosen by the city council.[133]
First National Bank Building at 201-205 South Main Street. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982
Politics
Progressive politics have been particularly strong in municipal government since the 1960s. Voters approved charter amendments that have lessened the penalties for possession of marijuana (1974),[134] and that aim to protect access to abortion in the city should it ever become illegal in the State of Michigan (1990).[135] In 1974, Kathy Kozachenko's victory in an Ann Arbor city-council race made her the country's first openly homosexual candidate to win public office.[136] In 1975, Ann Arbor became the first U.S. city to use instant-runoff voting for a mayoral race. Adopted through a ballot initiative sponsored by the local Human Rights Party, which feared a splintering of the liberal vote, the process was repealed in 1976 after use in only one election.[137] As of April 2021, Democrats hold the mayorship and all ten council seats.[138]
Anti-abortion protesters were outnumbered ten-to-one by abortion-rights counterprotesters in 2017.[139] In 2019, The Diag hosted a Stop the Bans rally. In 2022 in the shadow of the Dobbs decision, the diag once again became a rallying point for abortion rights protests, drawing thousands of protesters, including US Rep. Debbie Dingell Senator Debbie Stabenow, and Michigan Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist.[140][141]
Education
Primary and secondary education
Public schools are part of the Ann Arbor Public Schools (AAPS) district. AAPS has one of the country's leading music programs. In September 2008, 16,539 students had been enrolled in the Ann Arbor Public Schools. Notable schools include Pioneer, Huron, Skyline, and Community high schools, and Ann Arbor Open School.[142] The district has a preschool center with both free and tuition-based programs for preschoolers in the district.[143] The University High School, a "demonstration school" with teachers drawn from the University of Michigan's education program, was part of the school system from 1924 to 1968.[144]
Ann Arbor is home to several private schools,[145] including Emerson School, the Father Gabriel Richard High School, Rudolf Steiner School of Ann Arbor (a Prek-12 Waldorf school), Clonlara School, Michigan Islamic Academy, and Greenhills School, a prep school. The city is also home to several charter schools such as Central Academy (Michigan) (PreK-12) of the Global Educational Excellence (GEE) charter school company,[146] Washtenaw Technical Middle College, and Honey Creek Community School.
Higher education
The University of Michigan dominates the city of Ann Arbor, providing the city with its distinctive college-town character.[147] University buildings are located in the center of the city and the campus is directly adjacent to the State Street and South University downtown areas.
Other local colleges and universities include Concordia University Ann Arbor, a Lutheran liberal-arts institution, and Cleary University, a private business school. Washtenaw Community College is located in neighboring Ann Arbor Township. In 2000, the Ave Maria School of Law, a Roman Catholic law school established by Domino's Pizza founder Tom Monaghan, opened in northeastern Ann Arbor, but the school moved to Ave Maria, Florida in 2009,[148] and the Thomas M. Cooley Law School acquired the former Ave Maria buildings for use as a branch campus.[149][150][151]
Media
The Ann Arbor News, owned by the Michigan-based Booth Newspapers chain, was the major newspaper serving Ann Arbor and the rest of Washtenaw County. The newspaper ended its 174-year daily print run in 2009, due to economic difficulties and began producing two printed editions a week under the name AnnArbor.com,[152] It resumed using its former name in 2013. It also produces a daily digital edition named Mlive.com. Another Ann Arbor-based publication that has ceased production was the Ann Arbor Paper, a free monthly.[153] Ann Arbor has been said to be the first significant city to lose its only daily paper.[154] The Ann Arbor Chronicle, an online newspaper, covered local news, including meetings of the library board, county commission, and DDA until September 3, 2014.[155]
Current publications in the city include the Ann Arbor Journal (A2 Journal), a weekly community newspaper;[156] the Ann Arbor Observer, a free monthly local magazine; and Current, a free entertainment-focused alt-weekly.[157] The Ann Arbor Business Review covers local business in the area. Car and Driver[158] magazine and Automobile Magazine[159] are also based in Ann Arbor. The University of Michigan is served by many student publications, including the independent Michigan Daily student newspaper, which reports on local, state, and regional issues in addition to campus news.[160]
Four major AM radio stations based in or near Ann Arbor are WAAM 1600, a conservative news and talk station; WLBY 1290, a business news and talk station; WDEO 990, Catholic radio; and WTKA 1050, which is primarily a sports station.[161] The city's FM stations include NPR affiliate WUOM 91.7; country station WWWW 102.9; and adult-alternative station WQKL 107.1. Freeform station WCBN-FM 88.3 is a local community radio/college radio station operated by the students of the University of Michigan featuring noncommercial, eclectic music and public-affairs programming.[161] The city is also served by public and commercial radio broadcasters in Ypsilanti, the Lansing/Jackson area, Detroit, Windsor, and Toledo.[162]
Ann Arbor is part of the Detroit television market. WPXD channel 31, the owned-and-operated Detroit outlet of the ION Television network, is licensed to the city. Until its sign-off on August 31, 2017, WHTV channel 18, a MyNetworkTV-affiliated station for the Lansing market, was broadcast from a transmitter in Lyndon Township, west of Ann Arbor. Community Television Network (CTN) is a city-provided cable television channel with production facilities open to city residents and nonprofit organizations.[163] Detroit and Toledo-area radio and television stations also serve Ann Arbor, and stations from Lansing and Windsor, Ontario, can be seen in parts of the area.[162]
Environment and services
Barton Dam
Argo Dam
The University of Michigan Medical Center, the only teaching hospital in the city, took the number 1 slot in U.S. News & World Report for best hospital in the state of Michigan, as of 2015.[164] The University of Michigan Health System (UMHS) includes University Hospital, C.S. Mott Children's Hospital and Women's Hospital in its core complex. UMHS also operates out-patient clinics and facilities throughout the city. The area's other major medical centers include a large facility operated by the Department of Veterans Affairs in Ann Arbor,[165] and Saint Joseph Mercy Hospital in nearby Superior Township.[166]
The city provides sewage disposal and water supply services, with water coming from the Huron River and groundwater sources. There are two water-treatment plants, one main and three outlying reservoirs, four pump stations, and two water towers. These facilities serve the city, which is divided into five water districts. The city's water department also operates four dams along the Huron River—Argo, Barton, Geddes, and Superior—of which Barton and Superior provide hydroelectric power.[167][168] The city also offers waste management services, with Recycle Ann Arbor handling recycling service.[169] Other utilities are provided by private entities. Electrical power and gas are provided by DTE Energy. AT&T Inc. is the primary wired telephone service provider for the area. Cable TV service is primarily provided by Comcast.[170]
A plume of the industrial solvent dioxane is migrating under the city from the contaminated Gelman Sciences, Inc. property on the westside of Ann Arbor. It is currently detected at 0.039 ppb.[171] The Gelman plume is a potential threat to one of the City of Ann Arbor's drinking water sources, the Huron River, which flows through downtown Ann Arbor.
Crime
In 2015, Ann Arbor was ranked 11th safest among cities in Michigan with a population of over 50,000.[172] It ranked safer than cities such as Royal Oak, Livonia, Canton and Clinton Township. The level of most crimes in Ann Arbor has fallen significantly in the past 20 years. In 1995 there were 294 aggravated assaults, 132 robberies and 43 rapes while in 2015 there were 128 aggravated assaults, 42 robberies and 58 rapes (under the revised definition).[173][174]
Ann Arbor's crime rate was below the national average in 2000. The violent crime rate was further below the national average than the property crime rate; the two rates were 48% and 11% lower than the U.S. average, respectively.[175][176]
Transportation
Ann Arbor is considered one of the US's most walkable cities, with one sixth of Ann Arborites walking to work according to the 2020 census.[177][178]
Non-motorized transportation
Ann Arbor has made efforts to reverse the trend of car-dependent development. In 2020, the city introduced a Healthy Streets program to encourage non-motorized transportation.[179] The Washtenaw county Border-to-Border Trail connects Ann Arbor to Ypsilanti, mostly along the Huron river, for pedestrians, bicycles and other non-motorized transportation.[180][181] In 2017, Spin scooters started providing a scooter share program in Ann Arbor, expanding this to include dockless e-bikes in 2023.[182][183][184]
Walkability
Ann Arbor has a gold designation by the Walk Friendly Communities program.[178] Since 2011, the city's property taxes have included a provision for sidewalk maintenance and expansions, expanding the sidewalk network, filling sidewalk gaps, and repairing existing sidewalks.[185] The city has created a sidewalk gap dashboard, which showed 143 miles of sidewalk gaps in May 2022.[186] The downtown was ranked in 2016 is the most walkable neighborhood in mid-sized cities in the Midwest.[187] However, the outlying parts of the city and the township districts between Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti still contain markedly unwalkable areas.[188]
Bicycle
Between 2019 and 2022 Ann Arbor's Downtown Development Authority built four two-way protected bikeways downtown.[189] Early studies have shown a significant increase in bicycle use downtown since the construction of these bikeways.[190][191] In 2023, the city reported over 900 bicycle parking spaces downtown, though this is still a small portion compared to the over 8,000 car parking spots for cars.[192][193]
Public transit
The Ann Arbor Area Transportation Authority (AAATA), which brands itself as "TheRide", operates public bus services throughout the city and nearby Ypsilanti. The AATA operates Blake Transit Center on Fourth Ave. in downtown Ann Arbor, and the Ypsilanti Transit Center. A separate zero-fare bus service operates within and between the University of Michigan campuses. Since April 2012, the "AirRide" connects to Detroit Metro Airport a dozen times a day.[194]
Intercity buses
Greyhound Lines provides intercity bus service.[195] The Michigan Flyer, a service operated by Indian Trails, cooperates with AAATA for their AirRide and additionally offers bus service to East Lansing.[196] Megabus has direct service to Chicago, Illinois, while a bus service is provided by Amtrak for rail passengers making connections to services in East Lansing and Toledo, Ohio.
Railroads
Michigan Central Depot, Ann Arbor
The city was a major rail hub, notably for freight traffic between Toledo and ports north of Chicago, Illinois, from 1878 to 1982; however, the Ann Arbor Railroad also provided passenger service from 1878 to 1950, going northwest to Frankfort and Elberta on Lake Michigan and southeast to Toledo. (In Elberta connections to ferries across the Lake could be made.)[197][198] The city was served by the Michigan Central Railroad starting in 1837. The Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti Street Railway, Michigan's first interurban, served the city from 1891 to 1929.[199]
Amtrak, which provides service to the city at the Ann Arbor Train Station, operates the Wolverine train between Chicago and Pontiac, via Detroit. The present-day train station neighbors the city's old Michigan Central Depot, which was renovated as a restaurant in 1970.[200]
Airports
Ann Arbor Municipal Airport is a small, city-run general aviation airport located south of I-94. Detroit Metropolitan Airport, the area's large international airport, is about 25 miles (40 km) east of the city, in Romulus.[201] Willow Run Airport east of the city near Ypsilanti serves freight, corporate, and general aviation clients.[202]
Roads and highways
The streets in downtown Ann Arbor conform to a grid pattern, though this pattern is less common in the surrounding areas. Major roads branch out from the downtown district like spokes on a wheel to the highways surrounding the city. The city is belted by three freeways: I-94, which runs along the southern and western portion of the city; U.S. Highway 23 (US 23), which primarily runs along the eastern edge of Ann Arbor; and M-14, which runs along the northern edge of the city. Other nearby highways include US 12 (Michigan Ave.), M-17 (Washtenaw Ave.), and M-153 (Ford Rd.). Several of the major surface arteries lead to the I-94/M-14 interchange in the west, US 23 in the east, and the city's southern areas.[203]
Sister cities
Ann Arbor has seven sister cities:[204][205]
Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany (since 1965) The schools in Ann Arbor and Tübingen have regular exchanges.[206]
Belize City, Belize (since 1967)
Hikone, Shiga, Japan (since 1969) The schools in Ann Arbor and Hikone have regular exchanges.[207][208]
Peterborough, Ontario, Canada (since 1983)
Juigalpa, Chontales, Nicaragua (since 1986)
Dakar, Senegal (since 1997)
Remedios, Cuba (since 2003)
See also
Ann Arbor staging
Ardis Publishing
List of people from Ann Arbor
Metro Detroit