Game balls from Michigan football's win over East Carolina
The Michigan Wolverines walked out of the Big House with a dominant 30-3 win over East Carolina in the season opener with no shortage of standout performances.
The Wolverine’s team of Chris Balas, Anthony Broome and Clayton Sayfie chime in with their game ball picks after the season-opening win.
RELATED:
• Game recap: Michigan football rolls East Carolina in season opener
Chris Balas: Junior QB J.J. McCarthy
Junior quarterback J.J. McCarthy looked like a pro on Saturday. He completed 26 throws on 30 attempts for 280 yards and 3 touchdowns and was on the money on 95 percent of his passes. ECU played to stop the run in the first half and essentially invited McCarthy to beat them. He obliged. The competition will get better down the road but it’s clear he has made huge strides, and the Michigan passing offense may be legitimately improved heading into the season.
Anthony Broome: Senior WR Roman Wilson
Senior wideout Roman Wilson switched from No. 14 to No. 1 shortly before the season began, signalling his desire for more pressure and exposure wearing an iconic Michigan jersey. Caveats about nonconference competition aside, he looked every bit the player we heard about in the preseason. Wilson finished the day with 6 catches for 78 yards and 3 touchdowns. This made him the first Michigan wideout with a trio of scores in one game since Nico Collins did it against Indiana in 2019.
Wilson ran crisp routes all afternoon long, and his day would have been a touch better without a drop early on in the game. His chemistry with McCarthy is apparent, and we are eager to see his role in a potentially much improved U-M passing attack.
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Clayton Sayfie: Graduate defensive back Mike Sainristil
Michigan graduate defensive back Mike Sainristil and senior safety Makari Paige were the lone Wolverine returning starters on the back end healthy enough to play. Sainristil had tight coverage on one deep ball in the first half and snagged an easy interception near the eastern sideline on ECU’s first drive of the game. We also saw some of Sainristil at outside cornerback later on in the game, showing his versatility. The jury is still out on Michigan’s other cornerbacks outside of sophomore Will Johnson, but Sainristil’s ability to play multiple spots is a nice card to have in the back pocket.
Michigan honorable mentions
• Senior RB Blake Corum – 10 carries, 73 yards, TD
• Graduate WR Cornelius Johnson – 5 catches, 71 yards
• Sophomore TE Colston Loveland – 4 catches, 51 yards
• Sophomore LB Ernest Hausmann – 5 total tackles, 0.5 tackles for loss
• Junior LB Junior Colson – 5 total tackles, 2 tackles for loss
The Wolverines are back in action next week against UNLV at Michigan Stadium. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. ET on CBS.
