Michigan football won the national championship game on Monday, earning a 34-13 victory over Washington. The game featured plenty of impressive performances from Wolverines players. Michigan's rushing attack performed especially well.

Blake Corum rushed for 134 yards and two touchdowns, while Donovan Edwards added 104 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

“I feel like this has been the perfect happy ending,” Edwards said after the game, via Heather Dinich of ESPN. “A lot of personal success, a lot of personal failures, but our ultimate goal was to win a national championship. … There's no other feeling than to go through what we have and still come out on top. So perfect story, a lot of adversity — coach Harbaugh's not there for six games — perfect story.”

Michigan football overcame adversity in 2023. Jim Harbaugh, as Edwards noted, missed six games due to suspensions. Playing without your head coach is not easy. Regardless, the Wolverines never backed down despite the circumstances.

Michigan football's future following championship

Michigan will enjoy their championship for now. However, they will enter the offseason with uncertainty.

Rumors have swirled about Jim Harbaugh's potential departure to the NFL, something which is not confirmed. Still, Harbaugh is already being linked to teams in the NFL.

The Wolverines will also lose some stars to the NFL as well. Michigan football has done a good job of recruiting talent and they should still be able to compete in 2024, but losing stars still will not help matters.

In the end, this Michigan program has built a steady foundation amid their improved progress over the years. However, it was one thing to finally discover a way to consistently defeat rival Ohio State. And that was exciting for Wolverines fans without question.

Winning a championship is the ultimate goal, though. Michigan football has done exactly that.