From Wolverine to Wellness: Detroit Jerky’s Connection To Michigan Football
By Doug Cohen
Here at Detroit Jerky we are proud to announce that we are now sponsors of the Football Alumni Of Michigan! Now if you’re a Buckeye, a Spartan or any other non-Wolverine before you hit the “X” you may want to keep reading. You see, Detroit Jerky’s connection to Michigan Football goes beyond just cheering for the Maize and Blue and no one else or anything like that…
I mean, sure that’s part of it…. okay I kid I kid (but not totally hehe).
But A) we come by it honestly and B) there’s more to it that is way more universal (that’s the part that’s for all of you).
From Wolverine…
The short version of “Part A” is that I grew up around Michigan Football when my older brother Jeff played there – he was 10 years older than me so I was 9 when he got there. I knew all the players, we went to all the games and we went to 5 straight bowl games as a family (2 Rose, 1 Gator, 1 Bluebonnet and 1 Sugar where my brother tackled Bo Jackson for a loss). It was a dream to grow up with that experience.
10 years later I got my own chance to wear the winged helmet, run out of that tunnel in front of over 105k fans at the Big House and win multiple Big Ten Championships. We won it every year I was there.
I was a bit undersized as an outside linebacker at that level and I needed to bulk up and put on some weight. Actually I had been working at that since my sophomore year in high school when it was clear that I had a football future ahead of me even at 6’1″ and 167 lbs at 15. By the time I tore my ACL as a sophomore at Michigan I was 225 lbs and repping that weight on the bench press 20 times.
I developed physically by working damn hard in the weight room and EATING. A LOT. It was nothing for me to go to McDonald’s and order a few Big Macs and scarf them down like it was nothing. Subway – a footlong and a half of steak and cheese with double meat. Whole Cottage Inn pizzas, 5 or 6 items at Taco Bell…. I’d even go to McDonald’s after Taco Bell… I had teammates who would laugh about how much I ate – remember these were other Big Ten football players.
It was kind of a badge of honor. And actually that’s how I grew up because all three of us brothers played college football (my brother Dan was a 4 year starter at Eastern Michigan). So around the dinner table it was “snooze you lose” and my dad (who was also a college football player at Brockport State and afterwards in the Navy – that’s him below in the 1950’s) could eat any of us under the table. My poor mom lol…
So after I finished college I obviously scaled back my eating habits and I’ve never been completely out of shape. I yo-yo a little, I have struggled with willpower here and there, and I had always been a carnivore. There was some history of heart trouble in my family but I didn’t have to worry about that in my 30’s or 40’s….right?
To Wellness…
Well thank goodness I didn’t have a big serious health crisis, BUT I went to the doctor for a checkup about 7 years (?) ago and this time he was concerned about my cholesterol. My blood pressure was on the high side of normal and with my age and family history he told me I’d be going on a statin medication soon if I didn’t address it.
I didn’t want to do that and I got nervous.
Now you may hear that football players – offensive linemen in particular either drop all that extra weight and get small after they’re done playing or they just get bigger and bigger – they don’t usually stay the same. Personally as a linebacker I had more or less stayed the same, sometimes smaller, sometimes bigger – never huge. My teammate Marc Ramirez (a lineman) got bigger, and alarmingly unhealthy. Type two diabetes, tons of meds – a ticking time bomb.
Marc took control. He went completely vegan – whole food plant-based. Dropped all the excess weight, reversed his diabetes, and became a healthy human. He and his wife Kim have helped a lot of people learn to do this as their brand Chickpea and Bean including plenty of our teammates. I knew this when I saw him at a football reunion event in Ann Arbor shortly after that doctor’s visit. I simply asked him to tell me about it.
What he said just made too much sense. So I went plant based. Just like that. And my cholesterol dropped like an anvil in 6 months. I haven’t had a problem with it since.
And now here we are the owners of a vegan jerky company!
Detroit Jerky’s Connection to Michigan Football
Football is brutal. At that level especially it’s a bit of a meat grinder (pun intended). Guys go through a LOT physically and mentally and don’t always come out of it in one piece. Physically your body gets way built up and then way battered. Mentally you get way tough and also way tested and pushed to the very limits. You compete at the highest level, but to be a part of Michigan Football and for many the expectations (internal and external), the fame, the pressure that goes with it? The inevitable adjustment when it’s all abruptly over? It’s a lot. Not everyone is equipped to handle it when they are there and even less equipped to handle it when it’s over. Add to that a possible case of CTE for some, and many guys need help – a lot of help.
So it’s a cause that’s important to me. I love my teammates – my brothers. And for the Michigan Football Alumni who get involved the fraternity is strong no matter what decade you played in. FAM provides assistance as a 501c3 for former team members in need and if we can do that even in a small way to help save guys from hardship or worse we’re going to do it. FAM’s Teammate Assistance Program (TAP) helps former team members with a wide range of services. Could be medical, could be financial, could be helping someone to get back on their feet in a number of ways. As I said, guys just need help. The Michigan network is a powerful network in that everyone with a stake whether former team members, alums, or just supporters and fans feel a strong affinity towards such a special place. Personally it’s no surprise to me that I had a life changing conversation just because I was at a football alumni event chatting with another Michigan Man. Plenty of what makes Michigan special overall was created by these former players and it’s time to give back to them. We feel fortunate to be able to do it with a brand that promotes a healthier lifestyle with a yummy vegan snack.
And think about it – if you wore a Michigan jersey with someone’s number on it in the days wayyyyy before NIL and used it to show your Michigan pride? If Michigan’s success enriched your life, helped you make connections, brought you and your friends and family together and you knew that the guys who wore those numbers were struggling with football related problems now…? Wouldn’t you want to help?
Get Involved
It’s not the only organization we’ll get involved with, but owning this brand we believe in so strongly gives us an opportunity to make a difference with causes that are meaningful to us. We’ve been doing it for years with our other business Frameable Faces Photography. It’s not political and we’re not here to get super preachy, but we feel that there are a couple of takeaways here that everyone can relate to and do on some level in the following ways:
Eat more plants and less animals. Don’t @ me. If you’re a died-in-the-wool carnivore I get it. I was one too. But think about your health. Think about your loved ones. Think about the planet. Cut back. Try our jerky and use it along with other plant sources as your protein one day per week. If you “survive” that then try two days. Keep going. Your arteries and your Earth will thank you.
Consider supporting FAM if you’re a Michigan fan – as a Michigan based company we know there will be some Michigan fans who read this. But this applies to many endeavors. Anyone who thrilled you (your favorite football team), protected you (veterans for example), entertained you (musicians / actors) and have paid a price for it in whatever way – consider helping out and giving back. And to be clear I’m NOT saying don’t give to the other obvious charities which feed the homeless or try to cure cancer. Get involved with them too! This just happens to be one we’re involved in that we wanted you to know about with the backstory that led us there.
And as always…..Get Your Jerky and Go Blue!
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