The Final Four. An aspiration that most schools can only dream of, that every school strives for. The University of Michigan soccer program, however, has advanced to the Elite Eight, and is now just one game away from making this dream a reality.

The Wolverines reached the Elite Eight once before, in 2003, before getting blown out by Santa Clara, 3-0. This year, Coach Steve Burns and his team are coming in with an entirely different mindset.

“Seven years ago we were in an Elite Eight game,” said Burns. “We were playing on the road at Santa Clara. The feeling with that game was that we were a little bit lucky to be there… I don’t think anybody was seriously thinking about getting to the Final Four. Whereas this year, that’s been our focus for a good part of the season.”

Michigan has not had an easy road thus far, however, winning three of its last five games by just one goal. One of these, an overtime thriller against University of Central Florida, gave the Wolverines a brief scare, before they were able to propel themselves into the Sweet Sixteen for the first time since 2008.

In the round of sixteen, they triumphed over South Carolina behind two goals from forward Justin Meram. Meram, a senior this year, has garnered interest from many professional soccer teams, after scoring 15 goals to go along with eight assists this season. Not only does he contribute to the stat sheet, however, but he is the heart and soul of the team.

“Sometimes you get caught in the eye of the hurricane with everything that’s going on, and you forget to have fun,” said Burns. “Justin is that guy that reminds you that it’s about fun. I think that when you factor that into what he does on the field, he’s our MVP.”

The Wolverines are not, by any stretch of the imagination, just a one-man team, however. Michigan has a wide array of weapons, each that can contribute from all over the field. “[Soony Saad] can contribute in a lot of different ways,” said Burns. “He can score with the dangerous runs into the box, he can score mid-range, he can score outside the box, and he even put one in from 65 yards away.” Saad, a freshman, has scored 19 goals this season, which is a University of Michigan freshman record.

Burns also talked about the contributions of senior captain Alex Wood, saying that Wood is a leader on and off the field. “When things aren’t going the way they need to go, [Wood] is the guy to speak up.” Wood was the recipient of the Sportsmanship Award for the Big Ten Conference this year, along with being tied for second on the team with six assists.

Not only have contributions come from players, however, but also from a fan group that is a new addition to the University of Michigan student body this year. Matthew Peven, a fifth-year senior at U-M, emailed Burns over the summer, asking if he could start an official fan group for Michigan soccer, called the Michigan Ultras.

The group is constantly recruiting new members, and is continuing to grow inside of the university. Not only do student fans get T-shirts, scarves, and other apparel, but also are provided transportation from the Michigan Union to the stadium for every home game. “We’ve spent a good amount of money on that group,” said Burns of the Ultras. “We’ve probably spent almost $15,000… That’s just how important it is to have students out to our games.”

These fans have certainly made a difference for Michigan this season, helping to bring a team that finished seventh in conference play a year ago to where they are now:  conference champions, national quarter-finalists, and above all, the best team in Michigan soccer history. But the ride isn’t over yet.

On Saturday, December 4, the Wolverines will take on the Maryland Terrapins on Maryland’s home turf. The Terps have won two of the last six college national championships, and are coming into the game as the third-ranked team in the nation. But for the 19th-ranked Wolverines, 90 minutes is all that stands between them and their dream– the Final Four.

“The focus, thus far, has really been getting to the Final Four, and we haven’t allowed anybody to look past that,” said Burns. “Maryland is just the next team that we’ve got.”

Photos by Jordan Siden.

For questions or comments, Jesse Buchsbaum can be contacted at jessebu@gmail.com.