Love was in the air at Michigan Stadium during a recent Big House Tour.
After running through the tunnel and on the field, Kelly Rocks, MSW’18, and her then-boyfriend, Brad Bresnahan, took some photos and soaked in the view of the iconic stadium on Oct. 27.
Near the end of their time on the field, Bresnahan suggested taking some photos at the 50-yard-line right on the block M — one serious, and one funny.
“I’m not very funny, so I turned to him and said, ‘What do you want to do for a funny one?’” Rocks recalled. “And he said, ‘How about this?’ and dropped to one knee.”
Bresnahan pulled out a ring and popped the question.
“He got me. I was so surprised,” Rocks said.
The couple from Woodridge, Illinois, came to Ann Arbor for what was supposed to be a birthday weekend for Bresnahan. The couple played U-M’s Golf Course on Friday, watched the football team beat Michigan State on Saturday, and took the Alumni Association’s Big House Tour on Sunday.
As it turns out, the engagement was actually more than a year in the making, as Bresnahan had hoped to do it during last season, but the couple was unable to make it to a football game and Big House Tour.
Bresnahan has been a fan of U-M football for many years and U-M holds a very special place in Rocks’ heart from her time on campus getting her master’s degree.
“Ann Arbor, as a whole, is just one of her happy places,” Bresnahan said about why he wanted to ask for her hand in marriage at U-M.
Rocks said since they started dating, they’ve tuned into every football game together.
“Watching the game together is something that is very special for us,” she said.
For the wedding itself, the couple said they are targeting a late fall or early winter date in 2026, and are considering venues on campus, including the Michigan League and Michigan Union. But they do have one part of the wedding already worked out.
“Our last song of the night will be ‘Mr. Brightside’ as an ode to Michigan,” Rocks said. “They play it at the start of the fourth quarter to wrap up the game, so why not wrap up our wedding that way?”
Jeremy Carroll is the content strategist for the Alumni Association of the University of Michigan.
