Game #147 of 364 40% complete

Game #147 of 364 40% complete

My third and final game of my Michigan trip took me across the state line to Toledo, Ohio, about an hour from Detroit. The rocket in the photo above represents the team’s nickname, and seeing an actual rocket on campus was another first for Operation 351. Once again, I was blessed with free parking right across the street from the arena.

During a pre game ceremony, one of the seniors graduating from the Whitewash Blue Crew was unmasked to the delight of the crowd. From the university website, this is a description of the crew:

Blue Crew is a secret society of spirited individuals who represent the pride inside of every Rocket. This crazy 10-member organization consisting of UToledo students is fully dedicated to instituting, reviving, and maintaining The University of Toledo’s Traditions.

Each member is hidden under an assumed identity and name. The members are only revealed at the end of the season of their graduating year or after they have faithfully served in the position for four full semesters.

Blue Crew travels to all home and away football games as well as both men’s and women’s basketball games dressed in blue and yellow Afro wigs, gold masks, painters overalls (decorated individually by each member), and Converse All-Stars shoes.

I present to you the Whitewash Blue Crew.

Freshman point guard Leon Blyden Jr. led the Rockets with 20 points. Blyden, the Michigan Mr. Basketball runner-up, averaged 21.3 points per game as a high school senior — making it all the more surprising that he slipped past the in-state programs.

Also impressive for the Rockets was Austin Parks, who went a perfect 7-for-7 from the field and 3-for-4 at the line to finish with 17 points. The Ohio State transfer has clearly found a comfortable home in Toledo’s system.

Toledo has now beaten Detroit Mercy eight years in a row. With Detroit Mercy competing in the Horizon League and Toledo in the Mid-American Conference, it raises a good question: what’s the difference between a league and a conference when it comes to grouping teams? In short, there really isn’t one—both terms refer to collections of schools organized for athletics. Some organizations prefer the word league, others conference, but functionally they serve the same purpose.

If you’re ever in the Detroit area, you must visit the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn. Whatever you think belongs in a museum is probably there—planes, trains, automobiles, and exhibits that touch nearly every chapter of American history. Henry Ford established the museum in 1928, and in the lobby you’ll find a stone bearing Ford’s signature and a shovel pressed into the concrete by Thomas Edison.

I could go on for pages about this incredible place, but two cars in particular captivated me. The first was the limousine President Reagan was riding in when he was shot; you can still see a small dent in the door. The second was the actual vehicle in which President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. I’ll admit, I stood there for a long moment, staring into the back seat and imagining the history that unfolded there.

Goodbye, Michigan! You weren’t nearly as cold as I imagined. The heavy winter coat, hat, and gloves turned out to be completely unnecessary.