Michigan football aims to revive offense around mobility of Alex Orji vs. USC in Big Ten opener

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – The Michigan Wolverines have made a key adjustment at the quarterback position as they’re moving on from previous starter Davis Warren and inserting Alex Orji ahead of their USC matchup as they enter Big Ten play.

Wolverines head coach Sherrone Moore announced the much-anticipated switch during his press conference on Monday (Sept. 16) after another tumultuous performance by Warren and the passing game as a hole during their week three matchup against Arkansas State.

“Alex (Orji) will start on Saturday, and I am excited for him,” said Moore. “He’s been in here champing at the bit so that we will move on from there.”

Warren completed all of his passes last Saturday, but three went to the other team as he finished 11-14 for 122 yards and three interceptions, which brought a ring of boos throughout The Big House in a 28-18 victory, improving to 2-1 on the season.

Out of all three interceptions, the third one into triple coverage in the third quarter was the straw that broke the camel’s back as Orji trotted onto the field, where he led a nine-play, 80-yard scoring drive.

Orji and the offense ran the ball eight straight times before he tossed a shotput pass to tight end Hogan Hansen on an RPO for his second passing touchdown of the season.

Through three games, Warren has had more interceptions (6) than Team 144 CFP National Champion J.J. McCarthy (4) did all of last season.

Warren is 121st in interceptions, 120th in passer rating, 100th in yards per attempt, 95th in touchdowns, and 37th in completion percentages but 91st in average depth of target out of 125 FBS quarterbacks with at least 50 dropbacks through three games.

The men in maize are already behind the eight ball, having fallen from No. 9 to No. 18 in the AP polls ahead of their home matchup against the No. 11 USC Trojans.

If Michigan wants to stay in the race for the new 12-team CFP, it must switch to a more electric, run-first quarterback that will make defenses key in on his mobility, which would give receivers one-on-one coverage on the outside.

The Wolverines almost got a glimpse of how explosive they could be when Orji missed wide receiver Fredrick Moore down the sideline against Arkansas State, but it looks like both men were off by a step.

Maybe Orji was juiced that he finally got to rip the pig skin and just put too much sauce on the downfield pass, or maybe he was envisioning how he could take over the collegiate game like his idol Michael Vick did for Virginia Tech, which he committed to before signing with the men in maize.

Whatever it was, that sort of juice and gameplay ahead of Saturday’s “Stripe Out” should unlock the Wolverines’ offense as USC enters The Big House on fire.

Like Orji, fans of all football teams love calling for the backup to be inserted when the starter is not performing well. When asked about Jack Tuttle, Moore said it was up to the doctors.

The Trojans took down the LSU Tigers in week one and boat-raced Utah State in week two with their high-powered offense and newly stout defense ahead of Big Ten play.

The matchup will be their first meeting in the regular season, but overall, the Trojans are 6-4 all-time and winners of three consecutive, dating back to the 32-18 victory at the 2007 Rose Bowl.

The Trojans are coming off a bye week, so they’ve had two weeks to prepare for Michigan’s new rushing attack that found its footing after rushing for 301 yards on 43 combined carries in week three.

Running the ball has been a staple for the men in maize, especially over the last three years under former head coach Jim Harbaugh.

The poor offensive play under Warren has even reached the defensive side of the ball as all of the quick three-and-out drives didn’t let the defense catch its breath, causing them to get torched like they did against Texas in week two.

The addition of Orji taking the reins would finally give Michigan the identity of a run-first team again.

“Just take the reins and perform like he (Orji) did in the first couple weeks of camp,” Moore said. “I thought he was in a really good place. Davis outperformed him in camp at the end, and I would love to see him just take the reins and do what he’s been doing through those first couple weeks.”

Milking the clock and adding points to the score deflated teams throughout the Wolverines’ three-year run.

Playing ball control against high-powered offenses like USCs will put panic in their hearts, causing them to rush and hurry.

With opposing teams rushing and hurrying, the defense can start getting aggressive by pinning their ears back and getting after quarterbacks.

But again, it all depends on Orji’s stability and the team moving away from a balanced attack, going run-heavy, and keeping defenses honest with the occasional passing play to stay ahead of the sticks.

Again, from what we’ve seen through three games, Orji has only thrown six passes, completing two touchdowns but also throwing two loud incomplete passes for 15 yards while accumulating 58 yards on the ground.

Although he is not quite accurate, he is a dynamic playmaker, as Harbaugh demonstrated last season by letting him carry the ball 26 times for 155 yards.

On Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024, at 3:30 p.m., Orji will have many opportunities to show the naysayers why he is the key to Michigan achieving its in-season goals.

It will be a cat-and-mouse game between the University of Southern California’s defense and Orji, who will hit RPOs consistently so Donovan Edwards and Kalel Mullings can ground and pound them to victory.

The Wolverines and Orji will have to put on a performance that they’ve seen up close and personal when they got bum-rushed in the Orange Bowl against the Georgia Bulldogs and quarterback Stetson Bennett, who ran the RPO over 10 times in the first half with much success.

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If Orji, who is finally getting his first opportunity to start at quarterback against the No. 11-ranked Trojans, who have a great offense alongside a revamped defense, leads Michigan to victory, not only will his confidence continue to grow, but the confidence of the Wolverines staff and alumni base teammates will be back to CFP levels.