INDIANAPOLIS — There was a moment
in Saturday’s game, deep in the fourth
quarter once Michigan’s lead had swelled
to 35-3, when Jim Harbaugh and Aidan
Hutchinson flashed across the Lucas Oil
Stadium big screen.
The seventh-year Michigan coach and
senior defensive end locked eyes. They
screamed in each other’s face and whacked
one another across the chest. And the crowd
— delirious, jubilant and rollicking — roared
in appreciation.
Later in the night, with remnants of maize
streamers and blue confetti still draped to
their clothes, the pair convened again. They
sat side-by-side and smile-by-smile as newly-
minted Big Ten champions.
“For
guys
to
live
on,
really,
in
Schembechler Hall forever, I mean, this
picture is going to be up there on the All-
American wall,” Harbaugh said, grappling
with the magnitude of the victory. “Every
guy on the team in the team picture is going
to be up there as part of a Big Ten champion.
We’ve got a banner in Glick Fieldhouse that’s
going to say Big Ten Champion.”
Last week’s stunning performance against
Ohio State thrust this iteration of Wolverines
into the history books. But, as has been a
common thread throughout this magical
season, neither the players nor the coaches
were satisfied. They wanted more.
Now, after a 42-3 shellacking of Iowa, they
have it.
“We fully believed that at some point or
another during our legacy something would
happen, something would put Michigan back
on top,” sixth-year center Andrew Vastardis
said. “And I think every guy that’s come in
here after I got here has just bought into
that and done everything they can to make it
happen.”
Did Harbaugh ever think that this moment
would come?
“Nobody’s owed anything,” he said.
“Nobody’s entitled to anything.”
And Hutchinson?
“That was obviously one of the goals going
into the season, but there’s no guarantees in
life, no guarantees that you’re going to win
anything.”
Harbaugh is well-versed in that lesson by
now. He returned to his alma mater seven
years but a lifetime ago, hailed as the savior
destined to rescue a tradition-rich program
from the abyss. He re-entered the college
football sphere with flair, charisma and a
brash confidence.
Those blissful images were distant
memories this time last year, when it seemed
as if Harbaugh’s tenure was careening
towards a rather unfulfilling end. The
Wolverines were dysfunctional — at 2-4 and
in the throes of a COVID-19 outbreak, they
seemed direction-less. It was certainly a far
cry from any restoration of glory days.
Just look at the difference 12 months can
make.
As the seconds on the clock melted away
Saturday night, a trio of Michigan coaches
rumbled through the pressbox in search of
the elevator; they fled the upstairs coaches’
box to join the pending celebration on the
field.
Offensive coordinator Josh Gattis hugged
safeties
coach
Ron
Bellamy;
Bellamy
returned the favor to graduate assistant Grant
Newsome. They acted like a group of eager,
wide-eyed kids, impatiently murmuring
about the elevator’s status and debating
whether the stairs would be faster.
After the game, the scene unfolded
similarly. Redshirt sophomore edge rusher
David Ojabo stood at the entrance of the
tunnel and took an endless stream of videos
with fans. Those same fans informed junior
quarterback Cade McNamara that they love
him.
And Athletic Director Warde Manuel —
the man who offered Harbaugh a contract
extension last January, entrusting the
embattled coach with the program’s future —
pumped his fist and offered a “Go Blue” while
he exchanged a hug with sophomore safety
R.J. Moten.
Meanwhile, in the Michigan locker
room, talk of “2%” and “6-6” abounded,
both references to the meager odds that
sportsbooks and pundits pegged for these
Wolverines entering the season.
“Sometimes, just some of the stuff that’s
out there, you just take it and ride with it,”
sixth-year center Andrew Vastardis smirked.
“Fuel to the fire.”
Twelve games and a Big Ten Championship
later, Michigan certainly has.
“We’ve gone under some scrutiny, we
know that,” McNamara said. “And we’ve
battled through. We’re just such a great
group of guys who just care about each other.
We’ve really had that mentality of ‘Michigan
versus everybody.’ ”
This is a group that Harbaugh refers to as
the “mighty men and women of Michigan
football.” He recites the reasons for that
moniker ad nauseum — their work ethic,
their day-to-day approach, their affable
personality, their togetherness.
“I love this team,” Harbaugh gushed.
“There’s no team I love more than this team.”
That’s high praise coming from a noted
football-lifer like Harbaugh. It’s also a
sentiment that goes both ways.
“One of the first things I thought of after
we won was Coach Harbaugh,” McNamara,
his eyes washed red from tears, said. “… After
last season, it was so tough and not just for us
players but for coach Harbaugh as well.
“And we know that there’s not one person
who cares about Michigan more than Coach
Harbaugh. This team, we came together. We
want to win for Coach Harbaugh, too. We’re
just so happy that we were able to give him
that joy because he deserves it.”
Moments later, McNamara left the
podium and ducked into the locker room,
trophy in tow. Vastardis followed him, along
with sophomore running back Blake Corum.
Out of sight, but certainly not out of mind.
Harbaugh and his Wolverines, immortalized
together.
‘I love this team’: Michigan relishing legacy as champions
Becca Mahon/Daily, Miles
Macklin/Daily | Page Design by
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S P O R T S W E D N E S D A Y
S P O R T S W E D N E S D A Y
JARED GREENSPAN
Daily Sports Editor
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