Michigan football has more speed and athleticism. But is it enough to match the SEC?

INDIANAPOLIS — Jim Harbaugh remembers his first Big Ten title as a coach well. He lost his wallet in the celebration. When he woke up the next morning, he thought, hey, it’s just a wallet, but we’re still Big Ten champs.

The perspective is important. It reminds us about the longer view in life. His retelling of it early Sunday morning at Lucas Oil Stadium stood out for another reason.

He was going to see a recruit. And that recruit has developed into just the kind of player he could’ve used when his Michigan Wolverines played in their first College Football Playoff semifinal.

Colston Loveland wouldn’t have made up for Georgia's edge in speed and athleticism by himself. But the sophomore tight end is the kind of elite talent that can make a difference, who stands out even compared to some of the best talent in college football.

Harbaugh hopes that Loveland, along with a handful of other guys that weren’t on the roster for the 2021 Orange Bowl (or didn’t have enough experience to play), will help close the talent gap he saw against Georgia.

Because Alabama has similar traits.

“Superior athletes,” Harbaugh told ESPN on Sunday after his Wolverines earned the CFP's No. 1 seed and the right to play the Crimson Tide in the CFP semis at the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1.

That’s what he sees when he watches Alabama. Superior athletes surrounding a mobile quarterback who has “the 'It' factor,” he said.

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That would be Jalen Milroe, who may well be the best player on the field when the teams meet in Pasadena, California, next month. A player who was benched early in the season but is indispensable now. The kind of player that gives the Wolverines trouble.

That's the consensus belief, right?

And while U-M does struggle with running QBs, a statement that simple needs some context. Because everyone struggles with elite mobile quarterbacks.

The Wolverines are better equipped to bother such a player this season. Their defense is faster than it was two years ago, or even a year ago. Granted, this defense doesn’t have NFL first-rounders Aidan Hutchinson or David Ojabo on the edge, but it's better in an area that may matter more: the interior line.

Nothing bothers a quarterback more than pressure up the middle. And that's where U-M has plenty of athletes: Quick-footed big fellas that resemble the keys, for so long, to the best defenses of the SEC. Players such as Kris Jenkins and Mason Graham.

Furthermore, they’re backed by fleet-footed linebackers Junior Colson and Ernest Hausmann, who give the Wolverines side-to-side speed they didn’t have two seasons ago.

These are the places U-M believes it’s different now. These are the places Harbaugh means when he says “The Team, The Team, The Team … This is the Team.”

When he was describing the athletic ability of Alabama, and their superior athletes who are in the right place, he said they believe the Wolverines have the same kind of team. The Wolverines are certainly closer in that way, no doubt, especially on defense.

That may be enough to keep them in the game. It won’t matter, though, unless the offense shows more than it did against Iowa (or against Penn State). Those sorts of efforts may work in the Big Ten, but they don’t work so well outside it.

This brings us back to Loveland — a matchup nightmare — and his running mate at tight end, AJ Barner (who isn’t quite the athlete Loveland is but is a future NFLer as well).

The Wolverines aren’t as solid up front this season and haven’t run the ball like they did the past two years. Rediscovering their running game against Alabama is unlikely.

Fortunately for them, J.J. McCarthy has skills similar to Milroe's: To stay with Alabama, McCarthy will have to use his speed to unleash that arm. His dynamism is something U-M couldn't rely on in its first CFP go-round. He saw some action — essentially setting the stage for his sophomore-season breakout — but not enough to make a difference. His experience now, after two full seasons as a starter, is something U-M didn’t have the second go-round.

He threw two pick-sixes against TCU in last season's semi. Then, he was a first-year starter. Harbaugh is banking on the extra year making a difference.

U-M may not have explosive players on the edges of the offense, especially ones that can get down the field. But their receivers, led by Roman Wilson, sit down well, find creases on crossers, and have enough savvy to help move the chains.

The difference-makers are the tight ends and the quarterback. We’ve seen that combo win at the highest level.

Two years ago against Georgia, the Wolverines had nowhere to turn against all that speed and all those thumpers. A muddled pocket meant the end of the play, more or less.

At his best, McCarthy throws darts on the run and has enough arm to squeeze the ball past even the best defensive backs. As for Loveland, no linebacker can cover him, and he’s too big for safeties.

The combo should at least give U-M a chance. So should the increased speed and quickness in the most critical spots up the middle.

It’s easy to dismiss these improvements because of the schedule the Wolverines played and because of their struggles against the mighty defenses of Iowa and Penn State. But the improvements are real; it's why Harbaugh has said consistently this is his most talented roster.

We’re about to find out just how much U-M has improved against the swiftest and stiffest competition on the national stage. We’ll hear a lot about the differences between the SEC and the Big Ten, between the north and the south.

And we’ll hear the usual cliches.

Alabama's Nick Saban offered one up Sunday.

“They’re physical,” he said of Michigan.

That was his first thought, because it’s everyone’s first thought about the way football is played in these parts. And while he’s not wrong — they are physical — these aren’t the slow-footed thumpers of a different era.

Will it be enough?

The Wolverines are grateful for the chance to answer the question. One thing is certain: They’ve already seen it up close.

“We've played Alabama before and haven’t beaten them," Harbaugh said. "We’ve played Georgia before and haven’t beaten them. So, we know it’s gonna take our best. We're gonna have to play really good. We're going to have to plan. We’re going to have to practice … and get into a position to execute.”

Do that and they’ll have a chance to keep changing the narrative, and perhaps flip the thoughts about what kind of football is played where.

Contact Shawn Windsor: 313-222-6487 or swindsor@freepress.com. Follow him @shawnwindsor.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan football's depth goes well beyond being 'physical'