Michigan QB Alex Orji has a message for the doubters

Chris Breiler | Aug 8, 2024

Michigan QB Alex Orji / Christopher Breiler

In this story:

Michigan Wolverines

The Wolverines might try to block out the outside noise heading into 2024, but its clear they've heard the narrative. You'd be hard-pressed to find any analyst who believes that Michigan can repeat its success from the 2023 season, and most are picking the Wolverines to finish third or fourth in the Big Ten conference.

To be fair, the doubt is somewhat justified when you consider how much Michigan lost during the off-season. Jim Harbaugh took the head coaching job with the Los Angeles Chargers back in January, and he took a good portion of his staff with him. The Wolverines also lost nearly 20 key contributors to the NFL, including all six captains - Mike Sainristil, Kris Jenkins, Mike Barrett, Blake Corum, Trevor Keegan, and Zak Zinter. Oh, and they also lost JJ McCarthy.

In spite of what the outsiders think will happen, the expectation in Ann Arbor hasn't changed a bit. During his appearance at Big Ten Media Days, head coach Sherrone Moore made that abundantly clear.

〽️ Win the big games
〽️ Beat rivals
〽️ Beat Ohio State
〽️ Win the @bigten
〽️ Make CFP
〽️ Win CFP

Sherrone Moore lays out @UMichFootball's expectations 👇#B1GFootball x #B1GMediaDays pic.twitter.com/95DX26R2PB
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) July 25, 2024

Of course, in order to achieve all of the goals that Moore laid out in the clip above, Michigan will need to get a high-level of play out of the quarterback position.

The current QB battle in fall camp appears to be a three-man race between Alex Orji, Jack Tuttle, and Davis Warren. But the latest rumblings out of camp suggest that Orji has emerged as the clear leader through the first two weeks. While there are still questions about his ability to be consistent through the air, there's no doubt that his dual-threat ability will pose problems for opposing defenses this fall.

Regardless of how that battle ultimately shakes out, there's no question that Orji will play a significant role in the Michigan offense this season. There's also no question that he's heard all of the doubt surrounding Team 145, and he addressed those doubters on Thursday via his Instagram account. The caption says it all.