Arguably no national analyst has had a better seat to watch the Michigan Wolverines win three straight Big Ten championships, as well as a national championship, than Joel Klatt. The Big Noon Saturday color commentator has watched this journey one 12 p.m. kickoff at a time, and he has spoken positively about the Wolverines this offseason, using a phrase along the lines of “nothing has changed, but everything is different.”
The names are extremely different — at quarterback, on offense, in the secondary, and at many coaching positions — yet the culture remains the same, as do the goals for this team. Still, when the ball kicks off on Saturday evening in Ann Arbor, it is finally time to turn the page. Visiting are the Fresno State Bulldogs, the No. 63 team per SP+ and No. 3 team in the Mountain West preseason poll. After 60 minutes, the country will see just how right or wrong Klatt’s assessment is.
Fresno State Bulldogs (0-0) at No. 9 Michigan Wolverines (0-0)
Date & Time: Saturday, Aug. 31, 7:30 p.m. ET
Location: Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor, MI
TV/Streaming: NBC
The Wolverines are not the only ones with a coaching change, as Fresno State’s Jeff Tedford unexpectedly announced a decision to step down a couple months ago due to health concerns. Tedford’s squad started strong last year, winning at Purdue and Arizona State and featuring in the AP Poll for a couple weeks before ultimately ending 9-4. The expectation is to take a step forward this year, even with interim head coach Tim Skipper having to jump in.
This will be the first meeting beating these two programs. Michigan has seen a few Mountain West schools over the past decade, notching wins against Colorado State, Hawaii, and Air Force. Last season, Michigan beat UNLV, who ended up making the conference championship game; Fresno State actually handed the Rebels one of their two conference losses, winning a close one in the Central Valley. Looking ahead, the Bulldogs will end the regular season at UCLA, giving them a pair of Big Ten opponents on the 2024 slate.
Enough to keep it interesting
Michigan will not want to show Texas its whole playbook, but the reality is that Alex Orji and Davis Warren need as many live reps as possible. Whoever gets the first snap will grab the headlines, but every single play is going to be important for the quarterback position. The Wolverines do not need to throw the ball all over the field to win this one, but productive evenings from both quarterbacks might be the only thing that even matters coming out of the game.
SP+ did not love the Fresno State defense last season (No. 79), and there is not much reason to believe this version should be too different. Most of the defensive line is returning, including Korey Foreman, who was a top-five recruit that first enrolled at USC, but the secondary loses Carlton Johnson and Morice Norris, who combined for 17 PBUs and six interceptions in 2023. Will the offense exploit this new-look defensive backfield? Seems unlikely, but it should help the young receiving corps at least a little.
Fresno State was average in sacks and TFLs last year, but I think this is the spot to watch. With a mostly intact defensive line going up against a brand new Michigan front five, perhaps there could be some breakdowns and miscommunication for the home team. As important is how Orji and Warren react and operate when there is pressure. Again, Kirk Campbell is not going to get overly fancy, but fans want to see that there can be a real passing game this season, which is a true question mark right now with both a new signal caller and a new line in front of whoever that ends up being.
Winning championships
To have a successful season, Michigan clearly will be relying on its defense...and what a defense it could be. The national spotlight is blinding around Mason Graham, Kenneth Grant, and Will Johnson, and the edges, linebackers, and safeties are impressive as well. Repeating as the nation’s top scoring defense is going to be tricky with so many loaded offenses on the schedule, but do not count out this unit despite so many NFL departures.
Mikey Keene returns as Fresno State’s quarterback after throwing 24 touchdowns last season on a 67-percent completion rate. The former UCF transfer earned preseason All-Conference honors, as did Malik Sherrod, a veteran running back who rushed for 966 yards and nine scores last year. Do not be mistaken — this offense should not be a huge problem for the vaunted Wolverines defense, but the Bulldogs should be able to move the chains a bit between Keene and Sherrod, including via the former’s legs.
There is no superstar pass catcher to really challenge the retooled Michigan secondary, but game script suggests Keene will have to throw the ball frequently. Jyaire Hill and Zeke Berry are two defensive backs expected to play a much bigger role this season, and each will be looking to get on the highlight reel Saturday night. This is not Quinn Ewers and the Texas offense, but this opener is going to be much more valuable to the defense than playing East Carolina (no offense, Pirates).
A new era
The first game post-Jim Harbaugh was always going to be as big for the vibes as the play on the field. I suspect Klatt is correct that despite all of the turnover, everything mostly will mostly feel just as it has before. That includes a run-first identity; I did not even mention the run game above, as we already know what Donovan Edwards is and have seen enough of Kalel Mullings to feel confident. No one would be surprised if Michigan hands the ball off 30-plus times like in last season’s non-conference stretch, which is certainly picking up where everything left off.
I will end with a couple predictions. On offense, I think Orji will show enough to lock him into the QB1 role going forward…but I also think Warren will look good enough to cause some people to demand a serious competition into the season. On defense, I believe the ceiling of this team will look just as high as last season, but a couple busts by the younger defensive backs will lower the floor a bit too. All in all, it is a comfortable win to officially kick off the Sherrone Moore era, and yes, everything is different yet nothing has changed.
