The Wolverine

December 2014

The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports

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T he Michigan family is mourning the loss of three former athletes this fall, most recently hockey standout Wally Grant, the program's first three-time All- American and a key member of Michigan's first national championship team in 1948. He died Nov. 5 at 86 years old. Grant remained involved in the Michigan hockey program long after graduation, serving as president of the Dekers Blue Line Club while also holding membership in the Graduate "M" Club and Michigan's Victors Club. He was the first former player to support an endowed scholarship for Michigan hockey, establishing the Mickey and Wally Grant Ice Hockey Scholarship. "Wally and I became good friends in 1984 when I came back to coach the team," head coach Red Berenson said. "Although his career was outstanding, his relationship with the program was even more outstanding. He and his wife Mickey have been solid supporters in every regard. They've done whatever it takes to support this hockey team and all of the players and the program in general. "Wally did it in such a happy, supportive, positive way. You just can't say enough about his contributions to Michigan. We're all going to miss him. He was a terrific guy, a great friend, and in his day he was a terrific player." An Eveleth, Minn., native, Grant took a bus from Duluth to Ann Arbor in 1945 in an effort to secure a spot on the Michigan hockey team. He phoned Michigan athletics director Fritz Crisler, who put them in touch with Michigan hockey head coach Vic Heyliger — Heyliger would later call Grant the best two- way hockey player he had ever seen. The 5-8, 165-pound left wing played four years of varsity hockey at Michigan, missing the 1946-47 season after serving 18 months in the United States Military. He returned in January 1948 to help lead Michigan to its first national championship, forming the formidable "G Line" along with center Wally Gacek and right wing Ted Greer. Inside Michigan ATHLETICS Three Former Michigan Athletes Pass Away Hockey standout Wally Grant was the program's f i r s t t h r e e - t i m e A l l - American and a key mem- ber of Michigan's first national championship team in 1948. PHOTO COURTESY MICHIGAN ATHLETIC MEDIA RELATIONS

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