INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Despite having beaten Ohio State in 2021, which catapulted Michigan into the Big Ten Championship and the College Football Playoff semifinal, few are giving the Wolverines a chance to repeat in 2022. But don’t tell the team that.
For years, given that Michigan hadn’t won the Big Ten since 2004, it had started to seem an impossible dream, as Ohio State asserted dominance, and recently formidable teams, even though sometimes outliers, like Penn State and Michigan State, took home the top prize of the conference. Now that the Wolverines have done what many were saying was impossible, they know what it takes to get the job done — beating their rival and winning the Big Ten.
“It helps us a lot. It gives us definitely more confidence that, look, we’ve been there, there’s less weight on our shoulders as to the stress of, ‘We have to do this.’ It was just a lot of anxiety is to like — why is Coach Harbaugh on the hotseat?” quarterback Cade McNamara said. “Like, why does he have to face the criticism? Because if anyone wants to beat Ohio State it’s Coach Harbaugh.
“And I can promise you that, but I think now that we got that for him, I think now that we know what that looks like, we’re gonna be even more confident going into that game. I think a part of being a leader, being a member of this team, is to make sure that we don’t become complacent — not just myself, but as a team. And I think we have stressed that mentality pretty strong this offseason that Team 143 is a different team. And what Team 142 did last season doesn’t really matter anymore.”
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In a roundabout way, along with personnel losses, complacency is one of the reasons why experts don’t anticipate a repeat season for the Wolverines in 2022. The claim that Ohio State will enter The Game angry given last year’s results and that Michigan will take a step back beyond having lost key players on defense may be good preseason fodder to explain why the Buckeyes are surefire 2022 champions, but it’s not like the maize and blue enter the year without experience (particularly on the offensive side of the ball) and loads of talent across the board.
In fact, Jim Harbaugh thinks that the team won’t be complacent about anything — including the personnel losses.
Given how many players emerged as leaders and playmakers in 2021, Harbaugh sees those who remain taking up those same roles, challenged by the new deficits, along with having learned from their predecessors what kind of shoes are needed to be filled.
“I just think so many were a part of last year, so many put in the same work as all the players that aren’t here anymore,” Harbaugh said. “I mean, some of the stars like Aidan Hutchinson and Hassan Haskins, that whole great group of Dax Hill and and Stueber and, and all those great players like Vastardis. There’s a lot of these players that did the exact same thing that that those players did. And maybe they did it a little bit at a leadership level, and our guys got to see that got to be a part of that. And got to see how well it paid off. Both for the team and for each of those players individually. And, you know, why wouldn’t you want to do it exactly the same way? It’s a great template.”
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Outside of The Game, for Cade McNamara, he can’t rest on his laurels as a starting quarterback. He’s enough of a leader that he was chosen to represent Michigan at Big Ten media days — the first quarterback Harbaugh has brought to the event in his coaching tenure — but with J.J. McCarthy breathing down his neck, McNamara knows he has to fight to retain his position.
“No matter what position you’re in, I think if you become complacent, you become vulnerable,” McNamara said. “And I think this whole entire situation has really helped me in that sense that, you know, I have zero complacency as to where, what my situation is and where I am on the depth chart. So if anything, I’m getting better faster than me just sitting in the quarterback room comfortably.”
So, when the 2022 season starts, don’t expect Michigan to trot out there, flashing their Big Ten Championship rings. No, it wants to prove that unlike Penn State in 2016, it’s here to stay.
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