Michigan Football: 3 Takeaways from win over Middle Tennessee State
By Nick Popio
2 Quarterback System
Jim Harbaugh said he was going to ride with two signal callers and he did not waver from that. Patterson and McCaffrey shared action in the second to move the balanced effort down the field. Word got out that Patterson was being checked out for something and was the reason why McCaffrey earned substantial time.
Shea decimated the Middle Tennessee defense with slants and bombs throughout. He threw for all three of his scores in the first while cooling off with that undisclosed hiccup in the second. He was well on his way to 300 plus yards of total offense had he not missed the aforementioned playing time.
Per Jim Harbaugh, Shea Patterson was "working through something" that was evaluated at halftime for.
— Zach Shaw (@_ZachShaw) September 1, 2019
Could explain Patterson's struggles in the second half, and maybe the lack of passing plays.
McCaffrey was his usual play-making self on the ground as well. His presence seemed to provide a little energy into the stagnant offense when he arrived in the third quarter. He should continue to see the field as long as the system produces the kind of results they are hoping for.
Harbaugh knows what he has in the quarterback department. He’s basically going to be forced to play both guys moving forward because of their abilities and the decision to transfer out of the program if one is not getting the experience they think they deserve. It’s something that folks will get used to seeing with McCaffrey spelling Patterson from time to time all season long.