The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/178977
Maize And Blue Memories An Excerpt From A New Book About Michigan Football By Steve Kornacki N ote about the author: Steve Kornacki covered the University of Michigan football beat at The Ann Arbor News and Detroit Free Press, telling gripping stories and breaking news on the Wolverines over two decades. Desmond Howard: David Letterman And The Heisman Trophy Weekend When Desmond Howard received the formal invitation from the Downtown Athletic Club of New York as a finalist for the 1991 Heisman Trophy, I had one simple question for him: "Who do you like better, Leno or Letterman?" Desmond immediately answered, "Letterman, for sure. I watch the guy almost every night—cracks me up." I then asked Desmond if he wanted to see Late Show with David Letterman the night before the December 14 Heisman presentation. "Absolutely, man," he said. "Can you get tickets?" I told Desmond that I could, and he was excited about it. The year before, while covering the NCAA Basketball Tournament, I wanted to write about Letterman's infatuation with his alma mater, Ball State, which had advanced to the Sweet 16. The unheralded Cardinals had beaten Oregon State and Louisville to become Cinderellas, and Letterman took joy in celebrating them in his nightly monologues. So I got in touch with his office at NBC-TV and asked for an interview. One of Letterman's assistants told me, "Dave doesn't want to do a phone interview but likes your story idea. He asked that you fax me three questions, and I'll fax back his answers to you." That worked for me.