pupil’s failures — it’s their job to handle them properly. And if Manuel and his department can’t, they’re the ones who should be held accountable. Winning programs don’t excuse that. Stoll can be reached at nkstoll@umich.edu and on Twitter @nkstoll. The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com Wednesday, December 7, 2022 — 11 Despite second straight Big Ten championship, Michigan’s focus lies on the national title SPENCER RAINES Daily Sports Editor drove me so much that this vic- tory tonight doesn’t really feel like anything,” McCarthy said after the game. “That’s something that’s really hard to come by. I mean, back-to-back Big Ten Champion- ships is amazing, but just that feel- ing that we had last year, this is just in the way of making sure that feel- ing never happens again.” It’s a difficult position to be in, but it’s also an enviable one. For McCarthy and Edwards, they’re at a point where accomplishments like Saturday night don’t mean all that much to them. They want more, the Wolverines want more. Michigan just captured its 13th victory, its most wins in a season in program history. And yet, there is no trophy for that accomplish- ment, no banner to hang — it’s simply what’s expected of college football’s elite. It’s obvious that the Wolverines want to be in the upper echelon of their sport. Edwards proclaimed that much to everyone inside Lucas Oil Stadium, moments after accepting the Big Ten title game MVP trophy. “I mean it’s kinda self-explana- tory what our goals are,” Edwards said. “I believe we’ve talked about it all year. And it’s not really much more that needs to be said. … Let’s go do what our main goal is.” Michigan’s goals have been to beat its rivals, win the Big Ten, make the College Football Playoff and win the National Champion- ship. The Wolverines have been very upfront about those goals all year, they’ve worn them unabashedly on their sleeve. But now it’s dif- ferent. Now, they are on the doorstep of their hearts’ desire — they’re just two wins away from a national title. Michigan’s dreams of winning a national championship are tan- gible. And McCarthy recognizes that. “I love our chances,” McCar- thy said. “Last year it was kind of the bright lights, everything was new, Big Ten Championship, Col- lege Football Playoff. Going into the offseason it gave us so much momentum, and we knew that we could get there, and we could get back. Ultimately, this whole offseason it was about winning it. “Everything is great that hap- pened today. But job is not fin- ished. We’ve got a lot bigger plans in mind.” It’s really that simple. The Wolverines want to win a national championship, and they believe that they can. Everything that has happened over the past year has just brought Michigan closer to its end goal. Maybe that’s a rematch with Georgia for the national champi- onship, maybe it isn’t. Just which- ever team it plays, the Wolverines hope that they aren’t, once again, the team learning what it’s like to play with the big dogs. Or the team taking moral victories instead of taking a trophy. Michigan wants to be the team celebrating. And if there’s one thing to take from the Wolver- ines, it’s that they unequivocally think they will. Sports FOOTBALL SportsMonday: Don’t let winning distract you from the athletic department’s failures In sports, one thing is put above all else: winning. Excuses are made for cheat- ers and gamblers on the tame end, and domestic abusers and sex offenders on the extreme end. But as long as they help your team win, it’s OK. Because in sports, that’s all that matters, right? Right? And Michigan is winning. The football team just claimed its second straight Big Ten Title — accomplishing the feat for the first time since 2003-04 — and secured consec- utive College Football Playoff appearances for the first time in program history. The men’s basketball team has made five straight Sweet 16s. The wom- en’s basketball team reached unprecedented heights, mak- ing the Elite Eight in last year’s tournament. The hockey team made it to the Frozen Four once again. The gymnastics teams bring home banners, individual wrestlers have claimed titles and the suite of other varsity sports have found great success. That success across the entire athletic department has been forged by hard work, dedi- cation and — of course — moral compromise. Because who needs account- ability when you’re winning? First, turn your eyes to the Big Ten Championship MVP and sophomore running back Donovan Edwards. After retweeting antisemitic rheto- ric, the athletic department didn’t muster a very strong response. Edwards eventually apologized, only after saying it was a “glitch” — an unlikely scenario given the steps it takes to retweet something. Universi- ty President Santa Ono put out this indirect statement, which fails to address Edwards him- self or his actual actions. Beyond that? Excuses. You don’t know Dono like we do. We heard. Dono didn’t mean it. They said. Dono’s a great guy. The line went. But “Dono” helped them win. That much is evident. So his actions were brushed under the rug. Just this week, senior defen- sive tackle Mazi Smith faced felony gun charges. The inci- dent dated back to Oct. 7, but the charge was filed Wednes- day, and athletic director Warde Manuel left this lacklus- ter statement: “We are aware of the charge against Mazi from a traffic stop back in October,” Manuel said. “Mazi was honest, forthcoming and cooperative from the very beginning and is a tremendous young man. He is not and never has been considered a threat to the University or community. “Based on the information communicated to us, we will continue to allow the judicial process to play out. Mazi will continue to participate as a member of the team.” The Wolverines would’ve been hurting without their star player and team captain in the Big Ten Championship game. Of course he was going to play. I know that Smith was in the process of getting his concealed carry license and the other facts of the case. I’m not here to say whether he is guilty or not. I’m here to say the athletic depart- ment failed to give substantive reasoning why a player charged with a felony wasn’t suspended even a game — instead being lauded in the press release — or why the news wasn’t disclosed sooner. Had the athletic department known about the incident since Oct. 7, this becomes all the more complicated and all the more damning. There’s no way to know, but the past doesn’t look favorably on the athletic department’s track record. Another star athlete — for- mer point guard Zavier Simp- son — also faced charges after a vehicle incident with police in 2020. Simpson, unlike Smith, was suspended one game. The issue in his case wasn’t the sus- pension, but the way the athlet- ic department failed to properly address Simpson lying to police that his name was “Jeff Jack- son,” how he was driving a vehi- cle owned by Manuel’s wife and how bodycam footage indicated an impaired state of mind. Winning took priority over teaching lessons and molding young athletes — over being the “leaders and best.” But passing over serious inci- dents doesn’t end there. In former Michigan hock- ey coach Mel Pearson’s case, there was a slew of disgusting infractions that Manuel and the department had known about for months before firing him earlier this year. It took pub- lic outcry before the facts of the case were deemed severe enough to result in action. Because Pearson was a win- ner. His players were top pros- pects at NHL squads and the Wolverines were in the Frozen Four. Firing Pearson would likely result in a rough year for the Michigan hockey program. That simply isn’t enough to excuse inaction — and there’s really no other explanation for it. Really, this feigned igno- rance and false moral high ground stretches much further back than the past couple years. Look at what’s happened with Bo Schembechler and the chill- ing accusations, corroborated by his own son, levied against him. Still, Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh praises him, and his statue still stands outside the hall given Schembechler’s namesake on athletic depart- ment grounds. Why? Because he was a goddamn winner. And that should not be enough to pardon any kind of behavior. Not every incident needs a suspension, firing or sweep- ing address, but athletes and coaches need to be held accountable for their actions. It’s not Manuel and the athletic department’s job to cover up its FILE PHOTO/Daily Michigan earns No. 2 seed, to play TCU in Fiesta Bowl JARED GREENSPAN Managing Sports Editor For the second consecutive season, the Michigan football team is headed to the College Football Playoff. On New Year’s Eve, the sec- ond-ranked Wolverines will take on No. 3 seed TCU in the Fiesta Bowl. The winner of that semifinal will advance to the national championship against either No. 1 Georgia or No. 4 Ohio State. The game will mark Michi- gan’s second ever appearance in the College Football Playoff. Last season, the Wolverines earned the No. 2 seed and lost to Georgia in the Orange Bowl, 34-11. Michigan is in the midst of a historic season, having won 13 games for the first time in program history following its second straight Big Ten championship, a title it cap- tured with a 43-22 win over Purdue Saturday night. The Horned Frogs, mean- while, sit at 12-1 and will look to rebound from a 31-28 loss to Kansas State in the Big 12 Championship Game. FOOTBALL KATE HUA/Daily KATE HUA/Daily NICHOLAS STOLL Managing Sports Editor INDIANAPOLIS — At this point, it’s a moment you’ve prob- ably seen before. The confetti raining down in Miami Gardens, the best season the Michigan football team had in almost two decades coming to one somber and unceremonious end. Red populated Hard Rock Sta- dium as Georgia’s players, coaches and faithful all stuck around to soak in a dominating Orange Bowl victory. All of the Wolverines had left the field, except for a few who stood off to the side, watching the Bulldogs celebrate what Michigan so desperately wanted. That contingent included two then-freshmen: quarterback J.J. McCarthy and running back Dono- van Edwards. Fast forward to now, and the scene after the Wolverines cap- tured their second straight Big Ten title was quite different: Play- ers were grinning, the confetti was maize and blue, but one thing remained the same. McCarthy and Edwards once again stood right next to each other. Although this time, it was at the podium after the tandem of budding stars carried Michigan to another Big Ten trophy. They shared bright smiles, but some- thing about their celebration felt hollow. The memory of last year’s Orange Bowl still lingers. “I feel like (the Georgia loss)