[jwplayer GQIqPfvq-XNcErKyb]
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — After losing inexplicably to rival MSU after being three-score favorites, the Wolverines are saying the same thing.
Take junior defensive end Aidan Hutchinson:
“We’re gonna forget about this, move onto Indiana — we’re gonna move on from this,” Hutchinson said. “It was a bad feeling. It sucks, so we’re gonna move on.”
My advice: don’t move on. As Jim Harbaugh once said, ‘Embrace the suck.’
Now, I know that Harbaugh is far from the most popular person in Ann Arbor at the moment, but we have to be realistic: it’s still his team and Michigan still has games to play. No matter what your thoughts are as fans, the Wolverines need to win some games, otherwise, the program will be set even further back than it was on Saturday.
I’ve already outlined why fans should be careful what they wish for, while putting the status quo into perspective. But for the players, they need to rebound — fast.
Indiana is no slouch. It’s 2-0, with wins over Penn State and Rutgers. But don’t be fooled here — Michigan still has no business losing to Indiana for the first time in 30-plus years.
There’s the oft-paraphrased George Santanaya quote, ‘Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.’ Of course, the players aren’t going to forget that it lost a game vs. MSU it had no business losing, but, in my opinion, that should fuel the fire — not be a distant memory.
On Saturday, Michigan was out-matched, out-toughed and out-coached. Going forward, that should fuel the fire and Saturday should be something of a rallying cry, a turning point. Because in the Wolverines losses in — well, decades, at this point — these have been themes. Often teams use big wins to propel them forward, but this one should remind themselves every day of this loss, and what can happen when it goes through the motions.
“Just keeping our heads up, be positive,” sophomore safety Daxton Hill said after the game. “Don’t be negative or anything. Don’t be down on ourselves. There’s plenty more games to be played. Just having our heads up. Just looking forward to the game plan next week playing Indiana.”
That’s closer to the mentality this team should have, in that it’s not giving up. But it should be down on itself for losing as it did, and use it as motivation to make sure it doesn’t happen again.
This team doesn’t have an identity at the moment, but you could see what it might be. In Big Ten Week 1, it was tough and tenacious up front, and was rightly praised. Regardless of what happened in Week 2, you can’t — or shouldn’t, rather — disregard the win over Minnesota. But simultaneously, you can’t disregard what happened against Michigan State. Both games are true, and for the players, they can decide which version they want to be.
There are certainly fans who have thrown in the white towel at this juncture, but the team absolutely should not follow suit. It should dig deep, draw upon the negative experiences it’s already suffered, and forget about the positive about as quickly as they happen.
Jim Harbaugh knows this, as just years ago, he harkened back to his mentor.
“Bo Schembechler had a great line,” Harbaugh said this August (2018). “When somebody tells you you’re good, kick them in the shins.”
For this team to move forward, it must never forget the lessons or the pain of Saturday. It must embrace them. Players don’t have the luxury that fans do of being lackadaisical when the going gets tough.
So don’t just keep your head up, Dax. Don’t move on, Aidan. Like Tyler Durden reminded his real self in Fight Club, ‘This is your pain, this is your burning hand, it’s right here — don’t deal with it like those dead people do!’
Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it. So wear Saturday’s shame like a scarlet letter and earn your way back into the good graces of the winning column.
No matter what fans or pundits might proclaim, the season is not over. It can be reclaimed, one win at a time. So remember this feeling and do everything in your power to ensure you never feel it again.
[lawrence-related id=29535,29548,29537]