When Saturday afternoon began, Jim Harbaugh had a clear vision of his team’s future. Everything Michigan aimed to accomplish this season remained within sight.
“Win the conference? Win the national championship?” he asked rhetorically early last week.
It all still seemed possible. But by the time the sky darkened at the end of the Wolverines’ 37-33 loss to Michigan State, U-M’s outlook had become as foggy as the atmosphere inside Spartan Stadium. This is the cruel nature of college football, a sport where a team’s fate hangs in the balance one week to the next and the margin for error is excruciatingly thin.
The Wolverines’ defeat to their in-state rivals revealed how slim it is. A team that had won its first seven games by sticking to the fundamentals and playing with precision made just enough mistakes Saturday to make its debut in the loss column. Michigan was flagged for a season-high eight penalties and committed multiple turnovers for only the second time this fall. Forty-eight hours later, Harbaugh still contemplated the ramifications of a deflating result that leaves U-M with no other recourse but to win the remaining games on its schedule.
“A new day, a new week, a new four-game season,” Harbaugh said. “Let’s get at it.”
The coach’s proactive stance was shared by the Wolverines’ leadership council, which organized its third player-led meeting since the opener against Western Michigan. The purpose was to calm the team, reset its focus and ensure it remains aligned for the mission ahead.
“Just us making sure that we relay the message that we’re still in this,” wide receiver Mike Sainristil said. “There’s no need to worry. We just have to bounce back and take this past weekend for what it is. Go over film and just correct our mistakes and learn where we can get better to improve and dominate the rest of the season.”
But that will be a challenge. Two of the remaining four games include a road test at Penn State, where the Wolverines are 1-5 in their last six visits, and a home finale versus No. 6 Ohio State, their rival that has won 15 of their last 16 meetings.
The road ahead looks even more daunting when considering Harbaugh’s so-so track record in November, when his Michigan teams have gone 14-10 and have been knocked out of the running for a conference title as well as a College Football Playoff bid.
Despite that history, Harbaugh compared himself to a boxer who won’t stay down after absorbing a wicked haymaker like the uppercut MSU delivered to his team last weekend.
“You get up, referee wipes your gloves and you come back even more determined, with even more resolve,” he said. “To prepare, to work harder, to find a way, to finish, and to win.”
The Wolverines will try to do so with the status of several key players in question. Asked about quarterback Cade McNamara’s health after he was blasted by Michigan State cornerback Justin White on the first play of the fourth quarter, Harbaugh didn’t offer a firm answer. He was also cryptic when a reporter requested an update on tight end Erick All, who was spotted limping off the field in the late stages after setting a career-high in receiving yards and catches against MSU.
“We'll see,” he said.
His reply captured the uncertainty of the moment, as his team deals with the fallout from its greatest trial of the season at a time when it may be at its most vulnerable. In recent weeks, the cumulative effect of injuries has started to surface— testing U-M’s depth as players have cycled in and out of the lineup. Mistakes have also become more common on offense and defense. After committing one turnover in their first five games, the Wolverines have given the ball away five times since. On the other side, Michigan has yielded its highest point totals in two of its last three contests as breakdowns have occurred with higher frequency.
Harbaugh has taken stock of what has happened. But he’s convinced the past will only partly determine the Wolverines’ future.
“The Michigan football team, the 2021 team, is going to be defined by what’s already taken place and what they do this Saturday, and what they do the Saturday after that, the Saturday after that, and the Saturday after that,” he said. “That’s what’s gonna define us.”
And yet there is no guarantee their biggest goals will be realized even if they win every game down the stretch. That’s the reality in college football, where one setback can be crippling. The sky may not be falling in Ann Arbor. It just seems a bit lower.
