Michigan Football Spring Game Things to Watch

Saturday is Michigan Football's annual Maize vs Blue Spring Game. While it is important not to overreact to a glorified intra-scrimmage, this will be our first look at Team 145 for Michigan.

There are a lot of unknowns for the defending National Champions, who are entering a new era with a mostly new coaching staff under Sherrone Moore and a roster full of turnover from possibly record-breaking departing NFL draft class.

Nothing will give us definite answers, but clues or insight could be gleaned from what we see on Saturday.

These are four things to watch for the Maize vs Blue Spring Game.

We know no matter what happens, there will be overreactions around the quarterbacks at Michigan after the spring game. The biggest question mark for Michigan heading into the 2024 season is likely to linger, well, into the 2024 season.

Alex Orji continues to be the story. Easily the most talked about QB among the coaches and players. It has largely felt like it is his job to lose. Jack Tuttle has been dinged up through camp, so the most experienced QB in the competition has been unable to make much noise. Davis Warren is bouncing back from an injury of his own last season and, by all accounts, has had a decent camp. Jayden Denegal has been quiet, but not counted out. Freshman Jadyn Davis has received praise during camp, but is it enough to keep him in the battle?

Michigan fans are going to get their first look at the QB room without JJ McCarthy and the hope is there will be some good throws on Saturday to raise optimism around Ann Arbor. Can anything cool with the transfer portal talk or will it get even hotter?

Michigan needs to replace six starter-caliber players on its offensive line. Normally, that would feel like a dire situation, but thanks to Michigan's solid recruiting and transfer additions and a lack of transfer subtractions, a lot of talent is ready to step up.

Players like Greg Crippen and Giovanni El-Hadi have stayed in Ann Arbor and waited their turn instead of pursuing starting opportunities elsewhere. Entering their senior seasons, both look poised to get their chance to start after learning from some of the best, like Olu Oluwaitimi and Zak Zinter.

Myles Hinton started last season at right tackle and is likely to start at left tackle for Michigan in 2024. He and Northwestern transfer Josh Priebe bring the only high-level starting experience this season. Behind that four is a long list of talented upperclassmen competing to be part of the starting five or "top 10" as Michigan heavily relies on depth on its line. Former top 100 recruit Andrew Gentry appears ready to carve out a role and possibly start at right tackle. Jeffrey Persi could be in the same category as Crippen and El-Hadi.

Some injuries will prevent fans from seeing the full picture with the offensive linemen, but that just means a better look at the depth building with Michigan's most important position group.

While the offense is dealing with massive turnover and losing some of its biggest stars, the defense is loaded with elite talent at the top.

Up front Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant might not only be the best defensive tackle duo in the nation, they may simply be the two best defensive tackles in the nation. Playing alongside them are new starters technically in Derrick Moore and Josaiah Stewart. With Michigan's rotation on the EDGE, Moore and Stewart were on equal footing with Braiden McGregor and Jaylen Harrell.

Another spot where Michigan is best in the nation is cornerback with Will Johnson. Draft experts have said Johnson would have been a top 10 pick in this year's draft if he was eligible. At linebacker, Michigan returns Ernest Hausmann and adds Maryland transfer Jaishawn Barham. The star of spring practices so far, Barham is another uber talented junior on this defense.

We don't know how much we will see of Michigan's best players, but expect them to stand out when any of these guys are on the field Saturday.

One of the best overreactions of the spring game is to a player who has a strong performance. That said, previous spring game darlings could be looking at bigger roles, and there are some spring practice hype recipients fans will get to see for the first time.

Last year, Benjamin Hall and Peyton O'Leary were stars of the spring game, which led to some pretty extreme predictions. Injuries limited Hall's freshman season, and a loaded WR room kept O'Leary on the sidelines. Hall has a chance to start the year RB3, but with Blake Corum gone, Hall has a chance to be a valuable piece in 2024. The once deep WR room is currently very thin thanks to NFL departures and transfers out. O'Leary, now going into his senior season, could find a role, especially with Michigan lacking X receivers.

In camp, the previously mentioned Barham has been leading the hype train with his physicality and impressive play. In terms of new guys, Enow Etta is right there. Going into his second season, Etta has taken a leap physically, and new DL coach Lou Esposito says having Etta play outside, and the interior has allowed him to fix some of the issues and drastically improve his pass rush ability.

Aside from the obvious names, there will likely be a new Ben Hall or Peyton O'Leary this spring game. Sure, a performance like that could bring overreactions, but would it be a spring game without it?

---

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, @Berry_Seth14, @TrevorMcCue, @DennisFithian, @BrockHeilig, @JimScarcelli, @Jerry_Diorio

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