ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Compared to most teams around college football, Michigan has more answers than questions heading into the first full week of the 2023 season.
The Wolverines are one of the few championship contenders without uncertainty at quarterback. They’ve got an established running back duo, a deep offensive line, and experienced players at all three levels of the defense.
But that doesn’t mean we know everything about the No. 2 ranked team in the nation.
Michigan hasn’t been ranked in the top five of the preseason poll since 2007, and we all know what happened that year. We didn’t know nearly as much about that Michigan team as we thought, even though it was anchored by seniors Chad Henne and Mike Hart.
I’m not saying I expect East Carolina to do something crazy. But I am hoping to learn a whole lot more about this Michigan team that’s generating so much championship buzz.
Here’s what’s on my mind heading into Saturday:
Is the J.J. McCarthy hype real?
I don’t think most Michigan fans would argue if I said McCarthy is the best quarterback at Michigan since the Lloyd Carr era. If he’s not, he’s certainly close.
But this offseason, he was chosen to be Michigan’s annual “guy who took his game to the next level.” There’s always one. It’s the Michigan football version of “Miguel Cabrera is in the best shape of his life” during spring training.
Sometimes it’s true, sometimes it’s not. But I’ve heard people talk about McCarthy playing his way into the first round of the NFL draft next year. Whoa. If that’s the case, he has made massive improvements, and Michigan is going to be in a really, really good spot.
Will cornerback be Michigan’s undoing?
Nobody is going to be thinking of D.J. Turner and Gemon Green this Thanksgiving, but if Michigan gets torched through the air by Ohio State two days later, that duo will be remembered much more fondly.
Assuming Mike Sainristil plays nickel, Michigan’s depth chart behind Will Johnson (more on him in a moment) out wide looks iffy at best and terrifying at worst. Is Amorion Walker starting? Recent transfer Josh Wallace? Ja’Den McBurrows?
When a team like Ohio State forces Michigan to cover four elite wide receivers at once, will Michigan be able to match up? Saturday will be our first step toward answering that question.
Is Will Johnson playing?
It wouldn’t be Michigan football season without a nice long Injury Controversy. Johnson might be the best defensive player on this team, but offseason knee surgery put his early playing status in question.
He said in July that he planned to be ready to go by the opener, but we haven’t gotten any official word. Maybe he’s fine? Maybe he’s out? I don’t know for sure, but if he doesn’t play, then the cornerback problem becomes a double cornerback problem.
The good news is Michigan is obligated to tell us by Saturday morning, per the new mandated injury reports.
What does the offense look like without Harbaugh, Moore?
Jim Harbaugh and Sherrone Moore won’t be at the East Carolina game as Michigan tries to assuage the bloodthirsty NCAA. New quarterbacks coach Kirk Campbell will call offensive plays, and while I’m sure Harbaugh and Moore will have their fingerprints all over the game plan, it’ll be fun to see what Campbell pulls out.
Campbell recently helped Michigan score a major recruiting win in five-star quarterback Jaden Davis. Part of that recruitment was Michigan’s insistence that the offense is going to open up and be more pass-friendly.
If Campbell wants to win another future quarterback recruiting battle -- Bryce Underwood, anybody? -- he’s going to have to put his money where his mouth is. What better time than when he’s holding the play card?
How do Corum and Edwards split carries?
Blake Corum is back. Donovan Edwards still exists. So... how does that work?
Both players said all the right things this offseason, and they’re right: Having each other should only help both of them individually.
But it’s in Michigan’s best interest to get them both plenty of touches. Meanwhile, the Wolverines want to throw the ball more. Oh yeah, and the new running clock rule means there will be fewer plays per game.
It’s safe to say Corum will get fewer carries than last year, and Edwards will get a larger share. But what does that look like? Is it 60-40? 55-45? How often will they both be on the field at the same time?
This is a great problem to have. I can’t wait to see how Michigan solves it.
Who’s the next great pass rusher?
If there’s one thing Michigan has done during the Harbaugh era, it’s develop pass rushers -- many seemingly out of nowhere.
- Chase Winovich, a converted tight end, became Michigan’s best player as soon as Harbaugh arrived.
- Josh Uche went from one sack in his first two seasons to 15.5 in his final two.
- Kwity Paye was a three-star recruit who quickly turned into a household name and a first-round draft pick.
- David Ojabo had one career tackle going into 2021. By the end of the season, he was polishing off the Ohio State win with his eighth sack. He would have been a first-round pick if not for injury.
- Aidan Hutchinson was a highly ranked prospect, but did anyone expect him to nearly win the Heisman Trophy and then become a top-five draft pick?
- Mike Morris was a three-star who won Big Ten Defensive Lineman of the Year his first season as a full-time starter.
Who, if anyone, will fill those shoes this season? The popular pick seems to be Braiden McGregor. I think Derrick Moore has all the tools. Maybe it’s one of the more obvious choices: Jaylen Harrell or Kris Jenkins.
If Michigan wants to get back to the College Football Playoff, it’s going to need at least one elite pass rusher. History says we’ll probably know who that is sooner than later.
How will unproven defensive linemen hold up?
Sticking with the defensive line, it’s going to have to rely on several young players to replace Morris and Mazi Smith.
Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant are promising tackles, but now they have to do it without Smith, a first-round talent, hogging all the attention inside. McGregor and Moore have plenty to prove, as does Coastal Carolina transfer Josaiah Stewart.
Wilson or Johnson for WR1?
Ronnie Bell is gone, and that means his targets have to go somewhere else. He had more catches than Roman Wilson and Cornelius Johnson combined last season, so there are plenty to go around.
Both Wilson and Johnson will benefit, but which one will emerge as the No. 1 wide receiver? Johnson cemented himself as an instant legend with his two-touchdown performance at Ohio State last season, but it was Wilson who showed out with 122 total yards and two touchdowns (should have been three) in the playoff game.
Wilson is switching to the iconic No. 1 jersey, so maybe that’s foreshadowing. But Johnson has put up better numbers each of the last three seasons -- he’ll have something to say about it, too.
Sophomore WRs or freshman WRs?
Wilson and Johnson are one and two, but Michigan needs a few more receivers to step up. The question is, will it be sophomores or true freshmen?
Harbaugh said sophomore Tyler Morris was working with the first team during fall camp. He started to get more playing time last November, but only finished the season with three catches.
His classmate, Darrius Clemons, was a four-star prospect with offers from most of the top schools in the country, so it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him burst onto the scene, either.
But Harbaugh was prolific in his praise for the freshman receivers: Karmello English, Fredrick Moore, and Semaj Morgan.
“They’re not playing like freshmen,” Harbaugh said. “Their ability to get out of a break -- we haven’t seen that from any freshmen, let alone too many receivers that have come through here. Their ability to track the ball -- Fredrick Moore’s ability to track the ball is as good as I’ve seen. Semaj Morgan: quick, fast, and in shorter stature, but a very big catch radius.”
Who knows? It seems like that third spot is up for grabs.
Will Alex Orji return a kick?
No, you didn’t misread that. I’m asking if the dual-threat backup quarterback will return a kickoff.
A couple weeks ago, Harbaugh went out of his way to make some pretty bold statements about Orji as a return option.
“A secret plan for Alex Orji -- he’s got a chance to be maybe one of the greatest kick returners of all time,” Harbaugh said. “Big 230-235-pound guy. He just started doing it. We’ll see how it goes. He’s also excelling at quarterback, so there’ll be some decisions that have to be made. We have to improve in our kickoff return blocking before I agree to have Alex Orji returning the kicks.”
“One of the greatest kick returners of all time”? OK, look, if that’s the case, put him out there. You can’t just say that and then leave us hanging.
Who replaces the best kicker in program history?
Jake Moody was such a luxury for the Michigan football team. I don’t think anyone will truly understand the full extent of his value until the season begins and he’s not there.
Moody made 52 of 60 field goal attempts the past two seasons, along with every single extra point. He was the program’s first-ever Lou Groza Award winner in 2021 and thrived in high-leverage situations, like the game-winner against Illinois and the 49-yarder in Columbus.
Pretty much every time the Wolverines got inside the opponent’s 30-yard line, they knew they were scoring points. That won’t be the case without Moody around.
Michigan has plenty of kicking talent on its roster, from the highly ranked Tommy Doman to Louisville transfer James Turner to star freshman Adam Samaha. But kicking isn’t just about leg talent. It’s about composure and consistency.
Getting off to a good start on Saturday is key, because misses can get in a kicker’s head fast, especially when they’re following a star like Moody.
Will any freshmen play meaningful snaps?
We haven’t heard much about freshmen who could make an immediate impact this season.
Will it be the wide receivers? Or maybe a cornerback? There were 11 four-star prospects in the 2023 class, but they joined an established roster that also added several veterans from the transfer portal.
Part of being a college coach in this era is constantly recruiting your own players to try to get them to stay, so there’s incentive to put freshmen on the field early. The question: Who’s it going to be?
How well do the transfers fit in?
Michigan tried to patch several holes through the transfer portal this offseason, and on paper, the plan was executed perfectly.
Ernest Hausmann could start at linebacker, Wallace could start at defensive back, A.J. Barner is probably the second tight end behind Colston Loveland, and Stewart will get plenty of snaps on defense.
Harbaugh has had some great success with transfers, such as Olu Oluwatimi. But for every Oluwatimi, there’s a Jordan Whittley. Some of these transfers will pan out, and others won’t.
