3 takeaways from Michigan's blowout win over Hawaii
Michigan football is undefeated through the first two weeks of the season.
The defending Big Ten champions have yet to be challenged, beating Colorado State 51-7 in Week 1 before upending Hawaii, 56-10, the following week.
After an hour-long lightning delay pushed back the kickoff initially scheduled for 8 PM -- the 12th night game in Michigan Stadium history -- the Wolverines hit the field to an empty stadium.
By 9 PM, the stadium's 107,000-plus seats were (mostly) filled.
Then the J.J. McCarthy show began.
Here are three takeaways from U-M's 56-10 win over the Rainbow Warriors.
McCarthy is clearly Michigan's starting quarterback
In his first start as Michigan's starting quarterback, coming in the second of a two-game quarterback competition, McCarthy left no doubt as to who head coach Jim Harbaugh will elect as the team's QB1.
McCarthy was as close to perfect as it gets, finishing 11-of-12 for 229 yards and three touchdowns in the air, adding 16 yards on the ground.
All but one of the sophomore's seven drives didn't end in a touchdown.
If the quarterback competition was lopsided after last week, it's all but decided after McCarthy's performance on Saturday night.
McNamara is not who he was a year ago
It's challenging to curate takeaways from a Michigan football game right now that doesn't include a blurb on both quarterbacks.
However, this is likely the last time we'll need to.
McNamara was the only quarterback -- not including the game's final three minutes -- who didn't lead the offense to a touchdown. McCarthy and sophomore quarterback Davis Warren each led at least one touchdown-scoring drive.
In 2021, McNamara beat Ohio State and won a Big Ten championship in a run-first offense that ran like a well-oiled machine when he was under center, thanks to his precision and ability to limit turnovers.
In four drives on Saturday night, McNamara went 4-of-6 for 26 yards while throwing an interception. Three of his drives ended in a three-and-out. His last drive ended on an underthrown interception to a blanketed Andrel Anthony.
McNamara, a team captain, looks nothing like he did as a junior
We won't know anything about the defense until Week 4
Hawaii's offense couldn't find a rhythm against the likes of Vanderbilt and Western Kentucky.
Going into halftime, the Rainbow Warriors had under 40 total yards.
While Michigan's starting defense shined against Colorado State with seven sacks and 11 TFLs. It had just one sack and two TFLs against Hawaii.
The lack of production despite a similar scoring output for the opposition is a direct result of the number of incompletions from Joey Yellen, Hawaii's starting quarterback, who finished 13-of-35 for 135 yards with zero touchdowns.
Once again, the starting unit dominated from kickoff to garbage time. But the reality is none of Michigan's three non-conference opponents will teach us anything about what this team will be.
When Maryland comes to town in Week 4 with one of the best quarterbacks in college football and two NFL wideouts, we'll get a true look at what defensive coordinator Jesse Minter's unit is all about.
---
Discuss this article with our community on our premium message boards
Not a subscriber to Maize & Blue Review? Sign up today to gain access to all the latest Michigan intel M&BR has to offer
Follow our staff on Twitter: @JoshHenschke, @BrandonJustice_, @RivalsLibby, @TrevorMcCue, @DennisFithian, @BrockHeilig, @JimScarcelli, @DavisMoseley, @lucasreimink
Subscribe to our podcasts: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts and Spotify
Check out Maize & Blue Review's video content on YouTube
Follow Maize & Blue Review on social media: Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, and Instagram