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After a slow start, the Michigan football team made a change at the most important position before the start of Big Ten play.
Alex Orji will step in at quarterback for the Wolverines as they face USC in their first Big Ten game of the season, replacing Davis Warren, who earned the job in training camp but struggled in the first three weeks.
Head coach Sherrone Moore announced the move Monday, two days after Warren threw three interceptions and was subsequently benched in the Wolverines’ 28-18 win over Arkansas State. He had emerged as the first choice in the battle to replace JJ McCarthy that began in spring practice and continued through training camp, ahead of Orji and the injured Jack Tuttle.
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Orji came in and was 2-for-4 for 12 yards and a touchdown in a quarter of playing time against Arkansas State. This season, the junior has completed three of six passes for 15 yards and two touchdowns. He had a consistent package the first two weeks, taking Warren off the field and using his legs as an option as a dual-threat quarterback to run 10 times for 58 yards.
Alex Orji Statistics
Orji, a 6-foot-3, 235-pound athlete from Sachse, Texas, will make his first career start Saturday against No. 12 USC. He made few appearances as a freshman in 2022 before serving as the primary backup behind McCarthy on the national championship-winning team in 2023.
In his nine appearances prior to this season, Orji attempted (and completed) just one pass and was used primarily as a run threat. He ran for 123 yards on 21 carries in his first two seasons and has added 58 yards on 10 carries this season.
Concerns about Orji’s throwing ability are the main drawback against him as McCarthy’s successor. He had a few underthrows in his few attempts this season and had to deal with crowded boxes to stop the run, but did not exhibit the turnover issues that have cropped up with Warren in his three starts.
The move is a key decision point for new head coach Sherrone Moore, who had supported Warren before saying that staff turnover issues were the reason for the move.
“Alex will start on Saturday,” Moore told reporters in Ann Arbor on Monday. “I’m happy for him. He’s been impatiently waiting to get here.”
Alex Orji recruits
Orji was a three-star athlete coming out of high school and was signed to Michigan’s class of 2022, according to 247 Sports. In the offseason, he was named the most athletic quarterback in college football by The Athletic due to his running strength for his size.
Now he has the chance to showcase that talent and be a complete quarterback against a top USC team that comes to Ann Arbor with a top 20 defense.
Jared Ramsey is a sports reporter for the Detroit Free Press Coverage of the city’s professional teams, the state’s two leading universities and more. Follow Jared on X @jared_ramsey22and email him at [email protected].
