It was far from a lights-out performance from Michigan football in their first game removed from the National Championship.
The Wolverines hosted Fresno State in Week 1, ultimately winning 30-10 but not without visible growing pains throughout.
After forcing a turnover and scoring a touchdown almost immediately after kickoff, the new-look Michigan offense wouldn’t land in the end zone again until the 4th quarter.
It wasn’t pretty, especially given that this was supposed to be one of the two “easier” games on the 2024 Michigan football schedule.
Here’s a look at The Good, Bad and Ugly from the Wolverines’ win in Week 1.
The Good
There was certainly more to complain about than celebrate on Saturday night. However, these highlights are still worth noting.
Dominic Zvada’s Leg
Hello, Dominic Zvada. The new Michigan kicker who transferred from Arkansas State wasn’t exactly the talk of the town in the portal, though he should be now. After nailing kicks from 55 yards, 52, and 45, he’s officially a weapon and expands the team’s field goal range, which was 50 a season ago. On top of that, they were all no-doubters with excellent accuracy.
Colston Loveland Is Even Better
So, there’s responding to hype and then there’s being named the unanimous TE1 in the NFL Draft and totaling 8 catches for 87 yards and a touchdown in Week 1. Loveland is unquestionably this offense’s No. 1 playmaker and the best tight end Ann Arbor has seen since Jake Butt – and it’s not particularly close. He split out wide, in the slot and at tight end, creating mismatches galore. I was most impressed by his route-running and ability to separate.
Josaiah Stewart’s Rise
Overlooked by the plethora of stars on this U-M defense, Stewart is as much of an NFL prospect as anyone else on the field. He made that clear with an absurd stat line to begin the new season: 5 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, and two sacks – he led the team in all three categories. He’s emerged as far more than an edge defender as we got a glimpse at his game-breaking potential.
The Defense Makes A Statement
You can highlight a few individuals here: Will Johnson’s pick-six after being beat a couple of times … Rayshaun Benny’s surprising emergence in an already loaded D-line room … and the shutdown play from Jyaire Hill & Amir Hall at corner. You can also look at new coordinator Wink Martindale’s relentless play-calling that was maybe too aggressive at times, but overall forced two turnovers, three sacks, six tackles for loss, and one touchdown.
Kalel Mullings Earns More Carries
It was no question who the RB1 was on Saturday, as Mullings carried the ball four more times and ran for nearly 70 more yards than his running-mate (we’ll get to him in a second). Mullings had arguably the most important series of the game when he led the Wolverines down the field in a 16-10 game, setting up Davis Warren for an easy throw to Colston Loveland in the end zone. At 6.1 yards per carry, it will be hard to keep No. 20 off the field despite all the highlights of No. 7’s past.
The Bad
These things are fixable but worrisome.
Donovan Edwards’ Inconsistency Strikes Again
Yes, he’s on the cover of College Football 25 and will likely be drafted in April. However, “The Don” was anything but that on Saturday night. If you watch Michigan football religiously, then you know he’s sort of a “big game only” guy. It’s strange. He will look like prime-time Walter Payton in The Horseshoe, then comes back to Earth against lesser opponents. The question everyone was asking before the season: Can Edwards be an every-down back without Blake Corum? Looks like a no for now. Knowing Dono, he’ll go for 180 and three scores against Texas and we’ll all apologize.
The O-Line’s Growing Pains
Michigan’s offensive line is a standard unlike any other at the position in college football. Ohio State has its wideouts, LSU has its defensive backs, and Iowa has its tight ends; in Ann Arbor, it’s all about the guys up front. And man, they did not live up to the expectations in Week 1. Normally, a U-M line pushes Fresno State around – despite a strong 17 wins over the last two seasons – and they possess the ball, run all night, and win comfortably. Without that push we’re all used to seeing, this offense will be lost. If Michigan of all teams can’t establish the run … woof. Luckily, as the game went on, they buckled down and created lanes for Mullings when it mattered most. As a new unit, it will take time but as we know, there’s not much of that to work with right now.
Wink Martindale Is Not Undeniable … Yet
Everyone was assuming Martindale would come in to the scheme he pioneered, with a defense more (or as) talented as any in the country and play chess while others play Connect 4. For the most part, that was the case. However, a few 3rd & long conversions when the former Giants/Ravens DC went zero blitz and trusted Will Johnson & Co. to work on an island didn’t go well. And against the likes of Texas, those play-calls turn a potential 3rd down stop into a six-point swing the other way.
The Ugly
I’m not sure if these will be fixable and there’s reason to worry long-term, based on Saturday’s evidence.
Quarterback
Well, are you surprised? Everyone was glossing over the potential of Alex Orji leading into Week 1. Oh, how dangerous Michigan can be with a running quarterback in a run-heavy offense. Of course, as we know now, Davis Warren shockingly won the battle for QB1. While many thought there would be an even split, or somewhat of a split, there was no split at all on Saturday. Warren is the starter and this staff clearly has zero trust in Orji throwing the ball – and trust me, we understand why after this throw.
Warren made a few nice throws, with more than half of them landing in Loveland’s hands. However, the tape will tell you that he is keyed in on one read and one read only. A key example is the staredown and inevitable dump-off to Edwards here, with Kendrick Bell wide open for six.
Either the staff is intentionally asking him to focus on one read to avoid mistakes, or it’s taking the new signal-caller some time to get comfortable processing in-game. Either way, they’ll need him to have options – and choose the right one – next week against Texas.
Offensive Play Calling Acting as a Seatbelt
Your play-caller should make you confident but based on the number of 3rd down swings, screens, and rollouts to the flat – Davis Warren’s confidence wasn’t lifted by Kirk Campbell & Co. The offense lacked creativity – something we saw a ton of last year – and it took them a minute to get back to heavy-motion and misdirections to get the run game going. It looked like a game plan revolved around the O-Line dominating and when it didn’t, they looked panicked without answers.
Receivers
I’m not sure if the receivers are to blame for their lack of production, but the group totaled six catches for 34 yards – that’s terrifying. Semaj Morgan was ineffective on screens and only had one catch all night. Tyler Morris was not the separator underneath we were counting on him to be. And, shockingly, Kendrick Bell probably had the best routes all night but totaled only one grab.
Is it on the quarterback? The play-calling? The wideouts?
Sadly for Michigan fans, I think it’s a combination of all three and *that* should keep you up at night.
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