On Monday, the Free Press debuts its new podcast series, “Road to the Victors: The Story of the 1997 Michigan Wolverines.” Kelly Jordan, Detroit Free Press The turning point in Saturday’s game between Michigan football and Colorado State wasn’t DJ Turner’s punt return that gave the Wolverines an insurmountable 30-point lead early in the third quarter. Nor was Roman Wilson’s 61-yard touchdown run that opened UM’s scoring in an eventual blowout. The real turning point involved the rivalry between quarterback Cade McNamara and JJ McCarthy, which will be tested daily between now and the Big Ten opener on Sept. 24 against Maryland — if not longer. And that turning point was a 20-yard touchdown run by McCarthy after McNamara had already pulled.
With the game already won, McCarthy scooped the ball off the belly of a Michigan running back midway through the quarter and covered the sideline for the kind of score that shows the element that McNamara can’t match. A crowd of more than 109,000 cheered when McCarthy pulled defensive back Angel King down the open field and rolled into the end zone with ease.
“He was electric when he came in,” coach Jim Harbaugh said. “No question about it.” LIVE ANALYSIS: How did Michigan QB Cade McNamara fare in starting line job? SHAWN WINDSOR: College football in September is (mostly) broken. Michigan’s opening is Exhibit A INSIDE THE ROTATION: McNamara says plan ‘unusual’ and unexpected The final score — Michigan 51, Colorado State 7 — reflected a lopsided loss in what was a blowout at best and a laugher at worst. Tailbacks Blake Corum (13 carries, 76 yards, one touchdown) and Donovan Edwards (12 carries, 64 yards, one TD) led an offense that finished with more yards rushing (234) than passing (206) as the Rams offered little resistance beyond the opening possession. McNamara completed nine of 18 passes for 136 yards and a touchdown in less than three quarters of action.
New defensive coordinator Jesse Minter’s unit crushed a CSU offense led by a quarterback making his first career start in Clay Millen (16-for-20 for 137 yards with a TD and an interception) and a left tackle who didn’t had he ever played any snapshots. The Wolverines racked up seven sacks and 11 tackles for losses while creating two fumbles: an interception by safety Rod Moore and a fumble recovery by DJ Turner, who scampered 45 yards for a score.

Disappointing effort from McNamara

Based on the first three quarters at Michigan Stadium, where the Wolverines were never threatened by a hapless Colorado State team debuting its new coach, fans clamoring for McCarthy to win the quarterback competition will double down.
For months, McNamara had spoken forcefully and confidently about his place on Michigan’s roster. He told reporters the team was his after leading the Wolverines to their first Big Ten title in 17 years and their first trip to the College Football Playoff. He was adored for an offseason of development that sharpened his mechanics, bringing his accuracy to levels not seen in the last two years. His rhetoric after being elected captain in a players-only vote was that of someone who took the honor of securing his position.
Then came Saturday afternoon, the first game of Harbaugh’s multifaceted audition for the dueling quarterbacks, and much of what McNamara had been saying for the past few months played out in understated fashion. He completed just half of his passes in just over two quarters of work.
“I would definitely say it’s pretty unusual,” McNamara said when asked about the quarterback’s setup. “It was something I didn’t expect until the end of camp. I thought I had my best camp. I thought I put myself in a good position and that was just a decision coach (Harbaugh) made.” BIG TEN INSIDER: National title is the goal, but is it possible? The modest statistical output does little to erase concerns carried over from last season, when McNamara struggled with both accuracy and red-zone efficiency. His command was shaky on the opening possession, when the Wolverines went three-and-out after a pair of bad throws to Cornelius Johnson (one of which was still catchable but dropped). McNamara also had an interception nullified on a replay when CSU linebacker Jack Howell was deemed to have tripped the ball on the turf. McNamara’s most explosive play of the afternoon was a 61-yard pass to Wilson in which the wideout caught the ball near the line of scrimmage and gained the remaining yards himself. Subtracting that from McNamara’s numbers would leave him 8-for-17 for 75 yards with zero touchdowns. Michigan’s red zone numbers were troubling again, continuing a trend that hindered the Wolverines for significant portions of last season. The Wolverines started four-for-four in the red zone under McNamara, but three of those scores were field goals from punter Jake Moody. Those aren’t the numbers Harbaugh and co-offensive coordinators Sherrone Moore and Matt Weiss are looking for.
“I missed two targets,” McNamara said. “We had some drops. I don’t know. It was like the first game, I felt like I was on the offensive side of the ball. So we’ll definitely clean it up and I’ll be a part of that.” NEXT CLASS: Hype for Dexter RB Cole Cabana — a Michigan football commit — ramps up

Offensive line injury issues

Six days ago, during his preseason press conference, Harbaugh lamented the health of the Wolverines. There were a few players with bumps and bruises, he said, but the only player in danger of missing Saturday was linebacker Nikhai Hill-Green, who is recovering from a soft-tissue injury.
But something changed in the final days of preseason, and starting left tackle Ryan Hayes was nowhere to be found when the Wolverines took the field for pregame warmups. Instead, linebacker Karsen Barnhart — a key backup at every position except center — was part of the first offensive line along with left tackle Trevor Keegan.
It got worse late in the first quarter when Barnhart (ankle) limped off the field after a short Corum run. Barnhart, who logged 262 snaps last season at left tackle (64), left guard (173) and right guard (25), was evaluated on the medical scene and, according to UM’s radio broadcast, has reportedly been cleared to return. The coaching staff seemed content to err on the side of caution, shifting Keegan to left tackle and using former four-star prospect Giovanni El-Hadi at left guard. Harbaugh said Hayes has a chance to return next week against Hawaii, but was uncertain about the nature of Barnhart’s injury. “Karsen Barnhart, from Paw Paw, Michigan, tough as a $2 steak,” Harbaugh said. “I wouldn’t count him out for next week’s ball game.”

New faces from the edge

Little will be definitively gleaned about Michigan’s new crop of edge rushers in the coming weeks as they face a trio of non-conference opponents who may combine for fewer wins than the Wolverines in 2022. And Saturday, when his team Minter generated more sacks and tackles for loss (18) than completions allowed (16), the victimized offensive line included a left tackle who had never played in college.
Still, there were flickers of potential from junior Braiden McGregor, the former four-star prospect out of Port Huron whose early seasons in Ann Arbor were derailed by injury, and a pair of explosive newcomers in true freshman Derrick Moore and graduate transfer Profile. Eyabi Anoma. The trio was instrumental in harassing Millen, who repeatedly left the pocket to scramble.
“We had eight guys rotating at one point,” Mike Morris said, “and they all ate. I feel like we bring a lot of versatility and depth to every game.” A speed rush by McGregor, whose physical attributes (6-6, 261 pounds) have drawn comparisons to Aidan Hutchinson, forced Millen to climb into the pocket and overturn a pass intercepted by safety Rod Moore in the first quarter . Michigan kicked a field goal four plays later to take a 10-0 lead.
Moore and Anoma combined to snuff out a drive in the second quarter with pressures on back-to-back snaps. The freshman, who was one of the highest-rated players in Harbaugh’s 2022 recruiting class, sidestepped left tackle Brian Crespo-Jacquez and flattened Millen to force the completion on second down. The latter, who was undrafted by Alabama and led the team to Houston earlier in his checkered career, broke through a double team by speeding past the right tackle and tailgating for a sack that forced a punt.
“(Anoma) is a phenomenal player,” inside linebacker Junior Colson said. “He’s very smart. He learned the playbook very, very quickly and I think he’s going to get more and more snaps as the season goes on because he’s a dominant player.” Contact Michael Cohen at [email protected] Follow him on Twitter @Michael_Cohen13.