Practice observers weigh in on 'two-man race' for Michigan starting QB job
Michigan Wolverines football is holding a quarterback competition ahead of the 2024 season, with three contenders in graduate Jack Tuttle, senior Davis Warren and junior Alex Orji. However, Tuttle is still recovering from an injury, setting back his ability to battle for the job.
“I think we can tell you it’s not gonna be Jack Tuttle, at least initially,” Big Ten Network’s Dave Revsine said during the network’s training camp tour stop at Michigan. “He’s working his way back from an injury. So it’s a two-man race at quarterback. A lot of interest, obviously, in how this plays out.”
Orji has attempted just 1 pass in his career, known much more as a runner, while Warren is considered more of a pocket passer. Those two styles were on display as the Big Ten Network analysts observed practice.
“I saw two quarterbacks that have different skill sets, and I think that’s the major problem,” Gerry DiNardo said. “If you build an offense around Warren, if you build one around Orji, if you try to mix them in.
“The other problem, unusual for Michigan, is two of the first four games are Texas and USC, so there’s some sense of urgency to get the quarterback situation resolved.”
Howard Griffith, meanwhile, is fond of what Orji showed.
“I like what Orji brings to the table,” Griffith said. “I think if you want to be a more run dominant team, you look at this offensive line, I think they’re going to be right back where they should be as a dominant O-line. So I think a quarterback that gives you the ability to have that mobility is going to give you an opportunity against teams like that.
“Does he have to continue to grow as a passer? No doubt about it. But I want him on the field so he can continue to gain experience.”
Jake Butt, a former two-time All-American tight end for Michigan, compared the situation to the 2021 and 2022 seasons, when the Wolverines saw J.J. McCarthy and Cade McNamara battle for the job.
“I think they’ve been here before,” Butt noted. “I look at Cade and J.J., who each had their own unique skill sets. When J.J. was young, he was more of a runner, whereas Cade was more of a pocket passer. What I’d expect is that I think both these guys are going to play Week 1. I think Orji, at a minimum, if he’s not the starter, will have some packages built [for him].
“What I saw, though, is you’re going against that [coordinator] Wink Martindale-Baltimore Ravens scheme defense. It’s very confusing, a lot of guys at the line of scrimmage, it’s not a clean picture. So the urgency for these guys is to be mentally sharp.
“A few times today, they were waiting for the picture to reveal itself. You cannot do that at the college football level, and you can’t do it against this defense. They’ve got to get to the point where they’re mentally seeing things before they happen, anticipating it. That way, they’re on time, because if you’re late when [junior] Will Johnson’s at corner, we saw a pick-six happen. So the mental aspect is going to be a big deciding factor in this quarterback battle.”
DiNardo shared some concern with having two different styles of quarterbacks splitting time, because whoever Michigan has in the game could tip the defense off to what the plan of attack will be.
“The other thing is, when you have two packages, obviously each package is a different package,” DiNardo said. “So your tendencies for a defensive staff become very clear. Orji’s in the game, these are the four plays they run. They don’t run the same plays when there’s another quarterback in there. So as the season wears on, having a package is a little bit of a problem, because the defense can really scheme you.”
