Tag: Alex Orji

Alex Orji selects transfer portal destination

Best of luck to him.

After Michigan football managed to secure Bryce Underwood, things were bound to change in Ann Arbor.

Following the 13-10 win over Ohio State, Sherrone Moore fired offensive coordinator Kirk Campbell, and rumors swirled that the Wolverines would go after former Florida head coach Dan Mullen. At the same time, quarterback Alex Orji entered the transfer portal, depleting the maize and blue’s depth at the position.

Well, one Michigan football QB will be playing for Mullen.

Mullen ended up accepting the UNLV head coaching post, and Orji — who stayed with the Wolverines through the bowl game — ended up joining him by committing to the Rebels.

 

Orji ended up starting three games for the Wolverines and helped lead Michigan to wins over USC, Minnesota, and came in relief in the second half of the ReliaQuest Bowl win against Alabama.

This past year was the first chance Orji had to start. He’ll have two years of eligibility remaining in Las Vegas.

Michigan football to lose quarterback to the transfer portal

Best of luck to him. #GoBlue

Michigan football is reshaping itself in an image that Sherrone Moore finds more amenable to winning in a new era, and some of the remnants of 2024 appear to be falling away.

Thought all offseason to be the Wolverines’ presumptive starter at quarterback, Alex Orji only got three games as the maize and blue starter, in the wins against USC and Minnesota as well as in the first quarter in the loss at Washington. However, Orji — a running quarterback who had some limitations as a passer — returned to his role as an occasional wildcat quarterback in the final games of the 2024 season.

Now, with five-star Bryce Underwood in the fold and Michigan seeking a veteran in the transfer portal, Orji appears to be on his way out as he’s entering the transfer portal.

 

Orji appeared in 10 games this season and was 23-for-44 for 148 yards with three touchdowns and one interception. He will have two years of eligibility remaining.

Previewing the Michigan offense ahead of Oregon’s Week 10 matchup

The Michigan offense has struggled to find its way, but quarterback Davis Warren has settled it down lately as it prepares to face Oregon.

It’s been a trying time for the Michigan offense this season.

The Wolverines have gone through three quarterbacks due to injury or poor play and now they’re down to two signal callers after Jack Tuttle announced his retirement from the game due to concussions.

Head coach Sherrone Moore announced Davis Warren will start against the No. 1 Oregon Ducks, but expect Alex Orji to receive some snaps as well to keep the Oregon defense on its toes.

Warren has been okay this season, but far from great. He has a 67 completion percentage, which is good, but unfortunately for Michigan, he has just three touchdowns to go along with six interceptions.

“Davis (Warren) has earned the opportunity … won the spot and we will continue to roll how we did last game,” Moore said in his weekly Monday news conference.

For the Wolverine offense to succeed against Oregon, it will need to run the ball first and foremost to open up the passing game. Lately, that’s been easier said than done. The Wolverines rushed for just 119 yards in a 24-17 win over rival Michigan State. Their leading rusher, Kalel Mullings, averages 87 yards a game and 5.6 yards per carry.

The passing game has been a bit erratic because of the constant switching at the quarterback position, but tight end Colston Loveland is one of the best tight ends out there. He leads the Wolverines in receiving with 42 catches for 411 yards and four touchdowns.

As for the offensive line, it wouldn’t be a Big Ten offensive line if it wasn’t huge up front and Michigan isn’t any different. It’s led by 342-pound Myles Hinton, a six-year senior. Ducks fans should be very familiar with Hinton as he spent three seasons at Stanford before moving on to Ann Arbor.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Kirk Campbell confident in Alex Orji’s progression as the Michigan football starting QB

It will be interesting to see how he does vs. Washington. #GoBlue

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Michigan football fans are split on the status quo of their beloved program. On one hand, there are those who hoped Alex Orji would win the quarterback job and run with it, and others who were (and are) in the Davis Warren camp.

Neither has exactly set the world on fire, but with Warren’s six interceptions in the first three games, the Wolverines made the switch to Orji and are almost certainly not looking back.

His offensive coordinator, Kirk Campbell, met with the media for the first time since before fall camp and he’s liked the progression that Orji has made from Week 4 to Week 5 (essentially Orji’s Week 1 to Week 2). He didn’t get the benefit of going up against a meager defensive attack as his first start came in a ranked game against USC. And though he only threw for 32 yards that week and 83 the next, Campbell sees progress and development in action.

“What I saw from Alex is his first start was in a big game, huge game. Arguably one of the biggest wins we’ve had at home since 2021 against Ohio State,” Campbell said. “He was thrust in that opportunity. He was poised, he was composed. The stat line might not have showed everything he did, but he had command of the huddle, leadership. And we walked away from that game excited.

“Last week, he had some development in the pass game. There were some things we need to clean up, but he’s taking leadership of the quarterback position. And when he’s in the huddle, he has full command. And the players responded to that.”

On Tuesday, a couple of Michigan players said that they wanted to see Orji take over the game, but what does that look like?

He has the leadership skills and the physical attributes. But Campbell says he has to put that all together in order to reach his full potential. And once he can do that and be consistent, Campbell is sure that Orji will be a bona fide weapon for the maize and blue.

“The best way to get better at football is play more football. The more you play, the better you get,” Campbell said. “We practice a lot of football plays. There’s things he was doing in practice that weren’t shown up in games that we’d coach him through in the game, and he got through it there at the end. The reps are invaluable. The more reps you get, you’re either going to get better, or you stay the same. We’ve got to make sure that we continue to progress. I thought he did throughout that week.

“Quite frankly, we’re one throw in the last game from being 31-3, and it’s a much different situation. The point of emphasis I made to him is every rep counts. You can’t take one off. You can’t slightly make that mistake. Every rep counts, especially at this level. You’re playing good teams no matter who they are in the Big Ten. We’ve just got to make sure we execute on every single snap. You’re going to make errant throws, but they can’t just go to the other team. You’ve got to make sure we can catch them or nobody can catch them.”

One criticism that persists after the Minnesota game is Michigan’s lack of using Orji in designed running plays. Yes, he scrambles and all, but Campbell sees more opportunity for him in that regard, but he says Orji needs to do more with even his read-option plays. Because given Michigan’s weapons in the run game — Kalel Mullings and Donovan Edwards, –when Orji carries the ball, he’s taking reps away from them.

“I think that’s a catch-22. If Alex is really involved in the run game, you’re taking the ball out of Kalel’s hands a lot,” Campbell said. “But there’s opportunities that perceived maybe that might not be to the public that he is reading an extra defender and now we’re using them in conflict and Kalel’s getting the run. We are doing more of that than you’d probably think.

“But yeah, Alex is a huge part of it. Obviously, (against) USC, picked up a bunch of third downs for us with his legs. Last week he did one in the pass game. I called pass and he ran it. But yeah, he’s important. He’s got to be used in the run game. We tried to use it twice on third down. Neither one netted any success. So it’s not as simple as just saying yeah, you’re going to run him. We’ve got to go execute the call as well. He’s done a good job. He’s got to do a better job.”

Michigan players on Alex Orji: ‘Just waiting for him to take over’ games

Orji’s teammates insist he’s wayyy more talented than we’ve seen thus far. #GoBlue

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Michigan football fans are a little on edge after new starting quarterback Alex Orji threw for 32 yards in his first start and 86 yards in his second. But players and coaches insist progress is happening and that Orji can be a bona fide QB for the reigning national champion.

Orji hadn’t taken five snaps in a row before the Week 4 game against USC, so he’s still getting his feet wet after just two games. And those who have seen what Orji can do in practice know he’s capable of so much more than he’s shown in the past two weeks.

Of those who think there’s a lot more to Orji’s game includes the top tight end in the nation, Colston Loveland.

“Kind of just waiting for him to take over,” Loveland said. “I think he’s definitely got it in him. Can be. Obviously, he’s freaky, but like, just, I’m waiting on him — which I know he will — just take over the game with his legs, with his arm strength. And I know it’s coming, so I’m excited. I’m excited to see when that comes.”

Orji’s skill set, as a dual-threat quarterback, does open up a lot of possibilities that haven’t been fully exploited as of yet. But another aspect to his game that we might not get to see from Orji is his leadership.

Redshirt freshman wide receiver Kendrick Bell says that Orji’s leadership is an attribute that fans don’t get to see that resonates highly with his teammates. In such, Bell gave an example in practice how Orji has changed the confidence of the offense due to his willingness to step up and lead the team.

“He is a vocal leader,” Bell said. “He throws the ball well. If things are not going right, he’ll bring the whole offense together. Be like, ‘We gotta get this right. Let’s fix this next period,’ and actually, we’ll have a good period after that. But he’s just a really good leader.”

Fans will get a chance to see Orji try to get his third win, and the first on the road, when Michigan heads to Washington to take on the Huskies on Saturday.

Alex Orji’s teammate confident in QB’s ability to ‘sling it’

Having his team’s confidence is what matters most. #GoBlue

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Michigan football fans might be skeptical of Alex Orji’s ability to throw the ball, but his teammates know better.

Of course, his teammates get to see the full complement of what Orji can do in practice. And as far as senior right guard Giovanni El-Hadi sees it, his starting quarterback can do a lot. But it’s up to the offensive line to do a better job in pass protection.

“Orji can sling it, just got to keep protecting him,” El-Hadi said. “Part of a playcall is called, we’re ready to go through it, ready to execute it. And we’re confident in Orji throwing the ball, running with the ball, everything.”

The offense might look notably different with Orji leading the charge compared to that of Davis Warren, who started the first three games of the season. Though El-Hadi is confident in whoever is under center, he notes there are things that Orji can do that should provide more opportunities to throw the football as the season progresses.

“We’re comfortable with whoever’s back there,” El-Hadi said. “And people are scared of Alex running the ball, so we’re passing. They’re gonna have an extra person in the box, and they’re free, more things open. So we’re ready for whatever a team has to put against us. We’re confident in Alex to do all that, and it just feels natural whoever’s back there.”

Thus far, the pass game has been subpar and though the team seeks more balance, El-Hadi doesn’t really care how the Wolverines get it done, just so long as Michigan has more points than the opponent once the clock hits zero.

“Just want to keep winning,” El-Hadi said. “Run the ball, pass the ball — whatever it takes to win.”

Sherrone Moore assesses the Michigan football pass game and what it needs to do

Even if it didn’t look like it, it took a step forward on Saturday. #GoBlue

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Michigan football fans are somewhat in uproar over the state of the offense after five weeks. Which, after winning the national championship with J.J. McCarthy at the helm, it makes sense that the expectations have risen. But the path is there for the Wolverines to improve offensively, it just seems like something is missing on a play-by-play basis.

Michigan switched streams midseason, after having started Davis Warren at quarterback, moving in Week 4 to dual-threat Alex Orji. As a result, the offense has changed its dynamic. It might look worse in some regards, but in many ways, the upcoming Washington game is more like Week 3 of the season than Week 6.

Head coach Sherrone Moore noted on Monday that Orji is doing some good things, but it’s the whole battery of the passing game operation that needs to improve — the quarterback, the pass protection, and the wide receivers.

“It’s a work in progress. Got to get better,” Moore said. “Got to continue to strive to get better. Starts with me, how I organize practice and things we can do to help them. And we’ll continue to do that to get better.

“But Orji did some really good things and improved. Went through some progressions, which was good to see. Got to continue improving in that aspect. And then, we got to get open for him too, and we got to protect. So it’s a whole part thing, it’s a team thing.”

Whether it’s in the pass game or the run game, while it might not look good on a down-by-down basis, the offense in some respects is back to square one. It’s running a different set of plays than it had under Warren now that Orji is the QB. And like in the first couple of weeks, when it started to get better, we’re seeing one missed assignment on offense upending a more creative playcalling package.

“For us as a group, as a unit, whether it’s offense, whether it’s defense, we gotta play 11 as one,” Moore said. “We can’t have the one guy be wrong and — on defense, you can do that, because one guy can make a play. On offense, you can’t. So we got to continue to, not simplify, but make everything come collective so that those guys can get a hone on what we’re doing and be really good at it. And we’re definitely taking steps forward to do that.”

Moore is confident that everything will click as the weeks go on. Former coach Jim Harbaugh used to often note you can’t teach experience and now Orji is getting his first real taste of being the starting quarterback for a college football team. As are the new offensive linemen and wide receivers.

As Orji continues to understand the speed of the game, Moore is sure that he’ll become much more productive.

“The best thing for guys is experience, especially at the quarterback spot,” Moore said. “So those guys get experience, they get better. They take steps forward. So look forward for him to take a step forward this week.”

Orji has another chance to notch a win with a road trip to Washington this week. The game will take place at Husky Stadium and will kick off at 4:30 p.m. PDT.

Michigan football offensive players aware the play isn’t up to snuff right now

It has to be better going forward. #GoBlue

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — The past two weeks, Michigan football has done just enough in order to win, all with some help from the other phases in the game.

The USC game in Week 4 was huge, but with a 2-2 Minnesota team coming to town and nearly pulling off the upset, the Wolverines and their fans are left scratching their heads.

Though the offense wasn’t lighting things up in the first half, it was good enough, driving the field early in the game to score a touchdown and capitalizing off of the Gophers’ mistakes. But in the second half, it looked much like it did in Week 4, with three-and-out after three-and-out. And despite attempting to throw more downfield with Colston Loveland back in the lineup, it really didn’t look much better for quarterback Alex Orji in his second start.

But if you think he’s going to deflect or not take accountability for his shortcomings, you’ve got another thing coming.

“All we work for throughout the week is just trying to get a win. And so we came out here on a Saturday, Big Ten play, and accomplished our No. 1 goal,” Orji said after the game. “I think that we all know that the end of the game, especially the second half, wasn’t up to the standard the Michigan football has set in passing through previous games. So we just got to find a way to put together a four-quarter game and just build on the things that we that we put on tape.”

Mullings had a decent day, all things considered, managing to rush for 111 yards on 24 carries, with two touchdowns. But even with him, there were a lot of moments where he was getting only small gains, rushing into loaded boxes.

In his first career start on the offensive side of the ball (he has started a game at linebacker), Mullings echoes Orji in his estimation that there’s some killer instinct missing from this team at the moment and that they need to find ways to be better, extend drives and be more complementary to the defense. Noting it was a tale of two halves, the offense still has a lot of work to do in order to hold up its end of the bargain, Mullings says.

“Just piggybacking off of Orj, we just have to find a way to be able to strain in that second half and strain to finish teams like Orj said,” Mullings said. “Strain to play a four-quarter game and complete the game. It felt like we were rolling pretty good in that first half and really let them back into it. And got lucky with some things at the end of the game, too. So we just have to strain to be better and to execute for all four quarters.”

There is still a lot wrong beyond just the quarterback in terms of the pass game, given that the receivers and pass protection isn’t doing many favors. But the Wolverines have a good chance to right the wrongs of this week when it travels to Seattle to take on a Washington team that’s struggling — albeit not in pass defense, where it’s No. 13 in the nation.

Michigan football coaches confident in Alex Orji’s passing ability

You may doubt, but they were beyond vehement. #GoBlue

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — We’ve been through this same rigamarole each of the last three years. Michigan football has a limited offensive outing in one way or another and fans get up on their pulpit and scream, ‘You’re not going to beat Ohio State like that!’

True, but Michigan didn’t play Ohio State last week. It played USC — and won with only 32 yards passing and 290 yards rushing.

Alex Orji was in his first start at quarterback and he didn’t exactly get a wealth of attempts passing downfield — the coaches called a conservative passing game, especially with tight end Colston Loveland out with an injury.

On Wednesday, Michigan defensive coordinator Wink Martindale — who may be on the other side of the ball, but had some strong feelings about the state of the offense — bristled at the notion that Orji and the offense can’t pass the ball if necessary. He pointed to the NFL and noted that not every team wins games by throwing it all over the place.

“There we go again with that narrative,” Martindale said. “Do you realize what happened this past weekend in the NFL? The Baltimore Ravens ran the ball 45 times, I think they threw it 12. And they beat the Cowboys pretty bad, right til the end of the game, right? The Saints (and) Derek Carr threw for what? 12 passes in his first game, I think 16 in the second. Don’t quote me on that. I’m not sure, but I know it was a low amount of passes they were chewing up, right? Look what Washington just did to Cincinnati. So the pendulum’s swinging either way you want to look at it.

“And I think that with our offense, and with our offense it can do, and our defense and our special teams, we have the flexibility in our scheme to do whatever we need to do to win that game, that week when we prepare for it. And I think that sometimes the narrative about Alex — OK, one thing about being old, I do have experience, and I’ve seen quarterbacks take over an offense and run with the offense. And I think that’s what’s going to happen with this guy. I love the kid. So I’m not evaluating anything or anything else offensively, because got my hands full where we’re at, but I think that there shouldn’t be any limitations put on because it’s one of those things. Same thing I was talking about the defense every day. Just try to get better, try to get better, and you build it as you go. And what happens is, there’s overreactions when you have a different schedule than what we’ve had here in the past, the past few years, right? And there’s a you stub your toe, which is Texas, right? But there’s an overreaction to it. The bottom line is, just come in every week and be 1-0. So whatever it takes.”

Martindale isn’t wrong. If Michigan passed for 400 yards but ran for 50, fans wouldn’t have much to say, nor would the media. Being able to pass has tended to cover up a lot of issues teams might have running the football, and usually fans and media give those teams a pass.

That said, Michigan does still need to prove that it can throw the football to win games, especially with Orji at the helm. But it’s not like it plays the toughest teams on the schedule just yet. OSU comes at the end of the season, Oregon is a few weeks before that. Orji is coming off of his first start, and as Martindale noted, he can grow in that role.

As far as the offensive perspective, offensive line coach Grant Newsome says that the team is focused on whatever it takes to win, not winning a popularity contest. Given how Michigan has won in the past three years across multiple big games, he notes that the team should be given the benefit of the doubt.

“That’s, I guess, to be determined. But I know I trust all of our guys. I trust our coaches,” Newsome said. “I think we’re going to do what the game calls for, like I said. And I guess the only evidence I can give you is that there were people saying this last year after Penn State — ‘You won’t be able to beat Ohio State doing this. You won’t be able to win the Big Ten championship. It’s not going to work for us against Alabama.’ And we did what the game called for. Coach Moore called the game as it needed to be called. Coach Campbell’s going to call the game as it needs to be called.

“So I’m not trying to be smart in my response, but it’s the reality. I don’t think anyone in this building cares about how sexy something looks, cares about if it works or not. If it doesn’t work, then as coaches we’ve got to reevaluate it and make sure it does. But if we win every game throwing for 500 yards and have two yards rushing, I’ll be happy we won the game. If we rush for 300 yards again and have 32 yards, because that’s what the game called for, I think we’ll be pretty happy, too, because we’re winning games.”

Stats tell part of the story, and it tells how a game went. Just like the loss to Texas showed a potentially improving offense, the turnovers were what killed the Wolverines in that game. If Michigan can beat USC the way it did how it did, who’s to say it can’t some of the other big teams on the schedule?

We’ll find out in short order if the Wolverines can change the narrative.

What Sherrone Moore wants to see from Alex Orji moving forward

They’re confident they’ll be able to add to his plate as weeks pass. #GoBlue

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — There’s been a lot of consternation surrounding Michigan football, even after unexpectedly beating the formerly 11th-ranked USC Trojans on Saturday, and much of it has to do with the state of the offense.

A lot of message board fodder has surrounded the question of Alex Orji’s viability at quarterback. After all, Michigan only had him attempt 12 passes on Saturday, and he only managed 32 yards through the air. But as the team moves forward, head coach Sherrone Moore insists that Orji will remain the starting quarterback moving forward and that he was pleased with his performance in Week 4.

“Alex will be the starter again and there’s definitely more to the game and more things that we have to complement for him and for the offense,” Moore said. “But I thought he did a good job, took care of the football for us, which was the No. 1 thing we wanted, and was a great team player. Did all the things we asked him. Ran it extremely hard when he asked him to, so proud of him, proud of his performance.”

To this point, Michigan had really only used Orji as a chess piece, brought in to run the ball. And when he was tasked with this, more often than not, he was successful. But now it’s an entirely different offense with him running point, as he’ll need to do more than he was previously asked to do.

Moore says that the Wolverines will gradually and continually add more to Orji’s plate as the weeks progress, but that the plan is for him to retain the starting position, so long as he takes care of the football.

“It was good to get that first experience as a starter and play, especially a big-time game and 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 not that 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.”

Passing for just 32 yards is unordinary, but it’s no aberration. We’ve seen multiple Michigan games in the recent past where the Wolverines don’t attempt to do much, and don’t throw downfield.

That was the game plan this past week, as the offense didn’t often require Orji to make throws too far beyond the line of scrimmage. But as we’ve seen in previous years (like against Washington in 2021 with 44 yards passing, or last year against Penn State with 60 yards passing) that those types of games are situational.

Now, of course, there are some impediments. The receiving corps doesn’t often get open, and Colston Loveland was out vs. USC. But Michigan will need to find ways to do like Alabama did with Jalen Milroe (his first start came in 2022, when he was 12-for-19 for 111 yards, with three touchdowns and an interception against Texas A&M) by increasing his workload over time.

Moore says that Orji will get more adept in the passing game now that he has one full game under his belt and that he’s confident that the Wolverines will find ways to move the ball outside of the run game.

“Yeah, I think the continual confidence of being to start the second game — I think it’s huge, and there’s nothing like experience and continue to do it,” Moore said. “And he’s already a confident kid. But I think as you continue progressing, see that you can do it, you make those throws, you make those down-the-field throws, and do those things in practice, and then at least in the game, those will show up even more. So just ready for him to keep the confidence and keep the level of confidence up for him.”