Michigan football, as expected, took care of business against East Carolina on Saturday with a 30-3 victory to kick off the 2023 campaign. J.J. McCarthy looked comfortable and in control of the offense. The junior quarterback completed the game with 26 of 30 passes for 280 yards. McCarthy and Roman Wilson connected for three touchdowns on Saturday. The Pirates were able to slow down the run by selling out and loading the box.
Defensively, the Wolverines looked really solid as well, only giving up 235 yards of total offense to East Carolina — which mostly came during garbage time. Michigan’s defense played a clean game with only one penalty called against the Wolverines. The Pirates were able to get on the board with a field goal as time expired but were not a threat to score the entire game.
With Week 1 in the books let’s grade the performance of the position groups.
Photo: Isaiah Hole
J.J. McCarthy was on fire the entire game. On Saturday he went 26 of 30 for 280 yards passing and three touchdowns. McCarthy protected the ball and didn’t force any throws. When the pocket collapsed, McCarthy showed what makes him so special, the ability to extend the play and allow his speedy receivers to get open. Davis Warren did enter the game late and went 0-for-1 passing.
Photo: Isaiah Hole
Blake Corum is healthy and looked good in his return. The duo of Corum and Donovan Edwards combined for 22 carries and 110 yards with one touchdown thanks to Corum. Michigan fans are used to seeing the Wolverines pound the ground game but Saturday the passing game was on fire so Corum and Edwards didn’t need to take on a huge workload on Saturday.
Photo: Isaiah Hole
Roman Wilson stole the show with three touchdowns for 78 yards. Cornelius Johnson had a quiet 71 yards on five catches. The battle for who will emerge a true go-to receiver will have to play itself out but why limit yourself to only one option when you can have two? I didn’t even mention the freshman wide receivers who had some high praise coming out of fall camp.
Photo: Isaiah Hole
Colston Loveland was targeted four times and caught all four balls thrown his way. The sophomore tight end had 57 yards receiving in the game and he was another potential option for McCarthy to target when the Wolverines needed to get a first down. Tight ends are also important when it comes to doing the dirty work of blocking.
Photo: Isaiah Hole
It’s going to take some time for the front five to build some chemistry and have a starting five emerge. The Wolverines have depth at the position but it’s important to find five guys that can be relied on as the five starters. The line was able to keep McCarthy upright but struggled to create holes for the running backs to break through.
Photo: Isaiah Hole
No sacks were registered but the defensive line was able to put pressure on the quarterbacks and force Mason Garcia and Alex Flinn to get the ball out faster than they would like. Similar to the offensive line, the defensive line will take some time to jell as well.
Photo: Isaiah Hole
Junior Colson led the defense with 2 tackles for loss (TFL) and Ernest Hausmann had 0.5 TFLs. From the opening drive, the linebackers were able to get through on the blitz and not allow the offense to settle in. The linebackers played a big role in why the Pirates were only able to earn 12 first downs.
Photo: Isaiah Hole
Mike Sainristil got the honor of being the first player to put the turnover buffs on after picking off Mason Garcia. Jyaire Hill and Keshaun Harris each registered 0.5 tackles for loss. Josh Wallace looked impressive even with the interception he had getting called back. Even without Will Johnson on Saturday, the secondary only gave up 132 yards.
