Jim Harbaugh and Aidan Hutchinson locked eyes, simultaneously grabbed the other's head and let out a demonstrative yell toward each other after Michigan beat Nebraska on the road on Oct. 9.
Hutchinson's emotion could have been seen from the last row of Memorial Stadium, but a camera gave a clear view of what this conference win, which kept Michigan undefeated, meant to him and the Wolverines. That scream was symbolic of the amount of work Michigan players and coaches put into this offseason to erase the embarrassment of the 2020 season and change the culture within Schembechler Hall.
That organic display of relief was nine months worth of effort to change the narrative of what Michigan football was becoming and change their legacy as a Wolverine.
After the embrace, Harbaugh eventually made his way across the field to shake hands with Nebraska coach Scott Frost, then hopped and ran away from his media obligations toward the locker room to celebrate with his team. He left quarterback Cade McNamara to fill in for his postgame television interview, and McNamara gave an honest depiction of what took place on that field.
He said past Michigan teams probably wouldn't have won that game, but this team did. He didn't mean to insult any previous teams at Michigan, but the numbers back him up.