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Michigan Alpha Centennial 1964

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    The Centennial Celebration 1964 jointly hosted by the Michigan Alpha Alumni Association and active chapter.

Homecoming 2013

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    Homecoming 2013 at 1437 Washtenaw.

Harmon BBQ 2013

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    BBQ at the chapter house to honor Tom Harmon '41.

Homecoming 2012

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    BBQ revives tradition attracting strong alumni attendance.

Mud Bowl

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    A PHOTO HISTORY OF THE MUD BOWL 1934 to 1997 ~ MICHIGAN'S GREATEST FRATERNITY ATHLETIC RIVALRY During the fall of 1934, Phi Delta Theta (PDT) active member E. Reed Low '37 challenged the "house across the street" (Sigma Alpha Epsilon -- SAE) to a friendly game of "touch" football on the morning of Homecoming in a little used valley in their side yard along South University. Low is considered the founder of the Mud Bowl. The men of PDT and SAE fought a close match which SAE narrowly won 8 - 6. Given the intense rivalry between the two fraternities which were located only a couple hundred feet apart, it was decided that the Mud Bowl would be an annual event. The Mud Bowl became a revered Homecoming tradition as PDT and SAE fiercely battled each year for nothing more than pride. In the early years, the game essentially was a rough intramural football match played on a field that was wetter and shorter than regulation. As the annual contest matured, it was decided that the challenge and entertainment value of the game could be enhanced by tilling the ground and flooding the field. Eventually, the Ann Arbor Fire Department contributed to making the mayhem on the field even more muddy by pouring approximately 10,000 gallons of water into the valley shortly before the game. By kickoff of games played in the 1970s through the 1990s, it was not uncommon for the mud to be more than one foot deep with water covering the west end of the "field." The PDT-SAE rivalry series in the Mud Bowled ended in 1997 after the 60th game between the two fraternities was played. The records about these 60 games are a combination of fact and myth, but no one disputes that this was the greatest fraternity athletic rivalry in the State of Michigan if not the entire nation. The Mud Bowl grew into such a spectacle that crowds numbering in the thousands showed up each year to witness the game. The game attracted coverage by Sports Illustrated, ESPN, ABC Sports as well as campus, Ann Arbor and Detroit media. The Mud Bowl became so popular that national brewing companies -- at first Stroh's, and then Miller -- sponsored the event. Of course, some people have speculated that the presence of sororities playing football, or speedball in some years, during the half-time may have garnered most of the great public interest in the event. Nonetheless the athleticism and intensity of the PDT-SAE matchups proved to be very entertaining for the fans. While the exact win-loss tally is subject to dispute, it is believed that PDT rightly boasts a few more victories in the series than SAE. Given that SAE hand picked the referees for each Mud Bowl, a PDT victory typically required overcoming the opposing players plus the men in stripes. For this reason, PDT's hard fought "losses" remain as much a source of pride as its many victories. If you have pictures or memories of the Mud Bowl to share with the Alumni Association's Heritage Project, please contact us at [email protected].

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Dr. Richard S. Rasmussen M.D., Class of 1970

Rasmussen[Published on April 20, 2015 by Metcalf & Jonkhoff Funeral Service]

Dr. Richard S. Rasmussen M.D.
April 28, 1948 ~ April 20, 2015 (age 66)

Richard Shively Rasmussen began his life in the idyllic East Grand Rapids of the fifties and sixties. Life with his two parents, three siblings, and friends was comfortable and unremarkable. Rich was an undergraduate at the University of Michigan in the late 60's---a time and place known for student protests, a cultural revolution, and the politics of the Vietnam War. He caroused with friends on the Phi Delta Theta rooftop and studied economics.

In those four years he soaked up a lifelong love of Ann Arbor and the Wolverines, which he shared with his children Rich, Andy, and William. His career as a doctor started at the Wayne State school of Medicine, and he honed his people skills in Detroit Receiving, among other hospitals in the city.

Eventually his trail wound through Redford, MI, where he and wife Elisa started their first home, and wended its way back to Grand Rapids by 1987. Active and healthy, he approached even leisure activity with the work ethic of an old Scandinavian farmer. He was regularly up at 5 AM to greet the dawn, feed the birds, and make some progress on writing one of his novels. Conservation was one of his passions; he loved taking care of the family's property in the Manistee national forest, guiding efforts to restore the balance of humans with the native flora and fauna.

His knack for quiet leadership gained the esteem of his colleagues although he never asked for it. Near retirement he served as President of the Lake County Riverside Property Owners Association and as Director of Employee Health at Spectrum Health. He was especially proud of his efforts to help create the MyHealth program at Spectrum.

Rich lost his life to ALS. His stoicism and ability to adapt, as his disease stripped him of more and more of his faculties, was an inspiration to all who knew him. His playful, sardonic sense of humor and his care for others were in evidence even on the day of his death. He had told all who needed to know that he loved them before he left us on April 20th, 8 days before his 67th birthday.

A memorial service will be held on May 16 at 11 AM in the main chapel of the Metcalf & Jonkhoff Funeral Home at 4291 Cascade Rd SE., Grand Rapids, MI 49546 (http://www.metcalfandjonkhoff.com/notices/DrRichard-RasmussenMD). In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be directed to the Nature Conservancy of Michigan or to the Michigan ALS Association 678 Front Ave., Suite 177, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49504.

 

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