The Maze team defeated the Blue team 17-7 in the Michigan State football spring game in Ann Arbor on Saturday afternoon.
Early in the morning, the defending national champion Wolverines unveiled four new rings and celebrated their 2023 national championship. One is a national title, one is a Rose Bowl, one is a Big Ten Championship, and one is a third consecutive College Football Playoff. Birth.
While no official statistics remain, here are five takeaways from the public's first look at the 2024 UM football team.
Quarterback questions continue in Warren vs. Oji battle
For the Blue team, Alex Orge started, Jadyn Davis was a reserve, Davis Warren started for Maze, and Jayden Denegal was a reserve. Seventh-year QB Jack Tuttle was not dressed for the game.
Orji did a good job of moving the blue team down the field on the first drive. His first two passes (one to Max Bredeson, the other to Tyler Morris) were behind his intended receiver, but he settled for a screen pass and then a curl to Bredeson on fourth down. He made the decision and kept the drive alive.
His best pass was a 12-yard out route from the left slot to Peyton O'Leary, and two plays later, when the play broke down and he scrambled out to the right, Orsi made the most athletic play of the drive. Did. He ran the defense for 18 yards and scored a touchdown. Not surprisingly, he was wearing a white non-contact jersey and it looked as if several defenders could have tackled him had they been allowed to, but it was ruled a touchdown.
Orji returned for two possessions in the second half. On his first pass, he attempted one pass and moved well in the pocket to create a throwing lane, but he knocked the intended receiver down about 5 feet away, leading to a punt.
The next game, UM tried four straight runs and on fourth-and-1 from the 47, a handoff to Benjamin Hall was stuffed with a turnover on downs.
It's difficult to give an accurate assessment due to the separation of the offensive line and skill position groups, but Orji didn't seem to do anything particularly to hurt the perception of him as a clubhouse leader.
His unofficial stats were 11-of-17 passing for 95 yards, one rush for 18 yards, and one touchdown.
Meanwhile, Warren moved the ball well for Mays. On the first drive, Deacon Tonielli hit third-and-7 for a 35-yard gain, then Colston Loveland split out wide for a 10-yard gain. But on a third-and-5 from the Blue 10, he connected with Karel Mullins and was tackled for a loss, forcing UM to settle for a field goal.
Warren got two more possessions in the fourth quarter, at which point he made one of the plays of the game.
The Mays team had just crossed midfield, and on 1-10 Warren dropped down and made a pass, Kendrick Bell (Ronnie Bell's younger brother) ran a go route straight past Joshua Nichols, and Warren threw. He perfectly caught the deep ball at 42 yards. For the go-ahead score.
On the next possession, Mays faced a two-and-13 from midfield, but Warren rolled to his right, continued to stare down the field, and found Fredrick Moore, who was checking down, coming back across the formation, and Moore I kept running and crossed the finish line. He outscored his defenders down the field and completed a 49-yard touchdown.
Unofficially, Warren completed 6 of 9 passes for 142 yards and two touchdowns.
Jayden Denegal had the final series of the first half and the first series of the second half. On his first possession, he connected with Moore for a 32-yard pass that would have resulted in a sack had the defense allowed him to attack. Mays attempted a field goal, but he missed to the left.
His tough day continued on the next possession, when he came close to interception on third and fourth down inside blue territory and threw a pass behind the receiver for an attempt.
Davis was the backup and looked comfortable leading the offense, even if he didn't produce anything spectacular. Perhaps his best play was on fourth-and-7 late in the third quarter. That's when he extended the play by rolling to his right and lofting the ball downfield, nearly toppling Peyton O'Leary over a hill along the sideline. It was a circus catch, but it broke up at the last moment.
Donovan regained his swagger.
Earlier this spring, Donovan Edwards explained why he decided to return to Ann Arbor for his senior season instead of opting to enter the NFL Draft.
The West Bloomfield product was honest about his junior season, saying he lost some of his luster and tried to bounce back with offseason surgery. He ran for 119 yards and two scores as the MVP of the National Championship Game, but still ran for just 393 yards (3.43 yards per rush) and three scores on 113 carries in the first 14 games. My grades never returned to normal.
On Saturday, Edwards (Blue Team) looked much more like the explosive ball carrier he was as a sophomore. He took an 11-yard first touch from the A-gap, then two plays later took another 11-yard rush from the left side of the line behind Blake Frazier and Amir Herring for his third run on the outside right. Ta. He scored a six-point gain and almost escaped, but was tripped from behind by Jaire Hill.
Edwards consistently fell forward, was decisive with his cuts, and looked more explosive overall, even with limited touches. Unofficially, Edwards had his first good showing as UM's new lead back, running four times for 32 yards behind the interim line.
Tyler Morris looks like the No. 1 WR.
It's always hard to say when a team is split, but right now it looked like Tyler Morris was the clear No. 1 option at wideout in the passing game.
Morris, dressed for the blue team, was targeted early and often by both Orge and Davis. After Orji's first pass to Morris was thrown behind the middle crosser, he was screened on the next play for a six-point gain.
On the next possession, Morris caught a screen pass from Davis for an 8-yard first down, then got a carry on the next play and appeared to pick up 3 yards on an end-around, but a penalty nullified the play. It became. .
The second half was mainly about the substitutes, but Morris' early involvement was no coincidence.
Young secondary shows promise
The task of replacing two-time captain and All-American Mike Theinristil in the nickel position next season feels like a lofty one.
Also, when UM had to replace first-round pick Dax Hill after the 2021 season, it felt like a difficult task, but that's when they discovered a hidden gem in Sainlistil. . If Saturday was an early indication, the Wolverines will have two solid options at the position in Zeke Berry and Jayden McBurrows.
Berry made some nice plays in run support, stopping Carlos Dunlap's carry at the line of scrimmage to start the second quarter, then going downhill again around the edge on the second half drive to short-yardage specialist Karel Mullins. He short-circuited the 3rd quarter. And -1 carry.
Near the end of the first half, Denegal fumbled a snap and Berry was one of the defenders closest to the chance to jump on it. The stop was disallowed because he let the quarterback go (per his instructions), but it's notable that he was in position.
The second half saw the first appearance of DJ Waller, another name that has been popping up a lot this spring. On third down, Denegal forced a pass and Waller jumped a route and returned it 10 yards, but then got hit from behind and fumbled, returning the ball to the offense.
He made up for it a few plays later by stuffing Bryson Kudczal with a fourth-down rush.
Jaire Hill also made a great tackle from behind on Edwards, and McBurrows also added some impressive stops in run support.
Young receiver shines late
It was a quiet day for receivers for three quarters, but then a few young prospects stepped up to make their mark.
First, Bell arrived as an athlete from Kansas City and started in the quarterback room, but then moved to wide. He took a 42-yard deep ball from Warren late in the fourth quarter and did a great job of finding the ball and driving in the score.
Next up was Moore, who served as Warren's safety valve on the next series, using his athleticism to outscore the defense to the end zone. On a day when Colston Loveland and Semaj Morgan were protected by design and Morris showed flashes of his own, it was a welcome sign to see two young pass catchers flourish.
