Michigan football looked like a top team in the country against ECU. They were suffocating on defense, took care of business on offense, and took ECU out of the game early.
Yet, there are some questions about this team that came out of the game. Questions that will need to be answered by the end of the season.
Let’s dive right in.
Is the Pass Rush Improved?
This is probably the biggest question that came out of Saturday. Michigan’s defense recorded zero sacks against a very weak opponent. Is that cause for concern?
In my opinion, no, but it remains to be seen. ECU’s offensive game plan revolved around quick throws and tricky runs. There were very few times that the Eastern Carolina receivers were running routes farther than 10-15 yards.
Quarterback Mason Garcia completed 11 of 18 passes for just 80 yards, an average of 4.4 yards per attempt. While it doesn’t look good on paper that Michigan football recorded zero sacks, those passing stats are a valid reason. If Michigan was getting torched in the passing game, it would be a different narrative.
The interior pass rush looked phenomenal. Kris Jenkins and Mason Graham, while somewhat limited in playing time, looked the part. The biggest surprise of the day, in my opinion, was the dominance of DT Kenneth Grant. I mean, Grant looked like a superstar in the making. He forced Garcia into throwing an interception to Mike Sainristil on a crucial drive, which allowed Michigan to run away with the game.
Grant was consistently applying pressure while stuffing the middle of the line, which is going to earn him some good playing time this season.
The EDGE rushers were good, but not great. They didn’t dominate to the level many had hoped, and it’s going to be interesting to see how they play against UNLV. While they did a good job against the run, they didn’t apply much pressure for most of the game.
The jury is still out on the pass rush. It’ll take a few more weeks to make a fair determination on its status. The development at the EDGE position is going to be very interesting to watch.
Is J.J. McCarthy the real deal?
Quarterback JJ McCarthy was phenomenal in game one. McCarthy finished 26-30 for 280 yards and three touchdowns. One of those incompletions was a perfectly placed ball that was dropped. The question is, is this performance a fluke against poor competition, or is JJ McCarthy a Heisman-level quarterback?
To me, McCarthy looked like a future first-rounder. You can say whatever you want about the level of competition, but McCarthy was surgical. Yes, the coverage was subpar, but McCarthy’s throws and reads were right on the money.
He looks much more mature and confident than last season. He didn’t force anything and was patient in waiting for something to open up. His third touchdown to Roman Wilson was possibly the best pass McCarthy has made as a Michigan football player. He threaded the needle on that.
All offseason long I talked about how important it was going to be to get McCarthy going early in the season, and it looks like that’s what the staff is going to do. The run game wasn’t working since ECU devoted everything to stopping it, and instead of forcing it, they opted to air it out.
McCarthy has a chance to be a record-setter this season for Michigan football. With some more big games over the coming weeks, he should be well on his way to breaking the passing touchdown record (25) and possibly the passing yards record (3,331). He’s on pace to set both, but we’ll see if he actually can. I’d bet on the touchdown record being more feasible.
Michigan’s offense was very balanced in week one. I’m looking for that to continue, because if it does, McCarthy will be heading to the record books.
Should we be concerned about Michigan football O-line?
This is probably the biggest overreaction I’ve been seeing across the media, but it is a valid question following Saturday’s game. The offensive line, touted as being a top-two offensive line in the nation, had a relatively poor game by their standards.
Michigan rushed for only 122 yards, and neither Blake Corum nor Donovan Edwards surpassed 100 yards, something that seemed like a certainty. Along with that, JJ McCarthy faced some pressure and even took a couple of scary hits. Against ECU, that can’t happen.
Well, there is a pretty simple explanation for the “struggles”. ECU knew they were extremely outmatched, so they did the only thing that would give them a chance. They stacked the box and brought tons of pressure, both to stop the run and hopefully force McCarthy into some mistakes.
They were pretty successful at stopping the run, but McCarthy torched the ECU defense. It’s a formula the Wolverines are likely to see against most teams that can’t out-talent them. It’s the best formula for an upset.
The Michigan football offensive line was able to hold its own for the most part, despite being outnumbered on the majority of plays. They played a pretty disciplined game, and there weren’t many glaring flaws.
It’s important to remember that this is a new offensive line with three new starters (counting Karsen Barnhart starting at a different position). It’s going to take some time for the line to get into a rhythm, and it should be no reason for concern right now. Especially once you remember that offensive line coach Sherrone Moore was watching the game from home.
It’s early, kinks are going to be ironed out by the end of the season.