The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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SEPTEMBER 2021 THE WOLVERINE 27 Here's a quick look into the reasons behind the confidence — beyond the fact that everyone is undefeated in August, prompting an upbeat take. IT'S ALL ATTITUDE Much has been made of the energy felt by all in Michigan's spring foot- ball sessions. Head coach Jim Har- baugh sensed it, demanded to know if his players did and received a re- sounding answer in the affirmative. It didn't die out after seven days of the spring grind, either, Harbaugh in- sisted. It carried through from prac- tice one through 15, and propelled the Wolverines into a summer of vol- untary workouts aimed at producing a very different season. Redshirt junior offensive lineman Andrew Stueber confirmed Har- baugh's take on the spring recently. It felt unprecedented in the veteran's time in Ann Arbor. "I've never seen that much want and drive for a spring practice," Stueber said. "I've been here for five years. That energy going into spring ball is something I've never seen before, and I saw it carry through the whole spring ball into the spring game. It's unheard of, for me." Many echoed those sentiments. Ju- nior wide receiver Ronnie Bell noted the feeling has gone beyond frus- tration and motivation into genuine anger, the sort that can be channeled into winning. Stueber insists the Wolverines are ready to do so, with veteran leader- ship taking command and pull- ing all in the same direction. "The senior leadership is something that's really good, the bond that the seniors have," Stueber said. "My class is now the fifth-year senior class. There's only a few of us left. The bond we have, and the way we're able to cover the whole special teams, offense, de- fense, and we're all close in the same class, that leadership and bond has trickled down through the whole team. "The whole team is really close. From a teammate bond, from a broth- ership bond, we're really close and we're growing that. We're getting the freshmen involved, bringing them along. "The bond we have right now is something that I haven't really felt as close in past years. Maybe that's because I was an underclassman, and now I'm in my fifth year. But right now, the bond we have as a team is something that's special, and I can't wait to see it happen come fall." Gary McNamara witnessed the en- ergy and camaraderie as well. The father of Michigan's anticipated start- ing quarterback in the opener against Western Michigan, McNamara watched the Wolverines' spring game. He came away with a sense of the change. "Those on the sidelines and the kids on the field were getting after it," McNamara observed. "It was dif- ferent. It was fun to watch. "Everything that Cade had relayed over the spring about this team's be- lief looked true. I'm excited for them. I hope they have a chance to piece a few together. If you can get a little confidence going, string a few to- gether, they could have the opportu- nity to be pretty dangerous. They do have a chip on their shoulder. "If they can carry that energy, and there's no reason Junior defensive end Aidan Hutchinson is looking to see his teammates play with speed and aggression on the defensive side of the ball this fall, after the unit gave up 34.5 points a game last season. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL Redshirt freshman quarterback Cade McNamara "We're confident in ourselves going into the season. We're confident that we're definitely going to be different than we were last season. We don't want to say too much about it. We just want to be about it."