Ufer was born in Cleveland, Ohio and grew up in the Pittsburgh suburb of Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania.[5] His father Clarence was a lumber broker who had been on the track team during his time at the University of Michigan.[5][6] Ufer was a track star at Mercersburg Academy, competing under coach Jimmy Curran, and was part of the 440 yard relay team that broke the world scholastic record with a time of 42.2 seconds. This feat earned Ufer and his relay teammates—Jack Watt, Austin Kellam, and Paxson "Pax" Gifford—a place on the Penn Relays Wall of Fame.[7]
Ufer called Wolverines football on Ann Arbor radio station WPAG from 1945 to 1976 and on Detroit's WJR from 1977 to 1981. He is remembered for his exuberant, partisan broadcasting style, openly rooting for Michigan.[15][16] Ufer's trademarks included pronouncing "Michigan" as "Meee-chigan," in the style of Fielding Yost, and honking a horn that had been used on General George Patton's jeep after every Michigan score.[17][18]
Personal life
Ufer graveUfer Building
Outside of broadcasting, Ufer was a life insurance salesman who founded his own company, Ufer & Co. Insurance, in 1947.[19] The offices of Ufer & Co. Insurance, which had been sold by Ufer's sons in 2009 to Kapnick Insurance Group, were moved to a location adjacent to Briarwood Mall to a building renamed "The Ufer Building" in his honor.[20][21]
On October 26, 1981, nine days after his last broadcast, Ufer died at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit after a three-year battle with cancer.[22] He was survived by his wife Phyllis and seven children.[23] Former Michigan defensive coordinatorJim Herrmann told The Michigan Daily in 1995, "Bob Ufer was Michigan football. That's what he lived and died for. I think he would have liked being described that way."[24] Ufer was buried at Forest Hill Cemetery in Ann Arbor.[25]
^Wojciechowski, Gene (November 14, 2006). "From the sound of it, Ufer remains a Wolverine legend". ESPN. Retrieved January 14, 2021. In fact, I'm not sure whether some station managers even would hire Ufer these days. Think about it: He referred to himself in the third person, pronounced Michigan, "Meeee-chigan," and he honked a horn after every Wolverine extra point, field goal and touchdown.
^"The Ufer Group". Retrieved January 14, 2021. The Ufer Group is an independent, family-owned insurance agency that has served the Ann Arbor community since 1947.
^Lapointe, Joe (October 27, 1981). "Voice of Wolverines, Bob Ufer, Falls Silent". The Detroit Free Press. p. 1.
^Lapointe, Joe (October 27, 1981). "Voice of Wolverines, Bob Ufer, Falls Silent". The Detroit Free Press. p. 6A.
^Reid, Andy (November 18, 2009). "Andy Reid: Bob Ufer at practice? Rodriguez definitely 'understands' this rivalry". The Michigan Daily. Retrieved January 14, 2021. Bob Ufer was Michigan football," former defensive coordinator Jim Herrmann told the Daily in 1995. "That's what he lived and died for. I think he would have liked being described that way.
