Cade McNamara on 'playing these dudes really every day since January'

For Michigan quarterback Cade McNamara, individual statistics don't tell the story of Saturday's game. McNamara finished the day completing 13 of 19 passes for 159 yards and an interception, but easily could have been thrown off his game after tossing an interception early in the first quarter. He says it didn't rattle him in the least, and the evidence--10-for-16, 139 yards, 11.5 yards per attempt, no interceptions--would agree. "We had a little bit of miscommunication and I forced the ball a little bit, but time and time again, it's just like however we respond, that's the most important thing and I knew that I just had to keep letting it rip," he said. "I had trust in our defense and obviously H2 (Hassan Haskins) and the rest of the backs and the o-line and they had our back, and really just a physically dominant performance the rest of the way."

That physically dominant performance was no mistake. This is a team that relishes physicality, that made being a physical, run-first football team its identity in the offseason. They put in the work when no one was watching to become the team they envisioned, and this, a team that does not flinch, couldn't have been more excited to take the field against the Buckeyes. The energy in the stadium was palpable and that energy was fueled in no small part by the team itself; it was clear from the press box that this Michigan team was ready to go.

"I think that energy has been present the entire year. That's something, the energy, the confidence, that we've had since really spring ball, and we knew that we've been playing these dudes really every day since January," McNamara said. "I just couldn't be happier to be a part of such a great team."

Asked to elaborate on what he meant when he said Michigan has been playing Ohio State since January, McNamara said, "I mean that every workout, every practice, every meeting, everything that we've put into this season--it got leaked that we have on our boards 'What are you doing today to beat Ohio State? That's something that we've kept in the back of our minds every single day that we enter Schembechler Hall. That's what I mean by that and we did enough to beat them today."

The scoreboards are illuminated at Michigan Stadium tonight and, even though the game ended hours ago, they hold McNamara's truth: Michigan 42, Ohio State 27.

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