Michigan Wolverines graduate defensive end Taylor Upshaw was part of a 2020 team that saw the bottom fall out, leading to one of the worst seasons in recent program history. Now, he finds himself as one of the upperclassmen on the team helping lead the charge out of the darkness.
“We didn’t like how last ended so we wanted to improve on some of the things that didn’t go the way we wanted to," he told the Michigan media on Monday afternoon.
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Upshaw and the Wolverines are 6-0 following this weekend's escape at Nebraska. Quarterback Cade McNamara said after the game past Michigan teams would not have been able to pull that off. Head coach Jim Harbaugh's message to the team following the win was a simple one.
“Keep it going," Upshaw said. "We have big goals. We’re nowhere close to where we think we can be as a team. It was a great win, but let’s go out there and win again.”
Harbaugh has spoken several times throughout 2021 about how much the team he currently has wants to be great and be taught every day. Upshaw sees it too.
“This team wants it," he said. "It doesn’t need to be talked into wanting to play ball or doing the little things to get us to win. We all want to succeed.”
Michigan's upstart defense was tested by a furious Nebraska comeback on Saturday night. They bent but did not break. Upshaw says that is a testament that the culture that has been built under coordinator Mike Macdonald.
“This defense sticks together," he said. "We don’t flinch when mistakes are made or adversity hits. We face it with the same mentality as if it didn’t hit. If the offense scores three points, our mentality is that it’s all we need. That’s the difference.
“New schemes, playing different positions. Being able to switch to different coverages. That plays a big role in what we’ve done."
One of the biggest storylines of the season is a group that says and plays as if something is different in the locker room. Upshaw saw it as early as the work being put in during the lead-up to the season.
“The stars have aligned," he said. "We have a great coaching staff and players with a new mentality. We’re coming together as a team and unit. We have the same goals and we’re not going to stop regardless of what happens. We’re coming together and it’s a different culture around here.”
Asked to elaborate on the comment, it was another feather in the cap of the work that was put in during the offseason.
“It’s just a feeling you get during the offseason and you’re training with the guys beside you," he said. "It’s like, ‘Oh this guy wants to go. That guy wants to go.’ It’s an everyday thing. We didn’t like how it went last year so we’re going to grind every single day and bring it every day.
"When it comes to game time, you’ve built that confidence you’ve needed. Then it’s like how we wanted. This is how I wanted to feel going into a football game.”
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