That mental toughness is built on physical tenacity. The Wolverines spoke glowingly this week of the benefits of their hard-hitting 9-on-7 drill, which has changed its name in recent years, depending on their biggest opponent: the “Beat Ohio” drill and the “Beat Georgia” drill are now the “Beat Bama” drill.
The drill begins with the sirens from the “Purge” movie series, and it features full tackling — a no-no in other programs and on most NFL teams because of the health risks.
“It’s a lot of pads popping, a lot of noise, loud music, a lot of violence,” offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore said. “Sometimes there’s people on the ground, sometimes there’s not, but it’s physicality at its finest and the players love it, the coaches love it. And I think it’s kind of molded us and built us to what we’ve been these past couple years and what we need to be going forward.”
Several Michigan players also give significant credit for their steadiness to Ben Herbert, the Wolverines’ director of strength and conditioning. According to his adoring students, Herbert doubles as a motivational guru who seems to know just what to say at the perfect time, and his attitude toward Michigan’s turmoil resonated.
Coach Herb likes to talk about it like it’s a hidden blessing,” receiver Roman Wilson said. “Without adversity, you’re not really going to grow. You’re not going to become something special. My opinion, I feel like all these problems, the things going on, it’s really a blessing for us. It really has helped this team grow a lot into what we are now.”
Receiver-turned-cornerback Mike Sainristil sees the stoic attitudes in Herbert’s overall philosophy as the backbone of the Wolverines’ perseverance.
“He always tells us that there are a whole bunch of things that you can’t control, but what you can do is show up and do what’s being asked of you,” Sainristil said. “Don’t fall victim to why-me, or other things that allow you to have a setback.”
The distractions haven’t stopped flying, even during the quiet weeks of December: Ten days ago, Michigan received a notice of allegations from the NCAA about the potential recruiting violations during the COVID-19 dead period and coaching activities that led to Harbaugh’s first, pre-emptive suspension.
However, even the most recent Wolverines have teamed up with their more seasoned colleagues to confront the chaos with toughness and unity.
Star center Drake Nugent, who transferred to Michigan for this season after spending four years at Stanford, described his experience as “very surreal.”
“Clearly a significant change in culture, both within and outside the program,” Nugent continued. “The head coach receives all of the attention that the program does. Coach Harbaugh is always appearing in the media. It was pleasant, though, to be a part of a program where everyone else had the same idea, since I’ve always had a winning mentality.
