The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1527978
NOVEMBER 2024 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 19 BY JOHN BORTON A lex Orji maintained high hopes of becoming Michi- gan's starting quarterback from the opening series this year. The junior dual-threat QB wasn't alone in that hope, and for many, it be- came more of an expectation. So, when it didn't play out that way — when head coach Sherrone Moore announced senior Davis Warren as the Week 1 starter — Orji encountered his initial big internal challenge of the sea- son. Remain attitudinally steadfast, or push back via all-too-human feelings of hurt and a softly smoldering resentment. He chose option one, to the surprise of absolutely no one in his inner circle. "He was the same Alex you saw on Saturday after the game, the same Alex that he always is," Moore mentioned af- ter Orji led U-M to a win over USC in his first start. "Just uplifting others, great energy, great spirit, great person, learn- ing, continuing to get better. He's been the same and steadfast, and he stayed the course." According to the young man out of Sachse, Texas, there existed no Plan B. "For me, if I were focused on how I felt about it, it would have been pretty selfish," Orji insisted. "Knowing that Davis was going into his first start, and that he's another member of the quar- terback room, it was my duty to help him be comfortable and get ready. "The main thing for me was being consistent, being the same guy I'd been throughout camp, all summer, all spring. Throughout this building, there's not a lot of guys I'm closer with than Davis. The same way I tried to help him get ready for Fresno State, this past Satur- day [against USC], I couldn't do what I did without him. He's been such a great older brother to me, such a great leader, so I really can't thank him enough." Orji thus took on the often thankless task of serving as the most scrutinized individual in all of Michigan athletics — the starting quarterback. More than a few adorned in maize and blue eschewed the greatest quarterback ever to pick up a football in favor of a recruiting buzz- anointed hotshot. Others laughed at the notion that a preferred walk-on could ever lead the Wolverines anywhere, much less to a national championship. So, the third-year Michigan athlete who operated in the deep shadow of J.J. McCarthy in Michigan's national championship season took on the task of keeping the Wolverines winning. They survived his first two starts, 27-24 cliff- hangers against USC and Minnesota in which Michigan took a commanding lead only to hit a brick wall offensively in the second halves of games and nearly suc- cumb to a comeback. In Orji's third start, the Wolverines hit the road, for a rematch of the ros- ter remnants of last year's national title game. This time around Michigan fell behind 14-0 in the second quarter, and Orji found himself rooting for grad QB Jack Tuttle from the sidelines. There's no escaping the spotlight for a Michigan QB, even for the most mobile of signal-callers. Critics will continue to point to Orji's modest passing produc- tion (23-for-43, 143 yards and 3 pass- ing touchdowns in six games) and argue that an early 1970s approach to the game in 2024 will catch up to the Wolverines pretty quickly. In the Washington con- test, U-M didn't enjoy the luxury of an early lead, and Moore made a change. "It's hard, but it's not impossible," Orji said of the team's run-heavy attack after the win against the Trojans. "Be- STEADY AS HE GOES Alex Orji Keeps A Level Head Through Tough Sailing Although Orji didn't get the starting nod at quarterback coming out of training camp, he stayed ready and eventually led Michigan to a 27-24 win in its Big Ten opener versus USC. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL