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    • Match summary, opener score
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    Match summary, opener score

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    Michigan Football, the reigning national champion of college football, began its title defense with high hopes.

    The Wolverines returned to Week 1 action Saturday night against Fresno State, pulling away from the Bulldogs late for a 30-10 victory. It was the first win for Sherrone Moore as Michigan’s full-time head coach after replacing Jim Harbaugh.

    Davis Warren got the start at quarterback for Michigan, ending summer-long speculation about who would replace JJ McCarthy, while Alex Orji played a handful of snaps. Warren completed 15 of 25 passes for 118 yards with one touchdown and one interception.

    GAME CHOICES: Game-by-game predictions for the 2024 Michigan season

    Watch a recap of the season opener between Michigan and Fresno State below.

    Michigan vs. Fresno State Game Recap

    The Wolverines are 1-0 in the Sherrone Moore era after trailing Fresno State late in the game for a 20-point win. The Bulldogs hung on Michigan’s heels for most of the game, even cutting it to a six-point deficit early in the fourth quarter, but the Wolverines put the nail in the coffin with two touchdowns from two of their best players, tight end Colston Loveland and cornerback Will Johnson on a pick-six.

    Michigan posted 272XXX yards of offense and had long stretches where the offense struggled to move the ball. Davis Warren got the start at quarterback and completed 15 of 25 passes for 118 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Alex Orji played a handful of snaps in rotation and completed his only pass attempt for a 3-yard touchdown to Donovan Edwards and ran for 32 yards on five carries.

    Michigan’s defense was stifling, holding Fresno State to 247 yards while Johnson and Zeke Berry had two interceptions. EDGE Josiah Stewart led the team with five tackles, two sacks and three tackles for loss.

    Third time’s the charm.

    Michigan’s defense nearly had two interceptions on the first two plays of Fresno State’s drive, but a review and late hit penalty extended Fresno State’s drive. Another facemask penalty helped put Fresno State in the red zone for the second time in the game, but Michigan’s star corner had something to say about that.

    Will Johnson jumped on what should have been a wide receiver to his right, evaded the blocks and grabbed the ball at full speed, for the interception and ran down the Michigan sideline 86 yards for a touchdown. It was Michigan’s second turnover of the day.

    The Wolverines can breathe a small sigh of relief after cutting the lead to two touchdowns on the next drive. Michigan drove 75 yards in seven plays, largely powered by the grinding runs of Kalel Mullings. Mullings racked up 42 yards on three carries before Davis Warren found his favorite target, Loveland, wide open over the middle on a crosser. Loveland turned the ball upfield and tumbled into the end zone for his first touchdown of the season and the first career touchdown pass for Warren.

    It’s another one-score game heading into the home stretch. Fresno State broke the goal line for the first time to cap a seven-play, 75-yard drive with a 17-yard touchdown from Sharpe, who got a hiccup at the 5-yard line and made a defender miss on the turn and ran into the end zone. Fresno State quarterback Mikey Keene completed four passes for all 75 yards on the drive.

    The biggest positive for Michigan on opening night is that they found a kicker with a booming leg. Dominic Zvada connected for his third field goal of the night, this time from 55 yards out. Zvada had distance to spare on the long kick and fired it straight up the middle again. Michigan went 26 yards in nine plays, but the drive ended on a rare drop by Colston Loveland, who passed the corner on a slant but let the ball bounce off his hands for what would have been a first-down completion.

    Michigan’s offense couldn’t do anything on its next drive after the field goal, but its defense was up to the task coming out of the locker room. Fresno State punted twice in the quarter, and ran just 10 total plays, as Michigan’s defense was able to contain the run and limit passing to just short of the sticks.

    Michigan moved the ball 34 yards in nine plays on its second drive of the quarter, but it stalled just past midfield after Davis Warren threw three incomplete passes. Warren was 13-of-21 for 92 yards, while Alex Orji rushed for 12 yards on two carries.

    Michigan currently has the ball on its own 47-yard line entering the final quarter.

    Michigan came out of the locker room and added another field goal by Zvada, this time from 53 yards with plenty of yardage left, to extend its lead to 10. The Wolverines picked up 37 yards on the nearly six-minute drive, and were able to methodically move the ball past midfield on a series of short completions by Davis Warren. He completed four of six passes on the drive for 38 yards, primarily hitting receivers on crosses or slant routes over the middle. The drive was stalled after left guard Josh Priebe was called for a hold on what would have been a 20-yard gain to Donovan Edwards.

    Michigan holds a one-touchdown lead after the first 30 minutes. The Wolverines jumped out to a 7-0 lead on a Zeke Berry interception and a Donovan Edwards touchdown catch in the first four minutes of the game, but the Wolverines couldn’t really find a rhythm offensively after that.

    Michigan gained 89 yards in the first half, but was outgained by Fresno State, which had 97 and converted zero third downs on four attempts. Davis Warren, who got the start at quarterback, was 8-for-10 for 51 yards and one interception, while Alex Orji played two snaps and threw the lone touchdown.

    But Michigan’s defense still looks strong. The Wolverines held Fresno State to 97 yards — 72 through the air — with a third-down conversion on seven attempts on top of Berry’s turnover that led to points.

    Michigan nearly took the final seven minutes of the second quarter off with an 11-play, 47-yard drive that doubled the offense’s first-half yardage output (UM had 42 total yards in its first five drives). Davis Warren completed three passes for first downs, one to Kendrick Bell and two to Colston Loveland, to get within range of a field goal. But Donovan Edwards had two negative plays separated by a short gain by Kalel Mullings, forcing Michigan to settle for a field goal. Zvada, a transfer from Arkansas State, split the uprights with ease.

    The Bulldogs got on the board. After stopping Davis Warren on third down, Fresno State was able to move the ball inside Michigan territory, with a made field goal of 41 yards by Dylan Lynch. Quarterback Mikey Keene laid a sideline fade to Jalen Moss over Michigan defensive back Myles Pollard for a gain of 23 yards to the Michigan 36, and picked up another first down before Michigan got the stop.

    Fresno nearly scored on third down after Mac Dalena beat season-ending All-Amercan corner Will Johnson on a double move, but the pass just missed his fingertips and was incomplete.

    Warren’s first mistake as starting quarterback was an underthrown deep shot on the first play of Michigan’s third drive. Warren faked a handoff out of the shotgun, then charged and attempted to play a 50-yard pass through a sea of ​​Fresno defenders to Fredrick Moore, but the ball was a few yards short of the end zone. Moore tried to fight back, but Fresno’s Cameron Lockridge stayed in front of him and threw the ball high for the interception.

    If you wanted an answer to Michigan’s quarterback question, Davis Warren and Alex Orji were both prominent factors on Michigan’s first drive. Warren got the start under center and completed his first pass to tight end Colston Loveland for a first down, putting Michigan inside the red zone.

    Michigan moved the ball to the 4-yard line, aided by a targeting penalty on Fresno’s Jayden Davis, and Orji replaced Warren at quarterback. On his first snap, Orji faked a handoff, scanned the field and threw the ball to Edwards, who ran into the end zone for the Wolverines’ first touchdown of the season. It was the first touchdown pass of Orji’s career.

    It didn’t take long for Michigan’s vaunted defense to make an impact. Fresno State received the opening kickoff and gave the ball back to the Wolverines three plays later. Keene attempted a pass over the middle, but Berry stepped up for the takeaway, returning the ball to Fresno’s 31-yard line.

    Michigan vs. Fresno State time today

    • Date: Saturday, August 31st.
    • Time: 7:30pm ET.
    • Where: Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor.

    The Michigan vs. Fresno State game starts at 7:30 p.m. at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor.

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    What channel is the Michigan vs. Fresno State game on today?

    It’s a big night in the Big House, which means NBC Sports’ Big Ten Saturday Night team is on the call. Noah Eagle (play-by-play) and Todd Blackledge (analyst) will be covering the game from the TV booth, while Kathryn Tappen will be patrolling the sidelines of Michigan Stadium. Terry McAulay is the rules analyst for NBC.

    Michigan vs. Fresno State pregame: What you need to know

    Michigan is in a unique position as the reigning national champions looking to replace its head coach and some of the assistants who followed Harbaugh to the NFL. Moore served as interim coach for four games last year, including wins over Penn State and Ohio State, making him an obvious choice to take over the job.

    The battle between Warren and Orji has been played out behind closed doors in practice to keep their hands from being seen. Here are a few things to watch for with both quarterbacks when they play, according to Free Press reporter Tony Garcia.

    “If it’s Orji, the focus will be on going beyond just one-time reads as a passer and being on time and on target,” Garcia wrote. “If it’s Warren, the focus will be on his intangibles after he began his career as a walk-on?”

    Donovan Edwards and Kalel Mullings are the two running backs expected to handle Corum’s workload, while Semaj Morgan and Tyler Morris are the expected starting receivers, replacing Wilson and Cornelius Johnson. There will be a new offensive line in place after last year’s starters graduate or enter the NFL.

    A key returning player is standout tight end Colston Loveland, a projected first-round pick who can be compared somewhat to Travis Kelce.

    On defense, Michigan returns a ton of top-tier talent from last year’s No. 1 seed. Cornerback Will Johnson is a consistent playmaker and one of the best defensive backs in the country. He’s joined by a handful of veteran transfers like Jaden Mangham in the secondary. Defensive tackles Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant are consistent play-wreckers up the middle — perhaps the most formidable duo in the interior of the country — along with Josiah Stewart and Derrick Moore on the perimeter.

    Jared Ramsey is a sports reporter for the Detroit Free Press, covering the city’s professional teams, the state’s top two universities and more. Follow Jared at X @jared_ramsey22 and email him at [email protected].

    We occasionally recommend products and services of interest. If you make a purchase by clicking on one of the links, we may earn an affiliate fee. USA TODAY Network newsrooms operate independently and this does not influence our reporting.

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