Don't plan on Michigan football getting complacent: 'We can't lay off the gas pedal'

In theory, Michigan Wolverines football can do exactly what it did last season and have high-level success. That’s not the approach the Maize and Blue are taking, though. Nope, they’ve got to turn it up a notch, the U-M players at Big Ten Media Days said, especially when the goals include a pair of things Michigan didn’t do last season — beat Michigan State and win the national championship (along with repeating as Big Ten champs and taking care of business against Ohio State again).

Being back at Lucas Oil Stadium — the site in which Michigan beat Iowa in the Big Ten title game last December — brought back great memories and motivated the Wolverines in attendance.

“It feels good. The last time we were here, there was confetti on us, which felt good. But those feeling that we felt, as they’re being triggered right now, it only makes you want to work harder. Seeing the other teams being in this atmosphere, it gets us excited that we’re close to real football again. Of course it’s going to be motivating.”

RELATED

• Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh talks relationship with Ryan Day

• Michigan players ready for their first road shot at Ohio State

After years of coming close, with no cigar, the 42-27 win over Ohio State and confetti shower in Indy served as a breakthrough moment for Michigan. They also hope — and are working hard to ensure — it becomes the norm.

“It should be a foundation,” senior quarterback Cade McNamara said of last season. “I think everyone in our program is very confident in the culture that we’ve developed, and it should be here to stay.

“For this season, at least, it is. The guys are confident with not just our ability, but what we’ve created at Michigan — from a culture standpoint, from a mentality standpoint — has been such a big difference over the last couple years. I only see this continuing to grow, and I’m just here and the other guys that are here today are here to make sure we stay on track.”

They’re hoping to stay on track, but not the same track as the year prior. Michigan is turning up the heat this offseason, and it’s gotten to the point where head coach Jim Harbaugh even canceled a recent player-led practice because his team has been working so hard and he wants them to rest before training camp.

“This is a different team,” McNamara said. “We can’t rely on what we did last season to give us any complacency as to what’s going to happen this season. We can’t lay off the gas pedal at all. If anything, we need to push it down to the floor because we’re going to have an even bigger target on our back this season.

“The key is making sure we don’t return to where Michigan was a couple years ago [2-4 in 2020]. The majority of the guys on the team were there for that COVID season, and they know what that felt like. We definitely don’t want to feel that again. Even though we saw success last season, we don’t want to take any steps backwards.”

Senior tight end Erick All isn’t worried about his squad taking a breather. He’s seen enough to believe they’re willing to put in the work, and the coaching staff is staying on them about it.

“I feel like complacency isn’t a thing with us, because our coaches say so much, ‘Complacency is cancer,'” All revealed. “If you get complacent, it’s over — you might as well kiss the season goodbye. If you expect to be the best, if you expect to win everything, that’s when you lose because who are you to expect to win when you haven’t worked and gave it your best shot?”

Confident, but not overly so, is the game plan for Michigan this year.

Georgia game learning experience for Michigan

Georgia, the eventual national champion, buried Michigan, 33-11, in the Orange Bowl College Football semifinal. The Wolverines are aiming high, hoping to win the national championship, in 2022. That game is being used as fuel.

“I learned that Georgia’s D-line lived up to the task,” All said of what he took away from Michigan’s loss. “They were huge, they were fast, they were physical. Those guys were disciplined. They didn’t make mistakes, and we did, so we lost.

“I feel like that’s the key of the game, to beat your opponent and to do everything right. The team that makes the most mistakes is going to lose, especially at that level and that deep into the season. I feel like it would’ve been a different game if we cut out all the mistakes, did what we were supposed to do and won our one-on-one battles.”

“We definitely did not play our best that game, but we played some good teams. Ohio State wasn’t a bad team. We played other good teams,” McNamara added. “And we just did not execute at the level that we could. That was definitely not our best game; we definitely did not play to our potential that game. We are well aware of that.

“That doesn’t give me any lack of confidence that we can achieve a national championship. Not at all. We know what that looks like, and we know that we’re going to have to play better when that situation presents itself again.

“After playing Georgia, we gained that perspective of what it’s going to take for us to win a national championship, the level of execution and the level of talent we’re going to face. That was an extremely talented defense. Obviously, just about one of the best ones in college football. Now that we were able to see that, it gives us a new perspective as to, what is it going to take for us to win at that level?”