5 things we learned from Michigan football's win over Arkansas State

For a chunk of the Michigan football game against Arkansas State, I felt good about what I saw. The Wolverines were running the ball, the defense was figuring things out on third down, and the quarterback was making some nice throws.

But then, the wheels came off. Davis Warren threw not one, not two, but three interceptions before getting pulled for Alex Orji in the worst-possible scenario.

Not that putting Orji in the game is that bad. But when you choose a quarterback and he still hasn't won the job by game three, that's not great.

Not great is a great way to describe a lot of things about this Michigan football team and here are five things we learned from the 28-18 win over Arkansas State.

QB is a mess for Michigan football

There's no other way to say it, the quarterback situation is a mess. The coaching staff went with Davis Warren and it's clear that wasn't the right choice.

Warren has a good enough arm. The problem right now is the decision making. A bad game will happen, but this is the second week in a row with multiple interceptions.

Warren also missed a wide-open Amorion Walker on what would have been a touchdown. It's fine that Warren looks good in practice but when the lights are on, he hasn't been able to perform.

Now, Michigan football has to start Alex Orji, which it should have done all along. It will require playing a different style of football.

That's why this offseason or at least since the spring -- when it was clear no quarterback was coming to save this offense -- the coaching staff should have shifted to a zone-read/option offense.

The fact that it stuck with the same system as last season is baffling. That was never going to work and now we can all see why.

Kalel Mullings is RB1

Michigan football has one of the best running back duos in the country, as long as the coaching staff is using both players.

Mullings was notably absent against Texas, especially in the first half of the game. That can't happen because it's clear he's the best running back on this team.

Mullings had two touchdown runs over over 30 yards and ran 15 times for 153 yards. He created the explosive plays that the offense has been missing and there's no reason he shouldn't get the most carries in this offense going forward.

Mullings ranks among the top 12 in five different categories nationally. He needs to be the lead back. As Sherrone Moore said, Donovan Edwards isn't chop liver. He should get plenty of touches too and if the offensive staff had an ounce of creativity, his talents wouldn't be wasted.

But...

The coaching staff is incapable of using Donovan Edwards properly

There are no excuses and there is no justification for the way that Michigan football is using or misusing Donovan Edwards.

It's like the coaching staff doesn't know it might have the most talented receiving running back in the country. I mean, they have seen him play right?

Sometimes, I seriously wonder. I can't explain it. Edwards went for over 100 yards against Maryland as a freshman and since then, it's like the staff forgot what this dude can do. They threw a bomb to him last season, and I thought that was the start of him being split wide.

However, the coaching staff barely did it anymore. They haven't done it this season unless I missed it, and with the glaring lack of talent in the receiving core, it's indefensible.

Coaching 101 is putting your players in a position to do what they do well, and in terms of being a receiver, Michigan fooball has almost never done that with Edwards.

How many angle routes or option routes has he run in his career? The truth is that Edwards would be a mismatch nightmare if the coaching staff ever decided to use him as such.

But at this point, I have given up hope.

I just know It's going to be frustrating to see him go to the NFL and destroy people in the passing game.

Michigan football defense misses Clink

The offense has major problems. I know Michigan football ran for 300 yards on Saturday and averaged 6.7 yards per attempt, but Arkansas State allowed over six yards per attempt coming in.

So if Michigan didn't run well against Arkansas State, it wasn't going to happen. The Wolverines still need to do it against a team with a pulse. The Wolverines also need to start playing better defense.

It was concerning to see Arkansas State convert some early third downs. Michigan football was able to stop them on 10 of 11 attempts at one point, but there are too many mistakes in the secondary and I'm wary of what will mean against USC next week.

Michigan simplified things on defense and that helped. But the secondary has taken a step back. Wink Martindale isn't a college defensive coordinator and there's a reason the pass defense became elite once Clink was hired before the 2021 season.

Clink never truly got the credit he deserved. It always went to Jesse Minter and Mike Macdonald. Those guys deserved it, no doubt, but Clink was elite at what he did and if he was the defensive coordinator, some of these issues, especially in the secondary, wouldn't be happening.

Greg Crippen needs to be starting at center

Sherrone Moore keeps talking about what happens at practice. But when Greg Crippen was the center against Arkansas State, the offensive line was clearly better.

Nothing against Dom Giudice, but he's just not executing at a high level. The offensive line was better as a whole against Arkansas State but their defensive front is awful.

Still, the offensive line was clearly better when Crippen was in the game. Michigan football put together back-to-back touchdown drives and then Giudice came back in.

The staff said it was a rotation based on what was happening in practice, but man, what happens in the games needs to matter too.

Crippen is the better player. Just like it's clear that Mullings is the better pure running back right now than Donovan Edwards. I said earlier this week, it's like the staff doesn't know who to play and that's a major indictment three games into the season.