5 takeaways from Michigan Wolverines' natty performance after Huskies get handed a frustrating defeat

The Michigan Wolverines are college football national champions once again.

Michigan defeated the Washington Huskies 34-13 on Monday night in Houston, Texas, to improve to 15-0 and win the national championship. It was a great game from Michigan who dominated the game from start to finish.

Following the national championship, here are five takeaways from the Wolverines' performance.

5 takeaways from Michigan Wolverines' national championship

#1. Running game shines

The Michigan Wolverines offense was always going to be run first, and it was no different in the national championship.

From the get-go, Michigan ran the ball at will as the Wolverines dominated the trenches, which was a theme all season long. On the first drive of the game, Donovan Edwards rushed for a 41-yard touchdown as the Wolverines led the entire game.

Blake Corum finished with 134 yards on 21 carries and two touchdowns, while Edwards had 104 yards on six carries and two touchdowns.

#2. Michigan's secondary shuts down Penix Jr.

Mike Sainristil picked off Michael Penix Jr.

Entering the national championship, the Washington Huskies were touted as the best offense the Michigan Wolverines would face this season.

Washington was led by quarterback Michael Penix Jr., while its receivers Rome Odunze, Ja'Lynn Polk and Jalen McMillan had just torched Texas for 305 yards and two touchdowns in the Sugar Bowl.

However, the Wolverines' secondary shined, as they picked off Penix twice and no Huskies receiver had over 100 yards receiving.

Meanwhile, in the first half, Washington had zero completions over 20 yards, which was the first time that happened to the Huskies in two seasons.

#3. J.J. McCarthy plays it safe

J.J. McCarthy didn't throw for a touchdown

A year ago, J.J. McCarthy threw two pick-sixes against TCU which proved to be the difference as the Michigan Wolverines were eliminated in the semifinals.

In the semifinals, McCarthy didn't take many risks, but in the national championship, he didn't take any at all. McCarthy went 10-14 for 140 yards as he didn't make any risky throws or risk turning the ball over.

Instead, McCarthy took what the Huskies defense gave him, which included a 22-yard scramble a third-and-8 to keep the drive alive.

#4. Huskies defense turned it around, but it was too late

The Washington Huskies' defense looked to be outmatched against the Michigan Wolverines from the get-go.

Michigan's first possession went 84 yards for a touchdown, while the Wolverines followed that up with 10 points in their next two possessions. After scoring on their first three drives, it looked like the national championship would be over by halftime once again.

However, Washington did a good job of adjusting mid-game as the Huskies didn't allow any of Michigan's next seven drives to go beyond 41 yards. But, the defense-creating stops happened too little too late for Washington.

#5. Jim Harbaugh's spring practice comment

Before the national championship even kicked off, one of the biggest stories was Michigan Wolverines coach Jim Harbaugh's future.

Harbaugh has been rumored to be going back to the NFL, but after winning the national championship, the coach gave an interesting comment about spring practice.

"We're moving spring practice back. We usually start on Valentine's Day, February 14, because we love football. But this year we're going to move it back, we're going to move it back about a month. It will be good too, we have some nice weather in the spring in Ann Arbor."

After the comment, many wondered if that means Harbaugh would be staying at Michigan.