3 questions surrounding Michigan's quarterbacks as spring practice nears

Michigan is likely to have the strongest quarterback position group in the Big Ten conference when the season rolls around as J.J. McCarthy will be going through his first offseason as the full-time starter. No questions about who plays when and no eyes on the backup quarterback, this is officially McCarthy's show and there is excitement abound to see where McCarthy can grow.

Before that can happen, though, the Wolverines will be going through spring practice to see where the team will be heading into the summer.

Here are our three questions surrounding the quarterback position as spring practice nears.

First of all, U-M is hoping that the first offseason with McCarthy as the clear-cut starter is a healthy one as he will be participating in a full spring instead of a shortened one as he dealt with shoulder issues last spring.

Whether the shoulder impacted the slow start the Wolverines had in the passing game is likely to be unknown, the focus is on the future as this is McCarthy's team, no questions asked.

The expectation is for McCarthy to continue to work on his overall game and to help ease the younger players along as most of the workouts in the offseason are player-led outside of spring.

This offseason is expected to be a big one for McCarthy. The pressure is on his shoulders alone and that's where he thrives.

A strong, and healthy, offseason could lead to a big year for him on the field.

Last season, the Wolverines were fortunate enough to have two starter-caliber players on the depth chart and had planned on playing both until McCarthy proved he could become the full-time guy.

This year, the hope is that you will never see the backup unless they're playing in garbage time minutes with the game in hand. Losing McCarthy would be the Wolverines' worst-case scenario of the season but you do need someone who, at the very least, will be able to go in when their number is called.

Who would that guy be?

U-M will more than likely let Jack Tuttle and Davis Warren duke it out for the No. 2 role and then let the other guy play the No. 3 role.

In this day of the transfer portal, it's difficult to find a quarterback who would accept a guaranteed backup role without much shot of seeing the field. In the case of Tuttle, who has plenty of experience, they found exactly that.

Tuttle's experience and stats aren't going to jump off the page at you, the most he's thrown in a single season is 423 yards with two touchdowns and five interceptions. However, you have at least someone who has been around the college game for quite some time and would understand a new offensive scheme.

Tuttle's experience could also ease along Davis Warren, a former walk-on turned scholarship player who has had an interesting path to Ann Arbor.

There are some in U-M circles that consider Warren a starter at most schools in the conference, so the possibility of him becoming a starter at U-M once McCarthy departs the program, whether that's at the end of this season or next, is there.

In a perfect world, Warren would grasp the backup role and help push McCarthy along in practice.

The Wolverines added two quarterbacks in the 2023 recruiting class, Alex Orji and Jayden Denegal. Both guys are considered projects but Orji's specific skillset had him see the field in certain packages where he was able to show off his athletic ability.

With the path to playing time under center this season non-existent, what will the roles of the two players look like this season?

You can make an argument that Orji could play his way into becoming a gadget player for the Wolverines and it would be a valid argument to make. Orji's skillset has him a prime candidate for a position switch where he would be able to have a much easier path to playing time. While that likely consists of running the ball, it's going to be unlikely he throws any significant passes this year.

With Denegal, he is still very much a developmental prospect. After another year of learning from the likes of McCarthy and others in the quarterback room, is he someone that the Wolverines look to in the future?

Time will tell but it's clear that both players are projects. Will they be included in future plans?

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