The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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2. How will the coaches handle the quarterback rotation? CADE MCNAMARA (left) earned the right to start last year in his third season, and J.J. MCCARTHY (right) made the most of his spot duty in his first. Michigan could win with either, but the coaches will likely try with both … but how? Lloyd Carr found out in 1999 how tricky it can be when you've got two extremely worthy quarterbacks — he juggled Tom Brady and Drew Henson. It's a balancing act, espe- cially when you often need two quality signal- callers to weather injuries during a physical Big Ten slate. We expect McNamara to start the season and for both QBs to play significantly in the non-conference portion of the schedule. From there, we'll see what happens. TOP FIVE QUESTION MARKS THE WOLVERINE 2022 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 39 2022 SEASON PREVIEW 1. Where will the pass rush come from? Senior quarterback Cade McNamara admitted he was surprised by the pass rush this spring given what the Wolverines lost up front on defense. Edge players Aidan Hutchinson and David Ojabo combined for 25 sacks a year ago. While Ojabo came out of nowhere last year, there doesn't appear to be anybody with his elite skill set to take his place — at least not yet. First-year defensive line coach Mike Elston wants to get more rush from the interior line (and plans to), while edge rushers like senior Mike Morris and junior Jaylen Harrell will be asked to step up. 3. How different will the offense look, if at all, under co-coordinators Matt Weiss and Sherrone Moore? Last year's approach was obviously run heavy with the Wolverines play- ing to their strength up front. The offensive line proved to be one of the best in the country in paving the way for a dominant rushing attack — three of the five starters return, and center transfer Olu Oluwatimi has a chance to make it even better. But the Michigan offense has a plethora of outstanding wide receivers and two more-than-capable quarterbacks. It wouldn't be surprising at all to see more of a 50-50 run-pass split this season. 4. Will defensive coordinator Jesse Minter's first defense need more from the secondary? Head coach Jim Harbaugh made the smart hire in Minter, who worked with former DC Mike Macdonald at the Baltimore Ravens and shares a lot of his defensive philosophies. A devastating pass rush last year made it easier on the secondary, which played much more zone than under former coordinator Don Brown. What will it look like this year if the pass rush takes a step back? Good quarterbacks will pick a zone defense apart if they've got time to throw. Michigan has corners with the athleticism and experience (in some cases) to play more man-to-man. We'll see if that turns out to be the case. 5. Who is Michigan's short-yardage back? The U-M coaches looked for one in the portal before moving junior linebacker Kalel Mull- ings — a two-way prep player — to running back and playing him both ways this spring. He showed nice acceleration and flashes of moving the pile with his 6-1, 236-pound frame, though he struggled with ball security at times. Sophomore Tavi Dunlap had his moments this spring, too (18 carries, 73 yards and 1 TD in the spring game), but he still has work to do. As sophomore Donovan Edwards said this May, "we're still trying to figure [that position] out." PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN J.J. McCARTHY CADE McNAMARA