Sherrone Moore confirms Alex Orji will remain Michigan's starting QB

Alex Orji attempted only 12 passes and threw for only 32 yards this past weekend, but the redshirt sophomore collected his first win as Michigan’s starting quarterback, and a big one at that: Orji chipped in 43 rushing yards amid a 290-yard, ground-and-pound effort in a 27-24 win over then-No. 11 USC.

Orji’s remaining in that QB1 role for the Wolverines as they prepare for a Week 5 matchup versus Minnesota, head coach Sherrone Moore confirmed Monday.

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“Alex will be the starter again,” Moore said, “and there’s definitely more to his game and more things that we have complemented for him and for the offense. But I thought he did a good job of taking care of the football for us, which was the No. 1 thing we wanted.

“He was a great team player. He did all the things we asked him. He ran extremely hard when we asked him to, so, proud of him and proud of his performance.”

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Although senior Davis Warren beat out Orji for the starting job at the end of training camp, the former walk-on lost the keys to the offense after he threw three interceptions in a 28-18 victory against Arkansas State the week prior. Warren posted a meager 2:6 touchdown-to-interception ratio in his three starts.

While Orji didn’t pass often versus the Trojans Saturday, he did complete seven of his 12 passes, and he didn’t give the ball away — not as a thrower or as a runner on his 13 carries.

Moore was asked how much he and his staff can add to Orji’s plate week-to-week, particularly when it comes to downfield throwing. It’s worth noting that, of his 12 pass attempts against USC, seven were either behind the line of scrimmage or ranging between 0-9 air yards, according to Pro Football Focus. All five of his incompletions came on throws traveling 10 or more air yards, including three 20-plus-air-yard attempts, per PFF.

“It was good [for him] to get that first experience as a starter and play, especially in a big-time game in a great atmosphere like it was on Saturday,” Moore said. “So yeah, there’s a good bit that we can add and things that we can do to complement the running game.

“And obviously the running game was successful, but we want to be balanced. And we’ve had years in the past where we’ve had those games like that, that we’ve had to win like that, and not afraid to win like that as long as we win. So we’ll definitely just keep rolling.”

Last November, en route to a national championship, Michigan ran the ball 32 straight times in a 24-15 win over Penn State. And that was with eventual No. 10 overall pick J.J. McCarthy quarterbacking the Wolverines.

Moore didn’t hesitate to lean on his offensive line and running backs then, and he’s not holding back this year, either, even with a new cast in trenches.

That said, if Michigan’s to achieve the balance Moore mentioned Monday, Orji will have to throw more, and complete passes past the sticks.