Michigan's 'pack of wolves' remain together, ready to attack and 'eat our last meal'
HOUSTON, Texas — When Michigan Wolverines football has run into adversity, it hasn’t asked, ‘Why me?’ It’s stuck up its chin and said, ‘Try me.’ The Maize and Blue have stuck together through a trying season off the field and continued to win, now 14-0 and in the national championship game against fellow undefeated Washington.
The way ninth-year head coach Jim Harbaugh sees it, his Michigan team resembles one animal in particular.
“He’s really into this team kind of replicating a pack of wolves,” Michigan junior quarterback J.J. McCarthy said of Harbaugh. “He’s got this little board that he created where it’s like the wolves going into the fight, the wolves, celebrating the hunt and their food, and then the wolves walking away.
“He’s going to find any creative way to relate the outside world to football. He does it in a beautiful and very wise way. Yeah, I’d just say his message is we’re a pack of wolves and we are going to eat our last meal.”
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The Wolverines have feasted all season long, but the Huskies are the final item on the menu.
Harbaugh and his team often watch a movie the night before a game. Lately, per some of his players, Michigan has viewed some documentaries about wolves.
“Just a chance to be with your team is the main thing, just that gathering,” Harbaugh said of movie watching. “The perfect fighting unit to me is a pack of wolves, a wolf pack. And you see them. You see them gathered together before the fight. You see them going together going to the fight. You see them together in the fight. You see them celebrating after the fight.
“And the active word there is ‘together.’ So that’s the picture I have. We’re together. That’s the night before the game. So we’re together.
Added the Michigan coach: “As far as who picks the movies and what are they? A lot of it is fight. That resonates with me because it’s a football fight. These games you play, it’s a football fight.
“That’s where some of the documentaries and predators — we found one this year on predators — tigers, cheetahs, lions, great stuff. Really seemed to resonate with the guys. I love them. Who doesn’t? Some of those great type of things.
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“But when it gets to how the world wants to turn you into something — but we kind of allow ourselves to devolve into a pack of wolves. That’s what we want to channel. Probably nature’s greatest fighting unit.”
So many different outside forces have attempted to pull Michigan apart, but Harbaugh has called those “precious gifts” and even said they’ve created an “unfair advantage.”
When the Wolverines needed a big defensive stop against Ohio State, they came up with an interception. When the offense had to tie the game and force overtime in the Rose Bowl, Michigan knotted things up (and the defense came up with a stop). In overtime, both units shined to finish the deal. The Maize and Blue have played complementary football and remained connected all the way through.
“This is a family-oriented team,” Michigan junior running back Donovan Edwards said. “When it’s family-oriented team you trust one another. You have relationships with one another. You know their work ethic. This team relies on trust — trust in one’s self and trust in another.
“I think it’s a fantastic thing to have, because it’s not a selfish team. There are certain people that can be selfish, but we’ll never be selfish because of how Coach Harbaugh has embodied this team.
“If you’re selfish you’re going to reap the consequences and be labeled as a selfish person. We just complement each other so well. Just a well-rounded team.”
Dinnertime is set for 7:45 p.m. ET Monday night.
