Daniel Brenner I AnnArbor.com

Updated at 7:13 p.m.

DETROIT -- It took until February, but Michigan finally sang "The Victors."

In its 11th series of the year, Michigan finally notched its first weekend sweep with a 5-2 win over Michigan State Saturday afternoon at Joe Louis Arena.

Related Content:Boxscore | Photo Gallery

The win was followed by an enthusiastic rendition of Michigan's fight song, as is the team's tradition after sweeps. And after joking earlier this season that he was going to forget the song's lyrics after not hearing them all year, Michigan coach Red Berenson held them on a printed sheet of paper as his team sang.

“I had to get the words out for them, so they knew the words,” Berenson said. "We haven’t sang it all year.

“Most of our Michigan teams get to sing it a lot, this has been a tough year for this team, but they can enjoy it tonight.”

Derek DeBlois led Michigan with a pair of goals, while freshman goaltender Jared Rutledge recorded his second win in as many days. DeBlois and freshman forward Cristoval "Boo" Nieves finished the series with three goals apiece.

The win came less than 24 hours after the Wolverines topped MSU, 3-2, Friday night at Yost Ice Arena.

The win not only gave Michigan (10-16-2, 7-13-2-2 CCHA) a sweep, but also spared the Wolverines the ignominy of last place -- Michigan came into the series three points ahead of Michigan State (7-18-3, 5-14-1-0 CCHA), and finishes it in eighth place. Michigan finished the regular-season series with a 4-1 record against Michigan State.

“It’s one thing to sweep, and I think it’s another thing to sweep State," DeBlois said. "It couldn’t have come at a better time, obviously we’ve had our struggles. We got a huge weekend.”

Berenson called the series "the best weekend we've had probably all year."

"I think the team deserved it and they worked hard," Berenson said. "They got through some tough spots, and they kept the goals against down."

Michigan jumped out to a two-goal lead 10:34 into the first period, after Luke Moffatt tapped home a rebound in front three minutes in, and DeBlois stole the puck at center ice and scored top shelf.

DeBlois' shot went over the shoulder of MSU goaltender Jake Hildebrand, hitting his water bottle and knocking the cap off.

“What a shot," Berenson said. "That was a big-time shot. When you see that water bottle just explode, you know it’s been hit by something.”

The Wolverines were able to keep pace through a four-goal second period. The Spartans twice cut the Michigan lead to one goal, before the Wolverines scored an insurance goal 16 seconds before the second intermission.

Chris Forfar scored for Michigan State four minutes in, taking advantage of a Michigan turnover near the MSU blue line.

Skyline graduate Andrew Copp scored Michigan’s third goal, taking a pass behind-the-net pass from Dexter native Andrew Sinelli.

And after MSU’s Greg Wolfe scored with a minute left in the period, DeBlois finished off a rebound for his second goal of the game, giving Michigan a two-goal lead going into intermission.

“That was huge, because we were on heels, we weren’t playing well and we’d given up a goal and we were sloppy in our zone," Berenson said. "That was a huge goal, it was one of those goals that really discourages the other team.”

Nieves, a night after scoring two third-period goals to seal Michigan's win, gave the Wolverines third fifth goal midway through the third period, sending a pss from behind the net off the skate of MSU's Travis Walsh.

The Wolverines outshot the Spartans, 45-28, marking its second-highest shot total since October. The low shots against helped Rutledge backstop Michigan to its first sweep. He gave up four goals in the two games while making 47 saves.

The performance came in Rutledge's first regular-season action since Nov. 30.

“I try to stay confident no matter what, whether we’re down or I’m playing or I’m not playing, and I feel I’ve done a pretty good job of that," Rutledge said.

Michigan heads to South Bend, Ind. for a series against Notre Dame next weekend.

Kyle Austin covers sports for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at kyleaustin@annarbor.com or 734-623-2535. Follow him on Twitter @KAustin_AA.

Behind a pair of goals from Derek DeBlois, the Michigan hockey team recorded its first sweep of the season with a 5-2 win over Michigan State Saturday at Joe Louis Arena.

Daniel Brenner is a photographer for AnnArbor.com

Michigan rolled into Assembly Hall as the No. 1 team in the nation. It left defeated. The Wolverines fell to Indiana, 81-73, despite 25 points, 8 assists, and 5 rebounds from player of the year candidate Trey Burke.

Melanie Maxwell is a photographer for AnnArbor.com.

This photo of the 1979 Pioneer football team includes John Harbaugh, Jeff Minick and John Minick. Jim Harbaugh would later join the team midseason.

Courtesy of Pioneer High School

In the runup to Sunday’s Super Bowl, NFL Network will be taking a visit to Ann Arbor.

The channel plans to run a segment about John and Jim Harbaugh, the two Super Bowl coaches who spent part of their childhood in Ann Arbor, and their relationship with the Minick family, according to an NFL spokesperson.

The Minick family has three children, Jeff, John and Jim, who all grew up good friends with the Harbaughs. The five are all within two years in age of one another, and all played football for the junior Packers and for Pioneer.

The segment is scheduled to run between 11. am. and noon Sunday, and is expected to be posted later on NFL.com.

In the clip, Jeff and John Minick look through old photos of themselves with the Harbaughs, and recall old stories from growing up close friends with the Harbaugh family.

The former teammates remain friends today.

“When I think about their dream that started back in 1972, fast forward to Sunday, I’m not even surprised,” John Minick says in the piece. "If there’s any family that deserves what they’re about to embark on, it’s certainly the Harbaugh family.”

Kyle Austin covers sports for AnnArbor.com.

Maybe you use it as an excuse for gorging on every possible combination of food covered in cheese and salt. Or maybe you're just a die-hard Detroit Lions fan trying to envision what it would be like to cheer for a winning team.

One thing is for sure, there's a good chance you'll join the millions huddled around television and computer screens Sunday night watching the Super Bowl. Unless that is, you will be fighting over control of the remote to watch the follow-up to last week's moving episode of Downton Abbey.

San Francisco 49ers players warm up in the Superdome during practice on Saturday, Feb. 2, 2013, in New Orleans.

AP | Mark Humphrey

Despite all the national excitement around the "big game" why even bother spending five hours of your precious weekend staying up late to root for teams you don't even regularly cheer for? (Expats from the San Francisco Bay and Baltimore areas can stop reading here.)

Here are three reasons to tune in tonight, even if just for half the game so you can awake ready for your Monday morning commute:

The Commercials
For consumers, the hype surrounding Super Bowl commercials is borderline maddening. On the other hand, coming from a marketing perspective, I find it incredibly intriguing to watch the buildup of excitement before the game and subsequent debate about which company made the biggest splash with its multi-million dollar spot.

In the last few years, the addition of online efforts has turned the Super Bowl commercial sideshow into a full-out circus with Facebook contests, choose your own endings, and enough hashtags thrown on the screen to create a drinking game.

Obviously every brand spending millions on a spot this year is not trying to appeal to just you. So to avoid fruitless arguments about which advertisement was your personal favorite, I'd suggest trying to take a different approach and pick which company wasted the most money on the Super Bowl.

Don't plan on watching the game, but don't want to be left out on the coffee-break conversation on Monday morning? Not to fret, YouTube is here to lend a hand.

John Harbaugh pictured in the third row, first from left, in the 1978-79 Pioneer High School varsity football team photo.

This is America
Often baseball, apple pie, and automobiles are described as being truly American; however, I'd argue football, television, and Costco are more fitting, and it is Super Bowl Sunday that brings all three of those things together in perfect unity.

Just like standing in line for hours to vote for President, watching the Super Bowl is a sacrifice we all must make for our country. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if having immigrants set up a fantasy football team and buy a New England Patriots jersey became a requirement for American citizenship. Now say it with me: "I pledge alliance to the national game of the United States of America…"

The Berlin Philharmonic Wind Quintet

photo by Peter Adamik

But “drudgery is not a risk in the Berlin Philharmonic,” according to Berlin Philharmonic horn player Fergus McWilliam.

McWilliam joined the Berlin Philharmonic under the celebrated Herbert von Karajan, is a former trustee of the Berlin Philharmonic Foundation and a founding member of the Berlin Philharmonic Wind Quintet, whose five members appear here Saturday evening at Rackham Auditorium, along with Ann Arbor-based pianist Martin Katz. And McWilliam is quick to assign credit for the orchestra’s razor’s edge playing to its attention to chamber music.

“We listen to each other. The orchestra is a giant chamber music ensemble,” he said in a recent phone call from Berlin.

McWilliam is fond of a quote, erroneously assigned to him, that nonetheless “gets the point across,” he said. “We don’t follow conductors; we do pay attention to conductors.”

“We react like a chamber music ensemble, as if there were no conductor. That’s because everyone has these skills at hand and honed.”

Last heard in Ann Arbor in 1995, for its 2013 visit the ensemble—composed of McWilliam; flutist Michael Hasel; oboist Andreas Wittmann; clarinetist Walter Seyforth; and bassoonist Marion Reinhard—brings repertoire both new and established.

On the bill are an arrangement, by the quintet’s Hasel, of Mozart’s Fantasy for Mechanical Organ, K. 608; Danzi’s Quintet in F Major, Op. 68, No. 2 (1813-14); Kalevi Aho’s Windquintet (2006); Ibert’s “Trois pieces breves (1939); Milhaud’s “La cheminee du roi Rene (1939); and Poulenc’s Sextet for Wind Quintet and Piano (1939).

With Ibert, Milhaud and Poulenc on the second half, the program boasts not only three pieces from the same year, but three pieces by French composers.

“Each is a masterpiece of the French repertoire,” said McWilliam, noting the importance of the France to the wind literature.

“In the second half of the 19th century, the French pushed the envelop on wind repertoire,” he said, motivated by great virtuosos who could get more from their instruments as technical capabilities extended the range of what was possible.

“The players wanted more and more,” he said.

The Ibert and Milhaud are old friends for the quintet, figuring on their earliest CDs. And McWilliam said he and the other quintet members are excited about joining with Katz, the University of Michigan’s celebrated collaborative pianist, for the Poulenc, with its “exceedingly French 1920s sound.” “We’re really looking forward to working with Martin Katz on it,” he said.

The first half, in addition to the Danzi, brings a novelty in the form of the Mozart “Fantasy for Mechanical Organ, K. 608, one of three works Mozart composed for this instrument, which McWilliam desribes as a “wind player organ.”

Usually, said Mc William, the group eschews arrangements “at all costs.” But, he added, “when you analyze these pieces, they are remarkable explorations of baroque rhythms and forms. And then these instruments stopped being built, so nobody could ever hear them again.”

So the audience gets to hear a work that is, in a sense, otherwise condemned to silence. The most recent work on the program, the Aho Windquintet, is a piece for which McWilliam predicts a robust future, on the other hand. The group has recorded it for the Swedish record label Bis, which has a complete catalog of Aho’s work, and McWilliam describes it as “fascinating, physically very demanding, extraordinary writing.”

“It’s emotionally sentaimental, folksy, deep and inventive,” he went on, “and it is a chance for five musicians to sound like a large ensemble. It also has everything including the kitchen sink.”

At one point, he noted, the musicians move toward each other from backstage positions. “It’s captivating,” he concluded. “Everybody finds something that gets them.”

Initial residential property assessments show Ypsilanti home values up 1.58 percent. The average home sale in Ypsilanti was also up 16.8 percent in 2012 over 2011. (1112 Pearl St. pictured here)

Courtney Sacco | AnnArbor.com

Initial assessment reports by the county’s equalization department shows seven communities experienced a drop in home values, ranging from less than 1 percent to 4 percent.

“Those are very minor decreases,” said Washtenaw County Equalization Department director Raman Patel.

“Property values have been stabilizing and improving,” he continued.

The communities with the highest gains in residential property values include: Salem Township (6.95 percent), Milan (5.7 percent), Chelsea (3.92 percent), Scio Township (3.51 percent), Saline (3.19 percent), and Webster Township (3.19 percent).

The largest value drops were in Sharon Township (4 percent), Bridgewater Township (1.93 percent), and Lodi Township (1.54 percent).

The changes reflect averages across a community and individual homeowners will still see variations in their own assessed values, Patel said. And because the county data excludes short sales and foreclosures, certain neighborhoods could find more intense pricing pressures.

“This is a lot better than last year and the year before, so the market is coming back, but it’s still going to take a couple years,” Patel said.

“When I say the market is stabilizing, it doesn’t mean nobody will get an increase (in value) or nobody will get a decrease,” he continued.

The county studies home sales from 2010 and 2011 to determine the values and homeowners are mailed new assessments — along with a separate taxable value — by early March. Owners can then appeal assessments at Board of Review meetings that month. Assessed values are based on 50 percent of market value as required by Michigan law.

Overall, Washtenaw County shows a roughly 2 percent gain in home values. Ann Arbor averages a 2.71 gain, while Ypsilanti averages a 1.58 percent gain in value — a major improvement over last year’s 8 percent drop.

In 2012, residential property values only increased in eight communities. In 2011, four communities saw value increases. In 2009, none of the communities experienced gains and 14 had double-digit losses.

Ypsilanti's value gain is indicative of increasing sale prices. Although the average home sale in 2012 was the county's lowest at $96,636, it marks a 16.8 percent increase over 2011.

"Ypsilanti used to go down (in value) a lot," Patel said. "It's improving."

"I think we're very cautiously optimistic," said Ypsilanti city planner Teresa Gillotti. "With the (housing market) decline so many years in a row, we weren't expecting it would swing back up quite yet...our tax base took a huge hit last year in particular, so it's nice to see it even going up a little."

Countywide, the average home sale price in 2012 was $210,616, according to the Ann Arbor Area Board of Realtors. Since 2009, sale prices in the county have increased by 15.5 percent, although sale prices are still below the county’s high of $266,600 in 2005.

“Most of the submarkets…are at least trending in the right direction,” said Peter Hendershot, an appraiser with Affinity Valuation Group in Ann Arbor. “They’re still below 2006 values, but they’re at least trending in an upward direction.”

Meanwhile, local Realtors are reporting low inventory levels and increasing demand from buyers in Washtenaw County.

“We’ve returned to low inventory, high demand, increasing average sale price and lower days on the market,” said Real Estate One’s Matt Dejanovich in a previous report on AnnArbor.com.

Hendershot said foreclosure activity in the county is also declining, although Realtytrac still ranks Michigan 7th nationally in the number of foreclosures. Hendershot said there were about 36 foreclosures per month in the county in 2010, compared with 31 per month in 2012.

“There’s still a lot of inventory out there, but at least it’s declining,” he said.

Below are the initial residential property assessments from the county for 2013, separated by municipality and with value losses bolded:

Cities:

• Ann Arbor 2.71

• Chelsea 3.92

• Milan 5.7

• Saline 3.19

• Ypsilanti 1.58

Townships:

• Ann Arbor 1.72

• Augusta -1.48

• Bridgewater -1.93

• Dexter 2.29

• Freedom -.76

• Lima 1.15

• Lodi -1.54

• Lyndon .26

• Manchester 1.56

• Northfield 2.39

• Pittsfield 3

• Salem 6.95

• Saline .96

• Scio 3.51

• Sharon -4

• Superior .52

• Sylvan -.34

• Webster 3.19

• York 5.6 percent

• Ypsilanti -.24

Lizzy Alfs is a business reporter for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at 734-623-2584 or email her at lizzyalfs@annarbor.com. Follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/lizzyalfs.

San Francisco 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh, right, and Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh, left, pose with their parents, Jack and Jackie, and grandfather Joe Cipiti during a news conference for the NFL Super Bowl XLVII football game Friday, Feb. 1, 2013, in New Orleans.

Associated Press

Editor’s Note: This is the fourth and final article in a series of articles about the Harbaughs' time in Ann Arbor.

Related Stories:

• Ann Arbor residents recall Super Bowl coaches as loyal friends and competitors
• Stakes are high, but Ann Arbor friends see same old Harbaughs on Super Bowl sidelines
• Before they were Super Bowl coaches, John and Jim Harbaugh spent one season together as Ann Arbor Pioneer teammates

On Sunday, brothers John and Jim Harbaugh will face off on football's biggest stage in Super Bowl XLVII in New Orleans, with John coaching the Baltimore Ravens and Jim the San Francisco 49ers.

Long before the brothers' respective rises to prominence in the NFL coaching ranks, they were running around the practice field at the University of Michigan while their father, Jack Harbaugh, coached the Wolverines' defensive backs.

The Harbaughs in 1973, the year they moved to Ann Arbor (from left) Jack, John, Jackie, Joan and Jim.

Ann Arbor News archive

Here's a look at the Harbaughs' Ann Arbor connections through the years:

Welcome to the neighborhood

The Harbaughs arrived in Ann Arbor in 1973 by way of Iowa City, Iowa where Jack was an assistant coach for the University of Iowa football team. His boss at Iowa was none other than the predecessor of legendary Michigan football coach Bo Schembechler, Bump Elliott, who was athletic director at Iowa from 1970-91.

Jack told the Ann Arbor News in 1973 that Elliott gave him a glowing review of the area before coming to town. Jack also said he was excited at the prospect of John and Jim, 11 and 10 at the time, having the same football coaches at Pioneer High School as Bob Elliott.

Former Michigan football player Don Dufek recalls Jack Harbaugh, pictured above in 1973, as a coach who made football fun.

Ann Arbor News file photo

Harbaugh worked under then-defensive coordinator and eventual Schembechler successor Gary Moeller with the goal of never giving up anything "over 25 yards on defense."

Jack coached at Michigan from 1973-79 with the Wolverines winning at least a share of five Big Ten championships while he was on staff and making it to the Rose Bowl in 1976, 1977 and 1978 and finishing ranked No. 3 in the country in 1976.

It was those trips to Pasadena with his father that Jim would later say made him want to lead Michigan to a Rose Bowl one day.

Four defensive backs earned All-America honors under Jack's direction, including Pioneer alumnus Don Dufek in 1975. Dufek recalls Jack as a coach who made football fun.

"He came into work every day having fun and making it really fun for you," Dufek said.

Dufek also recalled two kids running around the field all the time that obviously had a knack for football. Little did he know those kids, John and Jim, would one day be coaching against each other in the Super Bowl.

A young John Harbaugh (85) during an Ann Arbor Junior Packers game.

Photo courtesy of David Thayer

Of course Jim and John didn't spend their entire childhoods at the Michigan practice field. They had their own football teams to play for.

In 1974 that team was the Ann Arbor Junior Packers of the Ann Arbor Junior Football league.

A former Packers teammate of the Harbaughs, David Thayer -- now a psychologist in Kalamazoo -- remembers the two being serious about their football and that they "knew their stuff," when it came to the gridiron, even at a young age.

"They were very intense and very competitive right from the start," Thayer told MLive.com's David Drew. "If we ran around the entire practice field, they were vying to be in the front of the line. It was pretty incredible right from the start.”

Jim Harbaugh, far left, throws a pass during an Ann Abor Junior Packers game.

Both would also play at Tappan Junior High School (later Tappan Middle School). Most remember Jim as the confident and competitive one of the two from their early days.

But John was no slouch. John's Tappan football teammate Lloyd Rowry, who also played with both John and Jim at Pioneer, recalls John as a fierce defender.

"John would stick his head down and he’d hurt you, I guarantee you that John would stick you,” Rowry said.

Jim would go on to far surpass his older brother on the field, starring at quarterback for Pioneer and Palo Alto high schools, becoming an All-America at Michigan and a first-round NFL draft choice by the Chicago Bears before playing for 14 years in the NFL and coming within a dropped pass in the end zone of going to the Super Bowl as a player.

John Harbaugh was voted "most athletic" as a ninth grader at Tappan Junior High in 1977. His younger brother Jim did not receive the honor two years later.

High school teammates

After Tappan, the Harbaugh brothers would both move on to Pioneer High School. John began high school in the fall of 1977 as a tenth grader -- high school was from grades 10-12 then -- and would graduate from there in 1980.

Jim would only spend one year at Pioneer as Jack accepted a job as defensive coordinator at Stanford University after the 1979 season. Jim was head coach at Stanford from 2007-10, prior to accepting his job with the 49ers.

The one year the brothers spent in high school together, they weren't expected to be teammates. Jim was designated the backup JV quarterback prior to the season while John was expected to be a starting defensive back on the varsity squad.

Jim quickly won the starting JV spot, but that's still two steps below starting on varsity, which is where John was.

John injured his knee and was out the first six weeks, according to an old Ann Arbor News report, and by the time he returned, Jim had arrived. Jim was moved up to varsity after the team started 0-2 and scored just three points combined in the two contests. Jim came in in relief as Pioneer was getting blown out in the fourth game of the season and never left.

Pioneer won the first game Jim Harbaugh started. He never saw the bench again. (Ann Arbor News Archive)

Jim started the next game and Pioneer won. He was Ritter's guy the rest of the way and the Pioneers went 3-2 in the games he started.

After the season John Viges of the Ann Arbor News lamented that the season could have been a good one if not for injuries to key players like John Harbaugh.

Ritter looked forward to two more years with Jim as his starting quarterback

"He's going to be a good one," Ritter said of Jim.

Ritter was correct, but Jim wouldn't be "a good one" at Pioneer as the family moved to Palo Alto when Jack accepted the Stanford job. Pioneer finished 8-1 and ranked No. 7 in the state by the Associated Press in 1981, its only loss coming to Ypsilanti by a score of 3-0.

What might have been of that team if the Harbaughs hadn't left for California?

Ann Arbor would get its Jim Harbaugh fix eventually though.

Returning home

After finishing his high school career Palo Alto High School, Jim Harbaugh returned to Ann Arbor as a quarterback for the Michigan football team and by 1984 was named starter as a sophomore.

Jim Harbaugh (4) carries the ball during the 1985 Michigan spring football game.

Ann Arbor News file photo

In 1985 Harbaugh led the nation in passing efficiency and Michigan went 10-1-1 and finished ranked No. 2 in the nation.

Michigan won its first nine games of the 1986 season before losing to Minnesota prior to its regular season finale against Ohio State in Columbus.

Harbaugh guaranteed victory over Ohio State just two days after Minnesota had ruined the Wolverines' national championship aspirations.

"I guarantee we will beat Ohio State and be in Pasadena New Year's Day," Harbaugh said to reporters. "People might not give us a snowball's chance in hell to beat them in Columbus. But we're going to."

In 1986, Jim Harbaugh guaranteed victory for the Wolverines over Ohio State in Columbus.

Ann Arbor News archive

"Very few people during Bo’s era would have broken ranks and spoke out like that. Harbaugh was very distinctive that way. I can think of very, very, very few other players that would do that," recalls Geoff Larcom, who was an assistant sports editor at the Ann Arbor News from 1982-85 and sports editor from 1988-2000 and worked in a similar capacity for the Detroit News in between. "He was a beacon of brazen confidence. A lot of other kids may have thought that way, but never would speak out like that.

"Harbaugh was one fearless cat.”

Harbaugh was a goat in Ann Arbor at the time of the guarantee, but it became the most famous part of his Ann Arbor legend after he delivered the following week with the Wolverines beating the Buckeyes, 26-24.

Misfortune for the Harbaugh family earlier in the week made for a poetic moment after the game as Jim looked up into the stands and saw Jack and John in the stands celebrating.

Neither had employment responsibilities to attend to after Jack had been fired from his job as head coach of Western Michigan earlier in the week. John, one of Jack's assistants at the time, was out of a job as well.

"I was thrilled for Jim," John told Ann Arbor News reporter Steve Kornacki after the win over Ohio State. "Ever since Jim was 10 years old he said he was going to take Michigan to the Rose Bowl."

"As I ran off, I saw the smilling faces of my dad, mom and family. That's something I'll never forget," Jim told reporters after the game.

Jim would be named All-America, finish third in the Heisman voting that year and leave Ann Arbor as Michigan's all-time leader in passing yards (5,449), completed passes (387) completion percentage (62.4) and efficiency rating (145.6) among other things.

NFL playing career/charity golf

Jim Harbaugh, left, came within one hail mary pass of making the Super Bowl as a player in 1995.

Booth Newspapers file photo

In 1995 Harbaugh led the Indianapolis Colts to the AFC Championship game and was a dropped pass away from making the Super Bowl as a player.

During his pro career and after, Harbaugh hosted an annual celebrity golf outing in Ann Arbor to support local charities.

“He was one of the first people around to stage charity golf tournaments, to lend his name to charity golf tournaments after he was drafted by the (Chicago) Bears," Larcom said. "I think Harbaugh was one of the first to do that in Ann Arbor.”

“I always thought that was pretty cool that Jim was the first to do that.”

Such efforts have since been carried on by Charles Woodson, Brian Griese, Steve Hutchinson and several other former Michigan players.

Not a Michigan man?

A seven-month Ann Arbor News investigation revealed Harbaugh's critical comments about Michigan's academic environment may have been more true than people wanted to believe.

MLive Media Group archive

Harbaugh called out the academic practices of the athletic department when promoting the academic environment of Stanford.

"Michigan is a good school and I got a good education there, but the athletic department has ways to get borderline guys in, and when they're in, they steer them to courses in sports communications. They're adulated when they're playing, but when they get out, the people who adulated them won't hire them," Harbaugh told a San Francisco Chronicle reporter prior to the 2007 season, his first as head coach at Stanford.

Michigan's all-time leading rusher Mike Hart and Carr himself, among others, chastised Harbaugh for the comments. Hart said Harbaugh was "not a Michigan man," at Big Ten media days, and Carr called the comments "elitist" "arrogant" and "self serving."

If they were self serving, they certainly didn't serve Harbaugh well when Carr retired following that season. Many believe it's those comments that kept him from being considered a serious candidate for the Michigan job after Carr's retirement.

A seven month Ann Arbor News investigation couldn't prove whether the comments were self serving, arrogant or elitist, but it did in many ways find them to be one thing: accurate.

When Rich Rodriguez flailed at Michigan as Harbaugh thrived at Stanford, Michigan fans didn't care what he'd said before, they wanted Harbaugh as their coach and they wanted him now.

But it was too late.

The NFL mountaintop

After Rodriguez was fired in 2011, it was a foregone conclusion to some that Jim Harbaugh would take over as head football coach at Michigan. Michigan athletic director Dave Brandon spent most of the press conference announcing Rodriguez's firing discussing Harbaugh.

But Brandon mostly discussed how he thought Jim Harbaugh wanted to coach in the NFL, despite how much Michigan fans might want him to coach in what was once his home town.

“I personally believe Jim Harbaugh is heading to the NFL,” Brandon said at the time. “But that’s my opinion, as opposed to any qualified judgment.”

“I have talked to Jim Harbaugh,” Brandon added. “I will continue to talk to Jim Harbaugh. He’s a Michigan man.”

Michigan reportedly offered Harbaugh $5 million to become its next head coach, but he respectfully declined. Turns out, Brandon's opinion was correct.

John Harbaugh, left, and Jim Harbaugh address the media before Super Bowl XLVII in New Orleans.

Associated Press

"It’s with great humility that I tell you I had some options at the college level and pro teams. Two I’d like to highlight, Stanford and Michigan, both of which I consider my universities. They have great leaders and will hire great coaches,” Harbaugh said at his introductory press conference with the 49ers.

And with that the Harbaugh back to Michigan dream died, but the dominoes do not stop falling there.

When Brady Hoke was hired at Michigan one of the first members added to his staff, and arguably the most vital, was defensive coordinator Greg Mattison.

Before coming to Michigan, Mattison was defensive coordinator for the Baltimore Ravens for three years under head coach, John Harbaugh.

"We completely respect the decision Greg made to join the Michigan football program. He has loved Michigan since working there earlier in his career," John Harbaugh said in a statement when Mattison was hired at Michigan.

"We will miss him because he's a great coach, but also an even better person. The students there are the lucky ones. Not only will he teach them football to the highest level, he will influence them to be the best persons they can be. Greg is one of the good people you are fortunate to meet in your life. We are disappointed that he will not be coaching our defense, but we know that he is following a true love by returning to the Wolverines."

-- Kyle Austin, Ben Freed and Melanie Maxwell contributed to this report.

Pete Cunningham covers sports for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at petercunningham@annarbor.com. Follow him on Twitter @petcunningham.

Once linked by family and heritage, soon Metzger’s and the Old German will be linked in spirit as longtime Ann Arbor restaurants that are adapting and creating new followings.

Metzger’s will celebrate its 85th anniversary in Ann Arbor this year, months after the new incarnation of the Old German launches in the basement of its former home on West Washington Street.

For restaurateur Jon Carlson, creating a new version of the Old German makes sense: “It still means a lot to Ann Arborites,” he told reporter Lizzy Alfs for a story last week.

And the Metzger family sees it as a reminder of how much they’ve been a part of Ann Arbor, in their case since 1928 and lasting for four generations.

Like what’s planned for the Old German - which once was owned by a family member and provided a “friendly competition” - Metzger’s capitalizes on tradition in a new location.

Walter Metzger, the son of the founder, closed Metzger’s on East Washington Street in 1999.

But it reopened in 2001, finding a new space for the classic German restaurant, its steins and its stained glass in a small retail center at 305 N. Zeeb Road at the Interstate 94 exit.

The location offered patrons easy parking near the front door, something that they and the Metzger family craved after years of construction of a downtown parking deck stifled sales.

The Metzgers, as well as anyone in Ann Arbor, are in a position to tell the team behind the new Old German: You can make the most of tradition while adapting to a new location.

“It was something we had to do,” said owner John Metzger, grandson of the restaurant’s founder. “… We either had to close for good like the Old German did or move.”

John Metzger worked with his sister, Heidi, and Joe Neely to bring Metzger’s back to life on Zeeb Road. The menu features German recipes that the family served 50 years ago or longer.

There have been changes over the years, beyond the location. The menu now features salads, fish and chicken. And Walter’s grandson, Ryan Dunkelberg, is working in the kitchen. Dunkelberg is even making a new pork sausage that could gain prominence on the menu.

“We try to keep up with changing times,” John said.

But it’s that tradition that truly survives, thanks in part to so many links in the community.

Remember radio host Ted Heusel? His grandfather sponsored the restaurant founder’s immigration to Ann Arbor from Germany in 1923. Wilhelm Metzger then spent a year working at the University of Michigan with future Wolverine football coach Bennie Oosterbaan. An early Metzger’s employee was Herman Weber, who founded the family run Weber’s Inn on the city’s west side.

At one point, Metzger’s was on West Washington, where Wilhelm’s brother, Fritz, owned the Old German and a third brother, Gottfried, owned the nearby Deluxe Bakery.

The Metzgers know their history and they seem to relish telling their stories. Like John Metzger starting to wash glasses at the business - his first job there - when he was 10. And Walter, who saw Hollywood celebrities mingle with Ann Arbor natives at the bar in the 1950s and 1960s. Or the dark days of World War II, when an Ann Arbor News reporter helped debunk damaging rumors about the families’ ties to the German war machine.

And so many in Ann Arbor got to know Ruth Metzger, Walter’s late wife, who greeted customers for decades as the pair worked side-by-side during their 60-year marriage. After the downtown restaurant closed, Walter and Ruth ate frequently on Zeeb Road and Walter still comes in daily at the age of 86.

Even Walter’s favorite food hasn’t changed: Spatzen, with sauerbraten, schnitzel or sausage.

“Those are my three favorites,” Walter said. “And I love the German beer.”

“I think about it every day,” John said about the tradition behind his family’s business. “There’s such history. … Dad and Mom, they put their whole lives into it.”

So has some of the staff, who’ve worked there for a decade or longer. And John’s three siblings worked there, too, despite not choosing it for careers.

“The Metzger family has been so happy and so proud to be in Ann Arbor all these years,” Walter said. “I can’t think of a better place to live than in Ann Arbor, Michigan, or to have a business and to raise our children.”

Now that the link to the family’s early days in the restaurant is returning to the Ann Arbor market, the Metzgers only have good wishes toward the future version of the Old German.

Walter says he looks forward to trying the German beer there. And he said the food always was good at the Old German, and he doesn’t expect that to change, since the original cookbook will be consulted.

Neither Walter nor John expresses concern about competition. They complemented each other in the early days, and the families took turns setting days off and serving holiday meals.

“We were sad when they closed,” John said. “It’ll be nice to have them back.”

Paula Gardner is Community News Director of AnnArbor.com. Reach her by email or follow her on Twitter.

The Old German will open in the lower level at 120 W. Washington this spring. Metzger’s will celebrate its 85th anniversary by year-end with an 85-percent discount for customers.

John Carter, the owner of Carter's Auto Service in Ann Arbor, is operating on a month-to-month lease and might have to vacate his building after it was sold last year.

Joseph Tobianski | AnnArbor.com

For John Carter, it’s business as usual at Carter’s Auto Service on Ann Arbor’s Old West Side, but change could be coming to his 16-year-old repair shop following a building acquisition last year.

City records show the building, located at 507 and 509 S. Ashley St. in the Old West Side Historic District, was sold in August for $225,000 to AQRE529 LLC, registered to Joel Flowers. Flowers is involved with a number of Michigan companies, including Iridium Consulting LLC and Big Buck Brewery & Steakhouse.

Now, Carter said he’s operating on a month-to-month lease and was told by the new owners he might have to vacate the space.

“When they first bought this place in August, (the new owners) said at any point when they give me notice, I have to be out in two months time…they believe they’re going to turn this into a brewpub,” he said.

Carter, also a part time instructor at Washtenaw Community College, opened Carter’s Auto on South Ashley Street in 1996, replacing the long-time Ashley Auto. He was leasing the space month-to-month from Ashley Auto owner Daniel Lyons, who died several years ago, and later from a Lyons family trust. Carter said he shared the building with TC Auto for years, until the owner moved out a few months ago.

The 3,616-square-foot building was listed for sale in 2011 with Colliers International Ann Arbor.

The building at 507 S. Ashley St. in Ann Arbor was sold last year to a brewery owner.

Photo from Colliers

If Carter is told by his new landlords to vacate the building, he hopes to open another auto shop nearby.

“I could be staying indefinitely. I don’t know yet,” he said. “But I’m actively looking around for another location. It would need to be close by in order for my customers to follow me.”

The new building owners did not return multiple requests for comment throughout the past several months. It’s unclear what their plans are for the building, and no permits have been filed with the city of Ann Arbor. City planning manager Wendy Rampson said planning staff discussed brewpub plans with the owner more than a year ago, but the city hasn't heard anything since that time.

Because the Carter’s Auto Service building is located in the city’s Old West Side Historic District, all plans would require approval from the Historic District Commission. Carter said the building needs “major improvements,” including infrastructure repairs to fix leaks.

The property is located in the city’s D2 zoning. It’s also located in the floodplain, meaning there are certain restrictions on building renovations or expansions. Jerry Hancock, the city's stormwater and floodplain programs coordinator, said an expansion to the building would be extremely difficult, but it could be renovated as long as plans receive approval from the HDC.

Founded in 1995, Big Buck Brewery & Steakhouse once operated several brewpubs in Michigan and one in Texas. The only remaining restaurant under the Big Buck name is in Gaylord after a series of financial troubles for the company, several leadership changes, plummeting stock, a bankruptcy filing, and eventually going private.

According to a Detroit Free Press article from 2004, the Wayne County Employees’ Retirement took a $6 million hit from the Big Buck bankruptcy. The county pension system had invested $12 million in the brewpub chain prior to the filing.

The Big Buck Brewery & Steakhouse website says the company makes a line of liquid products, including artisan spirits, beer, wine, soda and cocktail mixers. “We complement our line of liquids with a casual family dining experience, quality food and excellent service,” the website says.

Although Carter hasn’t heard from his new landlords about their plans, he intends to continue operating his auto shop until he’s told to leave. If he moves, he hopes his customers will follow him.

“I have customers going all the way back to 1983,” he said. “I was fixing cars in the area for a long time before I decided to open my own business.”

“I believe Ann Arbor is very attuned to the idea of shopping locally and preferring to come to a place like this rather than spending money on a huge conglomerate company that has locations everywhere,” he continued.

Lizzy Alfs is a business reporter for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at 734-623-2584 or email her at lizzyalfs@annarbor.com. Follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/lizzyalfs.

While the San Francisco 49ers and the Baltimore Ravens take the field for the final football faceoff of the season, Ann Arbor eateries are tackling a different showdown as they prepare to feed hungry fans during Super Bowl Sunday.

A pizza comes out of the oven at Papa John's in Ann Arbor.

Melanie Maxwell I AnnArbor.com file photo

While Super Bowl Sunday doesn’t top a busy football Saturday at the University of Michigan when it comes to total sales, it is the busiest three-hour window of the year, said Chris Bortz, general manager of Pizza House on Church Street. Pizza House will have 40 delivery drivers on the road that day, compared with 20 on most other Sundays. “We’ll have a pizza going out the door every 30 seconds from an hour before the game until half time,” Bortz said.

Pizza and buffalo wings are king on Super Bowl Sunday and orders are super-sized, Bortz said, as people entertain guests. “The average ticket size is double a normal Sunday.”

The same three hours will bring calm to the dine-in end of Pizza House, Bortz said. Diner traffic will be half of a normal Sunday during gametime as fans stay home to watch the game.

“Our drivers have said it’s a good time to be on the road. There’s no traffic,” Bortz said. “They’ll be at a stop light with seven other pizza delivery cars.”

While it’s not the busiest day of the year - that honor usually goes to the day of the Hash Bash - the New York Pizza Depot (NYPD) on East William Street is gearing up for one of its biggest days, said co-owner Domenico Telemaco.

He ordered extra pizza boxes and extra cheese and will have extra staff on board. He expects to be twice as busy as a regular Sunday, especially with the Super Bowl Ann Arbor connection: San Francisco 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh was a star quarterback for University of Michigan in the 1980s and played a season of football at Ann Arbor's Pioneer High School with his brother John Harbaugh, the Ravens coach.

While Telemaco expects the rush to begin around 4 p.m. it will abruptly drop off after half time.

Nationwide, it’s the biggest Sunday of the season for Ann Arbor-based Domino's Pizza, said company spokesman Chris Brandon. The company anticipates delivering more than 11 million pizza slices and 2.5 million chicken wings nationwide on gameday - a nearly 80 percent increase from a typical Sunday. Sales tend to increase when the game is close, he said, and tend to be especially large.

Not everyone wants pizza and buffalo wings. Kanwar Sandhanwalia usually gives himself and his staff at Bandito’s California Style Mexican Restaurant on Fourth Avenue Sundays off. But keeping the catering end of the business open for Super Bowl Sunday is too good to pass up. “It’s an opportunity to get ahead a little,” he said. “It’s not like art fair, but it gives us a boost.” The restaurant will remain closed.

While he doesn’t advertise Super Bowl catering, return customers and word of mouth have brought 33 orders and 484 people to feed this Super Bowl. Orders started to roll in as early as October and Sandhanwalia said he’s not taking any more Super Bowl orders for this year.

His six drivers will deliver the food and a number of customers will pick up their orders before the game. Quesadillas, taquitos and burritos are the most popular Super Bowl grub, he said. His Super Bowl customers, Sandhanwalia said, “want to surprise their guests with anything but beer and pizza

GrubHub, a Chicago-based online and mobile food ordering service that entered the Ann Arbor market in 2011, also is preparing for a hectic Sunday, said Abby Hunt, public relations manager. “Super Bowl Sunday is always a big ordering day for us, especially for pizza and buffalo wings.” They will increase customer service staff for the day, she said.

While Super Bowl Sunday isn’t the biggest day for the Zingerman’s Community of Businesses - think the Wednesday before Thanksgiving at Zingerman’s Bakehouse for that - they do get a football kick, said Peter Sickman-Garner, marketing manager. For instance, Zingerman’s Mail Order promoted its reuben sandwich kit (loaf of rye bread, corned beef, Russian dressing and coleslaw) in its e-newsletter. While they normally sell 10 of the kits on a regular weekend, they sold 50 for this weekend, he said, to customers around the country.

See some more Super Bowl super food facts:

• Pizza House expects to deliver 400 orders in the three-hour Super Bowl rush, from an hour before the game to half time.
• During last year’s game, Domino’s delivered enough pizzas nationwide to stretch across more than 5,000 football fields.
• Domino’s expects to sell 2.5 million chicken wings, a 165 percent increase over a typical Sunday.
• While all of the restaurants take orders over the phone, most are also set up for on-line and mobile apps ordering. Domino’s even has Domino’s Tracker, where customers can see the status of their order. All restaurants suggested ordering ahead.

Janet Miller is a freelance reporter for AnnArbor.com.

One of the very early concerns of our new nation a bit more than two centuries ago was how to meet the threat of a hostile adversary, perhaps even the reemergence of an England seeking revenge. Given the fragility of our infant state and its almost non-existent military might, our Founders understood that “A well-regulated Militia [was] necessary to the security of a free State,” therefor adding the 2nd Amendment to our Constitution asserting “the right of the people to keep and bear Arms . . . ” — a right still in effect and still protected by our nation’s most sacred document.

Since those early days we have established an Army and Navy to protect our rights and developed tanks and battleships and military aircraft to further assist them in those duties. Nevertheless, the ruling of that 2nd Amendment allowing civilians to bear arms still remains an undisputed right.

A display case in Ann Arbor Arms, a gun store in Ann Arbor.

Laura Blodgett | For AnnArbor.com

That should be enough to relieve the concerns of the most impassioned gun owners, but seems not to be. The charge by today’s pro-gun lobbyists accusing our nation’s political leadership of treasonous intentions to confiscate everyone’s guns, is offensive, not only to our leadership, but to the integrity of our system of government. That fear of being out-gunned by an antagonistic nation is now more a reflection of the business-oriented tactics of today’s gun manufacturers than as a serious concern over dangers accompanying the loss of private weapons. Accusing our public officials of trying to subvert the Constitution by confiscating all privately-owned guns is a serious and fanciful insult to our traditions, to our leadership and to the essence of our democratic system.

The gun lobby’s contention, or more specifically the NRA’s, seems to be that guns should be free of restrictions, that magazines (containers holding the ammunition) should be unlimited in capacity and that time between shots should be as nearly instantaneous as possible. The alleged purpose of privately owned guns always had been either for personal protection or as a sport, using them for target shooting or in hunting. In view of its intended end use it is a bit difficult to comprehend the connection between the love of guns and the demand for their most deadly and extreme capabilities.

Demand for the downgrading or elimination of all legal gun restrictions should be measured against the use of the automobile. Cars, fully accepted as an essential part of the routines of our daily lives, receive no special legal or constitutional consideration. Even with such universal acceptance we still impose speed limits, and have instituted seat belt requirements, and have forbidden driving while under the influence of alcohol, and demand regular physical check-ups well into old age. In short, public safety remains a major component of driving regulations. Why should guns be exempt?

Underlying today’s vitriolic discussions of “citizens’ rights” and “democratic principles” and “constitutional protection” is the passion for and the fear of guns. The role of guns has an old and very colorful place in our nation’s history, but in the centuries since the settling of the West our history has changed. The necessity of protecting our homes and families from the lawless chaos of that period’s Wild West, or from the impassioned revenge of some of our cruelly displaced American Indians, escalated the gun trade to the often singular role of protector of the law.

But those days have faded. Now we too often find ourselves seeking protection from our untrained, heavily armed neighbors - and that is a level of security that can be as deadly as the crime.

15-year-old Hao Hao Wang, left, and 12-year-old Yoyo Pao, right, act in the Lohan Teasing Lion program of the Chinese New Year Celebration at Washtenaw Community College in 2012.

AnnArbor.com file photo

Most Michiganders welcomed the New Year several weeks ago. But the tradition of our Chinese friends and neighbors celebrates the new year beginning on Feb. 10.

Michigan, though we are two beautiful peninsulas surrounded by 20 percent of the world’s fresh water, that does not make us an island. As a bell weather state, leading the way on social and political issues of the day, we historically have embraced new cultures and traditions of people who make Michigan their home.

I am proud to say that Gov. Rick Synder grasps the importance of being open to the peoples of the world and has dubbed himself, “the most immigrant friendly governor in America.” Considering all the anti-immigration rhetoric that permeates in some political quarters, here is one aspect of the governor we should all respect. Michigan’s diversity has been and will remain a core strength of our state and nation.

This great state has been built on the diversity of people who came from all across the globe - Germany, Italy, Poland, England, Ireland, Norway, Wales, Italy, Spain and Africa. Those from nearly all corners of the planet have been absorbed into our tapestry of strength. Some arrived in America in search of a better life while some were ripped from their ancestral homes and forced to make this new world their home.

Celebrating our differences makes us collectively stronger

The Chinese New Year 4711 begins on Feb. 10. The Chinese New Year is the longest and most important celebration on the Chinese calendar.

2013 is an especially auspicious year — ushering in the Year of the Snake.

Handed down since ancient times, legend has it that Buddha asked all the animals to meet him on Chinese New Year. Twelve different animals came and Buddha declared that the people born in each animal's year would have some of that creature’s personality.

The characteristics of the Snake are tempered by one of the five Chinese elements of earth, fire, metal, water and wood overlaying a five-year cycle of characteristics on the original 12-year cycle. This year is the year of the water snake.

While Dragon is considered the most powerful and lucky among the 12 Chinese zodiac creatures, the snake most resembles the dragon in appearance and is sometimes called the "Little Dragon."

It is likely some of the aura of the powerful Dragon rubbed off onto the person born in the Year of the Snake and considered likely that success follows the person born in the Year of the Snake during “their” year.

Great opportunities may be presented in the Year of the Snake so persons born in these years (1929, 1941, 1953, 1966, 1977, 1989, 2001, 2013) might maximize their considerable skills, guarding against complacency and indifference.

Those born in snake years are acute, aware, wise, charming, cunning, gregarious, generous, and smart. Water Snakes are influential and insightful. They manage others well to help achieve their aims and goals. Good in organizations, they are generally motivated and intellectual, very determined and resolute about success.

Did I mention I was born in the Year of the Snake?

Others who share the honor of being a ‘Snake person’ include: Brad Pitt, Bob Dylan, Oprah Winfrey, Virginia Woolf, Greta Garbo and Mao.

Here in a state surrounded by the waters of the Great Lakes, let the Chinese New Year create another reminder that with diversity, comes strength.

So, happy New Year, congratulations and be prosperous!

Tom Watkins interest in China was sparked by his fourth grade teacher. He has been working to build two-way educational, cultural and economic bridges with China his entire adult life. He is a former Michigan state superintendent of schools and now is a US/China business and educational consultant. He can be reached at tdwatkins88@gmail.com.

Great Day Gourmet Brownies will be the latest business to open on Cross Street in Ypsilanti.

Daniel Brenner | AnnArbor.com

A new Ypsilanti business, Great Day Gourmet Brownies, is slated to open in February after its opening date was pushed back several times.

Owner J. Doyle said the brownie shop, 301 W. Cross St. will open in February, but he has not set a specific opening date.

"We took over that building in September a year ago and put a bunch of money and time and energy in there," Doyle said. "We were getting ready to open Nov. 22 and we had a power surge the day before opening that fried all of our equipment."

Doyle said he put a claim in with DTE Energy to recoup some of the loss, but the process took months before he was able to move forward with the opening since he had to purchase all new appliances.

Doyle is a chef and has been in the restaurant business for years. He and his wife moved to the Ypsilanti area from Florida shortly after the economic downturn.

"It's a nice little niche market," Doyle said. "I was going to open a kiosk in the mall, but I wanted everything to be fresh. I didn't want to do another restaurant either. I love Ypsilanti and it's one of the best towns I've seen."

The owners had to purchase all new appliances for the shop.

Daniel Brenner | AnnArbor.com

Doyle developed multiple recipes and decided to open a store after receiving inquiries about the brownies.

"I get probably 50 calls a week yelling to open that store," Doyle said. "My brownies are outrageous and we make about 20 flavors of brownies and 20 frostings."

Ypsilanti business owner Mike Eller purchased the building for $139,900 in 2001. The building's assessed value is $39,000. Toarmina's Pizza was previously housed at the location.

Ypsilanti Downtown Development Authority Director Tim Colbeck said the location has been vacant for the past two and half years. Years ago, the building served as one of the original Domino's Pizza locations, he added.

Doyle and his wife will run the business together. They have hired someone to do the bulk of the baking for them, as well as a manager.

"... It's amazing to me that there's so much opportunity here," Doyle said. "Ypsilanti is a place that's sort of a sleeping opportunity."

Katrease Stafford covers Ypsilanti for AnnArbor.com.Reach her at katreasestafford@annarbor.com or 734-623-2548 and follow her on twitter.

The League of Women Voters and the University of Michigan Law School are teaming up to bring a panel discussion on judicial campaign finance to Ann Arbor.

"Dark Money in Judicial Selection: A Threat to Impartial Justice?" will explore perceived problems with the way Michigan selects judges and Supreme Court justices, as well as proposals for reform.

The event takes place from 7-8:30 p.m. Feb. 11 inside Room 250 at Hutchins Hall at the U-M Law School. Admission is free.

Panelists include retired state Supreme Court Justice Marilyn Kelly, Michigan Campaign Finance Network Executive Director Rich Robinson, and Bridget McCormack, the state's newest Supreme Court justice and up until recently a U-M law school professor in Ann Arbor.

Ann Arbor's Bridget McCormack, the state's newest Supreme Court justice, is greeted by cheering supporters at a Democratic Party rally on the University of Michigan campus in November 2012. McCormack, a former U-M law school professor, is one of three panelists who will be discussing judicial campaign finance at a Feb. 11 forum on campus.

Ryan J. Stanton | AnnArbor.com

In the 2012 election, 75 percent — or close to $11 million — in ad spending for Supreme Court candidates could not be linked to identifiable donors, according to the Michigan LWV.

Judges aren't supposed to hear cases involving major donors, but the LWV asks: How are voters supposed to know if judges should recuse themselves when the money is spent behind the scenes?

"Voters have the right to know who is paying for the ads that are trying to influence their vote," said Susan Smith, president of the LWV in Michigan.

McCormack, a Democrat, commented on the money spent on negative attack ads in her race after her win in the November election.

"In my particular race, there was $1 million from a D.C. Super PAC spent against me just in the last week," she said. "I think that's not the best use of our time and our money and not the best way to pick a court. Nobody knows who funds that Super PAC and what they think they're buying, right?"

After the event in Ann Arbor, the LWV is holding three more panel discussions on judicial campaign finance, including one on Feb. 12 at Schoolcraft College in Livonia, one on March 11 at Oakland University in Rochester and one on March 12 at Cooley Law School in Lansing.

The Michigan LWV is a nonpartisan organization that encourages informed and active participation in government, works to increase understanding of public policy issues and influences public policy through education and advocacy. It does not support candidates for political office.

Ryan J. Stanton covers government and politics for AnnArbor.com. Reach him at ryanstanton@annarbor.com or 734-623-2529. You also can follow him on Twitter or subscribe to AnnArbor.com's email newsletters.

Many people who tune in to Super Bowl XLVII aren't exactly watching just for the sport — they're just as interested in the commercials between plays.

The ad space, which consists of around 50 spots according to a report on MLive, is some of the most coveted airtime all year.

The Superdome, where the NFL Super Bowl XLVII football game between the San Francisco 49ers and Baltimore Ravens will be played Sunday, is seen at sunset Friday, in New Orleans.

AP Photo/Charlie Riedel

In 2012, commercial time went for around $3 million for 30 seconds of air time, but has been increased to about $3.8 million for the same 30-second spot, reported another story on MLive. Advertisers are expected to end up spending more this year than last year's record-breaking $262 million.

In past years, the automotive industry takes up the most commercial space during the game, with one in six of the 30-second slots being auto-related, MLive reported.

Ranging from silly to sexy, MLive compiled some of the most anticipated auto-related ads for viewers hoping to catch a sneak peek before the big game, which begins at 6:30 p.m. Sunday on CBS.

See the complete list of videos in the MLive article.

While in Ann Arbor, Schulz will also present workshops to students at the University of Michigan, as one of four media professionals hosted by the university’s Program in the Environment (PitE). Through hands-on exercises and projects, students in these workshops will bring environmental issues to life in ways not achieved in a classroom or lab.

“I have always been driven by a tremendous passion for wild places,” Schulz once said of his work in conservation photography. “A landscape free of human imprint speaks to me of something ancient, something real.”

Schulz’s presentation is sponsored by the University of Michigan School of Natural Resources and Environment (SNRE), and the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences.

For more information, visit http://www.lsa.umich.edu/pite/events.

Matt Schaecher holds a Boston terrier named Riley in the aftermath of the freeway pileup on I-75 in Detroit Thursday. Schaecher put Riley in the ambulance with owner Heather Ramsey. Both have recovered.

AP photo

The firefighter cradling a shivering dog in a photo widely shared on the Internet after the massive freeway pileup on Interstate 75 Thursday in Detroit is Humane Society of Huron Valley lead cruelty investigator Matt Schaecher.

Schaecher, who works as a Detroit firefighter, was among those who responded to the mile-long series of freeway crashes that occurred Thursday in whiteout conditions. The chain-reaction crashes killed three people, including two children, injured many others and involved dozens of vehicles.

Emergency personnel respond at the scene of one of a mile-long series of crashes along Interstate 75 on the southwest side of Detroit Thursday.

AP photo

“I asked her if she was OK and she said no she needed help. She said ‘I think my dog might be injured.' ” She told Schaecher the dog, a Boston terrier named Riley, had been bounced around in the crash.

Schaecher held the dog, a Boston terrier named Riley, and checked him out while other emergency workers got the woman, Heather Ramsey of Ferndale, out of the car and onto a gurney.

“He was shaking almost uncontrollably,” Schaecher said. “Probably a combination of being extremely scared and cold.” Fortunately the dog was not injured.

Once Ramsey got to an ambulance, Schaecher put Riley in with her.

Ramsey has since been released from the hospital and was featured in a segment on Detroit television station WJBK. “There’s really no way I should’ve survived and I did,” she told the station.

The photo, taken by a Detroit News photographer David Coates, was featured in the Huffington Post and has been widely shared on social networking sites.

Schaecher lives in Plymouth Township and commutes east to Detroit two days a week to work as a firefighter and west to the Humane Society in Washtenaw County's Superior Township the rest of the time.

Schaecher said he thinks the image of him cradling the dog has given people something positive to latch onto in the midst of the horror of the crash.

“Obviously any accident scene or any emergency scene that involves children is extremely difficult,” he said. My heart just goes out to the families of the people that have lost loved ones. I can’t imagine being in that position.”

Watch the WJBK interview with Ramsey below:

Fox 2 News Headlines

Cindy Heflin is associate news director at AnnArbor.com. Contact her at 734-623-2572 or cindyheflin@annarbor.com or follow her on Twitter.

The National Weather Service has issued a winter weather advisory for rush hour Monday morning. The Pittsfield Township Department of Public Safety sent out a Nixle alert Sunday afternoon to alert motorists.

Steve Considine, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in White Lake Township, said they are expecting 2 to 3 inches of snow between 6 a.m. and 2 p.m. Monday. He said drivers should take precaution when traveling the roads.

Monday will be overcast with a high of 23 degrees and low of 10 degrees, followed by the same high on Tuesday, with a low of 21 degrees.

The alert says visibility will be reduced in the morning and roads could get slippery.

See updated weather information on AnnArbor.com's weather page.

Two cars collided near the intersection of Chapin and West Huron streets Sunday afternoon.

Daniel Brenner I AnnArbor.com

A two-car collision occurred near the intersection of Chapin and West Huron streets Sunday afternoon.

The driver of one of the cars told AnnArbor.com there were no injuries and no one was sent to the hospital.

The Ann Arbor Police Department did not have any additional information available.

Photographer Daniel Brenner contributed to this report.

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