Alex Orji’s made some amazing throws in fall camp, he’s lethal with his legs, but will he be named Michigan’s starting quarterback for the season opener?
We’re less than two weeks away from Michigan facing Fresno State at Michigan Stadium in the 2024 season opener and the Wolverines have yet to name a starting quarterback.
The top options heading into the opener are likely Jack Tuttle and Alex Orji. Tuttle, who transferred from Indiana last year, backed up J.J. McCarthy at Michigan in 2023 and is entering his seventh collegiate campaign. Orji saw the field too but made his impact as a runner against the likes of Ohio State and Alabama. The 6-foot-3, 235-pound junior QB rushed for 86 yards and a touchdown last year.
While Orji is arguably one of the most explosive quarterbacks with his legs he needed time to refine his throwing abilities. After all, he has one career attempt, a five-yard completion. The good news is that part of Orji’s game is on an ascending pattern.
Michigan wideout Tyler Morris says Orji is “a lot more detailed” and growing.
“There’s some throws he’s made that have been amazing,” Morris said . “I think he’s picked up his consistency for sure. And I think that was probably the biggest thing he had to work on.”
Former Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh has been adamant for quite some time that Orji isn’t just a runner and he can be dangerous throwing the ball as well, going so far as to compare Orji to Alabama’s Jalen Milroe.
“We’re seeing before our eyes right now with Alex Orji,” Harbaugh said last December. “And it scares me a little bit that Jalen Milroe could be as athletic as Alex Orji. Alex is like that scariest, most athletic guy on our whole team, you know? So, okay, that is a little scary. We’re excited to turn Alex loose. I think he will be right in the (starting quarterback) battle next year.”
Michigan is going to let Orji accentuate the things he does well and adapt the offense to fit his skillset.
“You can’t ignore it. It’s an elephant in the room. (Michigan) always talked to me about how they saw me playing and how they saw my abilities fitting into the scheme, making a different scheme or whatever it may have been,” Orji said . “And now having coach (offensive coordinator) Kirk Campbell, everything that he does is gonna come to light on the field.”
Orji presents the highest upside at quarterback heading into 2024 in terms of his versatility and game-changing running abilities on any given play. However, what remains to be seen is how accurate he is during live game action and whether he can play turnover-free football. There simply isn’t a sample size to objectively reach a conclusion — yet.
What matters at the moment is what Michigan coaches and players are saying about Orji, and by their accounts Orji’s improving and very well could be Michigan’s QB1 this fall. Jim Harbaugh once said that watching Orji is “like looking at Herschel Walker playing quarterback, who can really throw the ball.” Those types of comments are rare to hear about any player in college football and this fall may finally be the time when Orji’s able to shine and show why those who know him best believe in him.
“Orji definitely presents a difficult style of football you’ve got to play against, especially from his ability to run,” Michigan safety Quenten Johnson said.
If Orji can produce at a clip even remotely close to that of Jalen Milroe it’ll mean there’s a strong chance the Wolverines make the College Football Playoff for a fourth consecutive season.