Michigan made a profound statement Monday night in the Rose Bowl. Not just with its performance battling back to knock off mighty Alabama from the SEC, but with the emotions that poured out of the Wolverines after their 27-20 overtime victory to advance to the national title game.

Jim Harbaugh, the most polarizing figure in college football, hugged two of his team’s emotional leaders, defensive tackle Kris Jenkins and offensive lineman Trevor Keegan, as TV cameras surrounded them. Harbaugh pounded his fist on each of their pads and excitedly told them: “There is nothing we can’t overcome. We did it! We’re going to overcome anything!”

They did. The Wolverines had been the more physical team in the first half against the Crimson Tide. Their coaches had them ready. They were often one step ahead of Alabama. They sacked star quarterback Jalen Milroe on four of his first six dropbacks. They probably should’ve led 14-3 at halftime; it was 13-10 due to some self-inflicted wounds. To its credit, Alabama adjusted and appeared to take over. But the Wolverines and their fans wouldn’t wilt, making the Rose Bowl feel like it was in Ann Arbor West.

To Michigan, it’s even sweeter how this one played out. Teams in all sports love to embrace people doubting them with an us-against-the-world mentality. This team, though, truly lives it, and there’s nothing fake or manufactured about it.

Yeah, the Wolverines were technically the slight favorite, but almost none of the coaches in their conference — or in the Crimson Tide’s conference — believed they were good enough to beat Nick Saban’s team.

“You ain’t gonna big-boy Alabama (by just relying on your running backs),” a Big Ten head coach told The Athletic two weeks ago. “I think Alabama is way more talented. Michigan’s offense is not dynamic enough at the skill positions. Alabama’s gonna get heavy-handed with them. If Alabama can stop the run, Michigan has no chance. None.”

That coach wasn’t alone. It was a chorus of doubt, skepticism and even disdain. Some of it no doubt was because Michigan got whipped two years ago by the SEC’s best, Georgia, and then last year stubbed its toe against TCU.

Then there’s the subject of the NCAA investigation into alleged improper sign stealing that came to light around midseason. The skepticism about just how good this team is, how good quarterback J.J. McCarthy is, how good their skill guys are, after that stuff surfaced became quite a talking point around the Big Ten.

Yeah, Michigan got the message. That’s fine. Bring us the SEC’s best. They all said after Monday’s game that’s why it was even sweeter how this one played out.

“It feels amazing, especially ’cause time and time again where the whole world has been against us,” Jenkins said. “Nobody thought we could do this. They thought Alabama was too tough. They thought Alabama was too big and too athletic. And now what? Now what? Keep doubting us! And we’re gonna keep proving y’all wrong!”

Linebacker Michael Barrett, a Valdosta, Ga., native, said: “This feels great, especially growing up down South around the SEC as a Florida fan. Alabama is that dynasty team. It’s probably the sweetest because of all the bulls— that we’ve been through all year, all the talk that we’ve had to hear throughout the month of December, how the SEC is this and that and how we weren’t the No. 1 team in the country. It feels amazing.”

This team rarely wins games by lighting up the scoreboard. It wins steel cage matches where it out-toughs its opponents. And though it might often show some flaws, over the past three seasons it almost always has left its opponents slumped in the corner by the end. That is how Harbaugh built this team.

On paper, it doesn’t look like other national champions have looked. This isn’t a five-star-studded roster. The recruiting rankings often get confused with determining how “talented” a football team is, but in truth, that’s been misguided. Recruiting rankings show only part of the picture, not the whole thing, and Michigan best epitomizes that. Football games aren’t played on paper. They’re not beauty contests.

“The identity of this team is ‘So what?’” Barrett said. “OK, you’re a five-star. So what? You gotta show me. All that talk, all of that yip-yap, that don’t matter. All that matters is what you do in between these white lines for four quarters, man. That’s what matters. You gotta be the most physical team for four quarters. Not the first two minutes of the game. Not the two minutes before halftime. All game. You gotta be able to strain mentally and physically for all four quarters. And I think we did that today.”

Barrett, a former three-star recruit, had nine tackles, including one of the Wolverines’ six sacks. His recruiting class in 2018 wasn’t even ranked among the top 20 in the nation. But it also includes Aidan Hutchinson and a bunch of other NFL talent.

“Man, we did the unthinkable,” said UM’s budding star defensive lineman, Kenneth Grant, a freaky 320-pound sophomore who also came to Ann Arbor as a three-star prospect. “We’re a ‘no-star’ defense. We don’t have all these five-stars, but we’re the best in the country. We’re No. 1 for a reason. We simply wanted it more. We execute all the small details. (Strength coach Ben Herbert) does a great job in the weight room, reminding us how the small details count. During this offseason, we focused on all the small details, and now we’re going to the natty.”

Michigan’s defensive plan was to come after Milroe.

“We wanted to turn our guys loose,” defensive coordinator Jesse Minter said. “We sent five, six at times. We wanted our guys to go play fast.”

The Wolverines did start fast, setting a tone. At one point they had a 199 to 39 advantage in total yards. But it was their resolve that shined through. It was Keegan, a 6-foot-6, 320-pound senior, telling his teammates before they went back on the field with only 3:07 remaining in the fourth quarter, trailing 20-13, “This might be the last drive we ever have together!”

It wasn’t. The Wolverines went 75 yards on eight plays to send the game to overtime.

“The guys always overcome adversity,” Keegan said. “That just shows how together we are and the culture we have. They have a great team, and they are well-coached. We’ve got walk-ons who come here who have heart. You can have a bunch of five-stars, but we have guys who play for each other, and we have guys who are physical. It’s special because of the culture that coach Harbaugh has built.”

Harbaugh rebuilt this program three years ago coming off a 2-4 year in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season.

“I think that COVID year was the best thing for us,” Keegan said. “Those were dark days. If you’re not winning in college football, it ain’t fun. The guys really took the initiative and looked themselves in the mirror and really changed this thing. It’s special to see the journey that we’ve been on.”

Another big key for the Wolverines was the play of McCarthy, who threw for 221 yards and three touchdowns. McCarthy threw two pick sixes last year in the loss to TCU and also appeared to tail off in the final month of the 2023 regular season while he was hobbled with a leg injury. One of the Big Ten coaches The Athletic spoke to for our scouting report said Monday night that he thought McCarthy played well despite the Wolverines receivers having a few bad drops.

“Michigan gave them 7 (points) on a fumbled punt and 4 points on its kicking unit and still won,” the coach said. “Bama’s defense was poor, in my opinion, on things that Michigan does every game — condensed formations get the running back the ball through rubs and picks.”

The coach added that Michigan is a mentally and physically tough team with “tons of experience. That makes up for a lot.”

“I knew (Milroe) was gonna have to play well, but Michigan did a great job against them,” said a Big Ten head coach who thought Alabama would win. “Michigan proved that they have the physicality to match them and really handled them. It was impressive. Their defense is really, really good. They proved a lot going blow-for-blow with Alabama, and then, they finished them off.

“J.J. hadn’t played that well in a long time, but he played really well (Monday). And you saw that in both Playoff games. The team with the quarterback who played the best, they won. It’s the same as what you’re seeing in the NFL. And that’s because these teams are so sound, it’s coming down to the quarterbacks. Special teams just can’t get you beat, and for Michigan (in the Rose Bowl), it almost did. But they were able to keep it in their quarterback’s hands, and (McCarthy) really stepped up when he had to.”

One of the Big Ten coaches The Athletic spoke to for the scouting report on the Wolverines conceded on Tuesday morning that he was wrong about what he thought would happen, and he agreed with the notion that a lot of people overrated Alabama and underestimated Michigan. “Bama’s O-line’s inexperience definitely showed,” the coach said. “J.J. continued to do what he did best — make things happen when nothing is there. The throws he makes on the run or when plays break down are crazy. Shocked Bama had such a bad bust on fourth-and-2.”

It was also fitting that this game ended on a goal-line stand. While most of his teammates were getting changed 30 minutes after the game, 180-pound nickleback Mikey Sainristil was in the corner of the Wolverines locker room watching the game’s final play over and over on his phone, showing his teammates and getting giddier with each review.

“I’m looking at the relentless efforts by all 11 men on the field,” Sainristil said.

“That’s all of us on defense,” Barrett said. “We always say, ‘If they don’t score, they can’t win.’ It was picture-perfect. We couldn’t have drawn it up any better.”