Following an offseason ripe with change inside Schembechler Hall, where Jim Harbaugh began earning far less money and the coaching staff skewed younger and the players vowed never again to experience the anguish they felt last season, a common theme perpetually resurfaced: Michigan football transformed its culture.
The assertion was peddled by Wolverines at all levels, from Harbaugh atop the flickering empire to the players whose pride had been noticeably dented, from the group of assistant coaches who retained their jobs to athletic director Warde Manuel, who was so giddy following U-M’s win over Penn State that he blurted his approval during the postgame news conference.
“How about those Wolverines?” Harbaugh said at Beaver Stadium. “If that’s not grit, I don’t know what is.”
“Absolutely!” Manuel responded from the back of the room.
In many respects, the 21-17 declawing of the Nittany Lions stifled murmurs probing the veracity of U-M’s cultural overhaul. By defeating a ranked opponent away from home, Harbaugh’s team scratched a line through another item on a list that already housed achievements like beating Wisconsin in Madison for the first time 2001, mounting a successful fourth-quarter comeback against Nebraska and quickly righting the ship following a gutting loss to Michigan State. For as difficult as explaining the program’s new ethos might have been, the Wolverines were demonstrating its efficacy on the field.
The only area where their changes remain untested is the rivalry with Ohio State, whose recent dominance over U-M has stretched to 15 victories in the last 16 games.
Part of Michigan’s cultural shift involved placing a stronger emphasis on preparing for the Buckeyes year round as opposed to waiting for the annual late-November clash. But a defeat Saturday at Michigan Stadium would drop the Wolverines from contention for a Big Ten title and saddle them with the realization that the changes they made to defeat their rival still weren’t enough.
“It means everything, you know?” inside linebacker Josh Ross said. “Not only are we playing our rival, we’re playing this big game, but it’s a playoff game. There’s a lot on the line and we know that. It just comes down to how we prepare this week and how we prepare on a day-to-day basis and how we attack it and approach it leading to Saturday. That’s what wins games.”
To foster the attitude needed to dethrone Ohio State, the Wolverines implemented methods for keeping the Buckeyes on their minds at seemingly every turn. The process began in the weight room, where U-M hung a Jordan brand banner with the words “What are you doing to beat Ohio State today?” superimposed onto a photo of Michigan Stadium. It’s big enough and bold to where players can’t help but notice it daily.
The process continued in July during Big Ten media days in Indianapolis, where Harbaugh said the team would either win the Big Ten championship, beat Ohio State and beat Michigan State or “die trying” — a quote indicative of the tenacity he wants his players to exude.
The team decided to rename its nine-on-seven running drill — a staple of football programs across the country — the “Beat Ohio” drill because of the toughness it imparts. The drill features nine offensive players across from seven defensive players with nothing but runs between the tackles. It’s when pads pop and collisions echo as the offensive line and defensive line battle for traction in the trenches. Wide receivers and defensive backs aren’t involved.
The “Beat Ohio” drill is frequently credited by Michigan’s offensive linemen as the driving force behind the No. 15 rushing offense in the country. They ascribe their penchant for mauling teams at the line of scrimmage to the nastiness incubated during nine-on-seven periods. Music blares through the speakers to give the drill, which the Wolverines run once a week during the season, added intensity.
“It’s a physicality emphasis and an emphasis on Ohio State and keeping them on our minds every day at practice,” Harbaugh said.
“It was just one of those things to put a little bit of extra emphasis on the game because you come to Michigan to play Ohio State," offensive lineman Andrew Vastardis said. "You come to Michigan for big games like this. ... We really just wanted to up the physicality knowing this game is as physical as they come in all aspects of football.”
Players and coaches sprinkled in film of the Buckeyes throughout the season as well, setting aside a few minutes each week to peek ahead at the perennial thorn in their side. Running back Donovan Edwards said this is especially true on special teams, where coordinator Jay Harbaugh has put together a unit dangerous enough to change the game in any given week. Vastardis, who spoke to the media Monday, told reporters the team already feels like it has a grasp of Ohio State’s personnel — a familiarization process that typically bleeds into Tuesday or Wednesday during a normal week.
And then there are things like the leadership council, implemented this season to give the veterans a larger sense of ownership over the team. The council consults with Harbaugh about things as small as uniform combinations and as important as outlining goals. It’s also the impetus behind a series of player-led meetings that have strengthened this group’s collective investment. That’s where the buzz words like “brotherhood” and “togetherness” and “bond” that players invoke on a weekly basis originate.
“We continue to grow together and grow in our abilities and how we play,” Vastardis said. “We definitely were very confident we’d get to this point, and now we’re just eager for the opportunity ahead of us.”
Beating the Buckeyes is one of the final items on their culture-change agenda.
