Yule Is 'Different' For M

YULE IS ‘DIFFERENT’ FOR M

PASADENA, Calif. (AP)—Christmas isn’t the same this year for Michigan football players, but they and their coach are sure to remember this Christmas more vividly than any snow-filled Dec. 25 of other years.

“I like California, but it’s hard to get in the Christmas spirit,” said captain Jim Mandich, referring to the warm weather and lack of snow that is quite a contrast to the Michigan weather the Wolverines left exactly one week ago.

Currently much of the Midwest, including Michigan, is partly paralyzed as a result of a pre-Christmas snowstorm.

The Wolverines arrived in Pasadena last Thursday to begin preparations for their Rose Bowl encounter Jan. 1 against Southern Cal.

This is the first year Mandich, and many of his teammates, have spent the Christmas in a warm climate. The All-American tight end is from Solon, Ohio, and most of the members of the U-M team are from Ohio, Illinois and Michigan.

“But the players are caught up in the whole California trip and don’t mind being away from home at Christmas,” Mandich added. “I thought after two-a-day practices for four days they’d get pretty homesick, but they’re not.”

Assistant coach George Mans said several of the players couldn’t get into the spirit of Christmas because of the weather, even though the palm trees in the area have Christmas lights. But all were able to make long distance telephone calls home on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day.

A dinner and Christmas party were scheduled for Thursday night at U-M’s hotel headquarters and all the players were to be given binoculars as gifts from the Rose Bowl committee. However, the committee has a problem of what to give USC players and coaches. Southern Cal has been the Pacific-8 Rose Bowl representative four straight years and four different gifts had to be ordered so that some Trojans wouldn’t get identical items from years past.

U-M coach Bo Schembechler got perhaps the best Christmas gift of all. He was named Coach of the Year by the Football Writers Association.

“It was a complete surprise,” said the first-year Wolverine coach Wednesday after his team finished the first of two Christmas Eve practice sessions.

“It’s a tribute to the school, the team and coaching staff but I don’t claim to be coach of the year.”