[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 114 (Thursday, September 14, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1721]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page E1721]]
                      TRIBUTE TO M&M FOOTBALL GAME

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. BART STUPAK

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 14, 2006

  Mr. STUPAK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a time 
honored tradition observed in my district and, specifically, in my 
hometown of Menominee, Michigan. Nearly every year, since 1894, 
Menominee High School's football team, known as the Maroons, has played 
their rivals just across the Wisconsin border, the Marinette High 
School Marines. The annual rivalry is known as the M&M (Marinette & 
Menominee) game. In many ways, it parallels the annual contest in the 
professional football between the Chicago Bears and the Green Bay 
Packers, another longstanding rivalry.
  Since 1894, the M&M game has developed into one of the oldest 
interstate athletic competitions in the United States. In fact, until 
2005, the National Federation of State High School Associations 
recognized the M&M game as the oldest interstate series in the United 
States. Last year, the National Federation of State High School 
Associations found that two other interstate athletic series were 
older. Nonetheless, the proud tradition of the M&M game remains the 
oldest interstate high school football competition in the Midwest and 
the third oldest in the nation.
  To understand what this competition means to the people of Menominee 
and Marinette, one needs to know a little about the area. These two 
communities are separated only by the Menominee River, which serves as 
the state border. The communities are so closely tied together 
economically that in many ways the residents think of the two cities as 
one, disregarding the state border that separates the two states.
  However, every fall, town pride boils up and the team colors come out 
as the two towns prepare for the annual game. Together, Marinette and 
Menominee are transformed into an exceptional Midwestern fall festival 
as area residents organize a celebration of this great tradition. 
Through events like parades, tug of war contests, battles of the drums, 
a community yell contest, a powder puff game, fireworks and a bonfire, 
the people of Menominee and Marinette celebrate their shared history 
through good natured competition.
  Over the years, the Menominee-Marinette competition has produced a 
whole range of football stars, many of whom went on to play football 
for Big Ten schools like the University of Wisconsin, the University of 
Michigan and Michigan State University. The two schools have also 
produced athletes who played in the National Football League. A 
particularly remarkable photo from 1958 shows three NFL players--Billy 
Wells, Dick Deschaine, and Earl ``Gug'' Girard. All three were on the 
field at the same time during a Pittsburgh Steelers-Cleveland Browns 
game and, interestingly, all three hail from the Menominee-Marinette 
area.
  This year is particularly important for these two communities and for 
this tradition. While this rivalry originated in 1893, for a variety of 
reasons, the two schools did not play each other a few years, making 
2006 the year that Menominee and Marinette will play their one-
hundredth game. The Marinette-Menominee community will mark this 
centennial with a number of special events, including the first ever 
M&M Twin Cities Parade, the first parade that will originate in 
Menominee, proceed through town, cross the Menominee River and the 
Wisconsin border and then finish in Marinette, Wisconsin. Every year, 
the teams rotate where the game will be played and this year the game 
will take place at Higley field in Marinette, Wisconsin.
  Mr. Speaker, high school football is a uniquely American institution 
and tradition that brings our communities together. Rivalries between 
neighboring schools serve to remind us of our roots and why our 
hometowns are special to each of us. The older and deeper the rivalry, 
the greater the passion it elicits from fans and alums. The Menominee-
Marinette rivalry is unique in many ways. Holding the title of the 
third oldest interstate high school competition makes this game 
special.
  Perhaps what is most unique about the annual M&M game is that such an 
intense rivalry draws two communities together into a spirit of shared 
kinship. These two cities, separated only by a river and a state line, 
rediscover their unique identities every fall by rooting for the 
Marinette Marines or the Menominee Maroons. At the same time that these 
two communities celebrate their rivalry, they also acknowledge their 
longstanding shared history.
  As the Menominee Maroons and the Marinette Marines prepare to don 
their respective maroon and purple uniforms for their one-hundredth 
game, I ask that the U.S. House of Representatives join me in saluting 
the players of today and yesterday as well as these two communities for 
continuing this unique tradition.

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