3 weeks Ago
Saturday’s game at The Big House features two teams that find themselves in serious transition. After winning a national title, Michigan lost head coach Jim Harbaugh and virtually its entire offense to the NFL. Fresno State will look more familiar on the field, but will be without former head coach Jeff Tedford, a program icon who abruptly retired for health reasons in July.
In step two longtime assistants. Sherrone Moore, the former offensive coordinator and offensive line coach, takes over for Harbaugh after guiding Michigan to wins over Bowling Green, Penn State, Maryland and Ohio State as acting head coach, while Harbaugh served multiple in-season suspensions. Fresno State tabbed assistant head coach and linebackers coach Tim Skipper, who is in his second stint at the school, as its interim head coach for the 2023 season.
The Bulldogs bring back the core of a very strong offense, while Michigan retains some of the nation’s best players on defense. The other side of this matchup brings far more questions. Saturday’s game will be the first matchup between the Wolverines and Bulldogs.
Detroit Free Press/USA TODAY Sports Michigan vs. Fresno State Location: Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, Mich. Kickoff: Saturday, Aug.
31 at 7:30 p.m. ET TV: NBC/Peacock Spread: Michigan -20.
5 Over/Under: 45.5 Announcers: Noah Eagle, Todd Blackledge and Kathryn Tappen Why Michigan Will Win For all that has changed from the 2023 season, this is still an incredibly talented team. Last year’s national championship squad often treated quarterback J.
J. McCarthy’s passing ability like a luxury vehicle in the garage. Harbaugh and Moore utilized the rushing attack, led by veteran Blake Corum and three NFL draft picks on the offensive line, to grind opponents into dust.
Michigan ran the ball 59.57% of the time last season, the 17th-highest rate in the FBS. That number may creep up even further this year.
Alex Orji, who has been considered the favorite to win the starting quarterback job, is known more for his ability as a runner, while running back Donovan Edwards is the most notable player on the offense. The College Football 25 cover star had a disappointing 2023 after going for over 1,100 yards from scrimmage a year earlier, but will now be the bellcow. Fresno State’s run defense was below average in ’23, and was a clear weak link in the Bulldogs’ four losses.
Wyoming, New Mexico, San Diego State and San José State averaged 253.5 rushing yards per game in their wins over Fresno State, and averaged just 23 pass attempts. That sounds like a winning formula for the Wolverines, especially if Orji, and now his main competition Davis Warren, earns the Week 1 start.
Michigan’s defense has plenty of holes to fill as well, but the Wolverines have more established stars on that side of the ball. Cornerback Will Johnson is one of college football’s top players and should neutralize Fresno State star wide receiver Jalen Moss in their matchups. Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant may be the best defensive tackle combination in the country, anchoring a defensive line that should get plenty of pressure on its own, though as NFL fans know, new defensive coordinator Wink Martindale is very aggressive with the blitz.
Fresno State’s offensive line was vulnerable to a strong pass rush in 2023, allowing 30 sacks on the season. Related: College Football Picks: Expert Predictions for Every Game in Week 1 Alex Martin/Journal and Courier/USA Today Network Why Fresno State Will Win The talent levels are very different, but Fresno State has a major edge in returning experience. Michigan returns just 36% of its production from a year ago, with just 24% returning on offense, per ESPN’s Bill Connelly .
Fresno State brings back 64% of its production and 80% on offense. Michigan also turned over much of the coaching staff from a year ago after Harbaugh’s departure, while Fresno’s summer coaching transition allowed for less movement. While Tedford is gone, it is fair to assume that the approach moving forward will be very similar.
Fresno’s key returners are pretty impressive as well. Mike Keene, a former UCF transfer, is Athlon’s preseason first-team All-Mountain West selection at quarterback after throwing for 2,976 yards and 24 touchdowns on a 67.1% completion rate.
Running back Malik Sherrod was also a first-team selection, while Moss and three members of the offensive line are on either the first or second team. While the line struggled at times last year, it returns four starters from the 2023 season. Michigan’s quarterback situation is one of the great unknowns entering the 2024 season.
Orji has attempted just one pass in his college career, a five-yard completion in 2022. Warren, a former walk-on, is 5-of-14 with an interception. Moore has been very cagey in giving anything away about the quarterback battle, but it does not seem as if either player has really taken the reins.
That could spell trouble against a defense with some talented returning players, like defensive lineman Devo Bridges and linebacker Malachi Langley. Related: Ranking All 134 College Football Teams for 2024 Final Analysis We’ll know much more about the reigning national champions after this game is over. While the ’24 Wolverines likely won’t stack up to the team that brought home a championship earlier this year, the team is still stocked with talent.
Very few teams are able to make an internal head coaching hire with wins over Ohio State and Penn State under his belt (although they don’t count on Moore’s official record). Expect an ugly but decisive win for Michigan at The Big House, just the way Harbaugh would like it. Prediction: Michigan 24, Fresno State 10 Related: College Football’s Best Quarterback Matchup for Each Week of the 2024 Season Related: Ranking All 96 Games for Week 1 of the 2024 College Football Season.
