The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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16 THE WOLVERINE ❱ FEBRUARY 2024 the driving force behind it. They de- cided to come back and win it all, and put in the blood, sweat and tears to make it happen. Even before it all played out in dream- like fashion, Zinter explained how part of it unfolded. In a preseason interview for the Michigan-produced "Those Who Stay" segments, he talked about returning with plenty to achieve. "There's a lot that went into my deci- sion to return," Zinter said. "It's always been a goal and a dream of mine to play in the NFL, but when I sat down and talked to friends, Blake, Trevor, C.J., we all de- cided we wanted to come back and really win this thing and do it together. "I had so many goals here that I hadn't accomplished. I wanted to come back one more season to accomplish those goals. "We want to beat Michigan State, Penn State, Ohio State — again. Win the Big Ten again and take that next step — win the bowl game, win the national champion- ship, be a captain. "When I hear, 'Those Who Stay Will Be Champions,' my mind immediately goes back to the 2020 COVID season. It was a rough season for us. The guys in the offseason really made an emphasis on wanting to be better. We knew we could be better. This was my last year and I was going to give it everything I have." He even gave his leg, with a broken tibia and fibula in the Ohio State game when rolled up on. A week later, he walked out on crutches to witness Michigan's shut- out victory against Iowa in the Big Ten championship game and has been with the Wolverines ever since. He's a national champion and an example of the risk some take when coming back to achieve the ultimate at the college level. Zinter should return and enjoy an NFL career, but the unanimous All-American put plenty on the line in his final season, just like the others. Jansen insists the money flowing in from name, image and likeness oppor- tunities has to make it easier to stay. At the same time, NFL money certainly isn't dwindling, he pointed out. "I know there are NIL dollars involved," Jansen said. "I don't know what these guys make. I know no one's going broke right now. But to put off a dream of play- ing in the NFL … "I could have left after '97, but I decided to come back. It was a decision that was very tough to make, and we didn't have the results that I wanted, in terms of a championship. "Now you fast-forward 26 years, and not only is that dream still there of play- ing at the highest level, but the amount of money at the highest level is exponen- tially more. "Third-rounders are making what first-rounders used to make. That's something important to think about, be- cause those numbers are so much higher, and they're only going up every single year. It doesn't seem like it's ever slowing down. "For Trevor Keegan, Zak Zinter, Blake Corum, Roman Wilson, Cornelius John- son, whoever you want to say, those guys that decided to come back, there's a lot of risk involved. "The number one risk is, if the team's not as good, something doesn't go right, there are some injuries or possibly you get hurt. Now all of a sudden that dream you sacrificed for and you thought you were just putting off is in jeopardy. All of these kids were willing to accept that risk." Team-wise, everything went right. As for Zinter, he's healing and has millions of Michigan fans pulling for him to keep winning at the next level. OVERCOMING ADVERSITY Zinter isn't the only Wolverine to put steel in his spine when tough times came. This crew all needed to do so, following a COVID-truncated, mistake-filled, 2-4 disaster of a season in 2020. The annual rumors of a potential Har- baugh departure weren't met with as much angst after that campaign, and the Michigan head coach needed to steel him- self against the criticism that maybe he couldn't get it done in Ann Arbor after all. Corum suffered an injury late in the 2022 season that essentially took him out of the Ohio State showdown in Colum- bus, and all that followed. Barrett went through a time of not seeing the field much, before becoming one of the most productive leaders on the No. 1 defense in the nation. Now he's a national champion and played in more Michigan games (64) than anyone in the history of the program. Michigan radio play-by-play man Doug Karsch offered up a memory that cap- tured the struggle from the start of Michi- gan's resurgence in 2021 until now, with the Wolverines winning it all. Michigan's Greatest Seasons For Wins While Michigan has produced a host of dou- ble-digit-win seasons over the years, never have they reached the 15 victories the national cham- pion Wolverines put on the board this year. Few even could have. With the addition of the Big Ten title game and the College Football Play- off — the latter itself about to grow — there are more opportunities to win. But this crew maxed out what became available, and that number stands for all future challengers. Here are Michigan's top dozen seasons ever, in terms of victories: YEAR RECORD COACH 2023 15-0 Jim Harbaugh 2022 13-1 Jim Harbaugh 1997 12-0 Lloyd Carr 1905 12-1 Fielding Yost 2021 12-2 Jim Harbaugh 1901 11-0 Fielding Yost 1902 11-0 Fielding Yost 1903 11-0-1 Fielding Yost 1971 11-1 Bo Schembechler 1986 11-2 Bo Schembechler 2006 11-2 Lloyd Carr 2011 11-2 Brady Hoke — John Borton All-American Blake Corum missed the post- season last year after knee surgery, but he, too, made the emphatic decision to forgo the NFL Draft and "run it back" for the 2023 col- lege season with his U-M teammates. PHOTO BY DOMINICK SOKOTOFF