Sherrone Moore believes Michigan 'can win with our quarterbacks' going forward

Trent Knoop | Sep 9, 2024

Michigan quarterback Davis Warren (16) keeps the ball for a run against Texas during the second half at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor on Saturday, September 7, 2024. / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Michigan offense has been the talk of the world through two weeks. The Wolverines scored 30 against Fresno State, but that included an 86-yard pick-six by Will Johnson in the fourth quarter. Michigan has struggled to get much of anything going on the ground, or through the air. Sherrone Moore and Michigan opted to start former walk-on and senior quarterback Davis Warren. Moore has said repeatedly that Warren earned the job and won it this spring.

Through two games, Warren has completed 63.8% of his passes, threw for 322 yards, two scores, and three interceptions. One question that keeps coming up among the Michigan fanbase: Why didn't Michigan look into the transfer portal to find someone to play quarterback?

Speaking with the Michigan media on Monday, Moore was asked just that. Michigan played the final game on Jan. 8. J.J. McCarthy didn't announce his decision until Jan. 14, and by then, all of the 'elite' options had decided on a school to play for. Moore said they felt good about the quarterbacks on the roster, but there were too many things that happened for the Wolverines to make any moves in the transfer portal to bring in someone from the portal.

But even through two weeks and the Michigan offense being lackluster, Moore still feels confident in his quarterback room and has the belief the Wolverines can win with what they have.

"Yeah, a lot of change, a lot of things happened," Moore started. "So for us, it was, the quarterbacks that we had here we felt pretty comfortable with, and those guys performed well in the spring and did a good job, and then things happened in the portal where guys go different places and all that. So we had a good beat on who we wanted to get and what we wanted to do. And for us to be successful and keep our culture and keep our team the right way, you know, we have the quarterbacks we have here.

"And still feel like we can win with our quarterbacks, have confidence in our quarterbacks. And for us to be successful, it's not just the quarterback. Everybody around them have to perform at a good level and perform with detail and not turn the ball over and do things to make us successful. So when people point towards the quarterback, the same thing last year, you know, J.J. [McCarthy] threw three picks in a game, and people were talking about J.J.. So we feel confident in our quarterback, and everybody around them have to execute their job at a high level as well."

Michigan quarterback Davis Warren (16) looks before making a pass against Texas during the first half at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor on Saturday, September 7, 2024. / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK

As far as his starting quarterback, Moore thinks Warren has shown enough that the offense can continue to progress around him. In the fourth quarter against Texas, he threw for 131 yards and a touchdown. Texas was getting pressure, but Warren was able to escape the pocket several times and complete passes. It's something that Moore liked seeing.

"Yeah, I thought Davis did a good job, especially at the end," Moore said on Davis Warren. "And to that, just the fight that they all had. You know, it's easy in a game like that for guys to just stop playing or not want to fight, not want to. You know, those guys fought down. They kept playing, kept playing, and went down and scored. Davis escaped out the pocket. It's a good thing, makes him throw him the run. So, yeah, definitely something we could build on for him."

As far as the other quarterbacks? Jack Tuttle is back to practicing, and while Moore said Alex Orji's role would grow last week, Orji played in just three snaps against Texas. Do the Wolverines continue to put Orji into the game? Moore said it will depend on how Orji practices week-to-week, but he did indicate on Monday that there would be more packages that allow Orji to throw the football going forward.

"Yeah, I mean, that's what he's done in the past, so that's the assumption that he's going to do, but we'll have packages for him to throw," Moore said of using Orji. "So, you know, for us, it'll just be managing that and getting him in a rhythm and getting the team in a rhythm."

Michigan will host Arkansas State on Saturday at Noon ET.

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