Michigan football stock watch: Passing game finds a dynamite connection
Free Press sports writer Tony Garcia breaks down the players for No. 2 Michigan football who helped or hurt their stock during Saturday's 30-3 victory over East Carolina:
Three up
J.J. McCarthy: He has put up larger numbers and played on bigger stages, but McCarthy has never been better in a Michigan uniform than he was Saturday. Cool, calm and collected, Michigan's junior signal caller dissected the Pirates' overmatched secondary to the tune of 26 completions on 30 attempts for 280 yards and three touchdowns. He was 12-for-15 for 181 yards and three TDs on his passes that traveled more than 10 yards in the air, and a perfect 6-for-6 for 81 yards on play-action passes. Whether it was extending plays while keeping his eyes downfield, navigating the pocket with precision or fitting the ball into tight windows on the run, McCarthy made elite throws, and elite decisions, that sure to impress NFL scouts.
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Roman Wilson: Another clear selection as Wilson had his way against ECU. The senior had a drop early, then couldn't be covered. Literally. Wilson caught the next pass of the game, a 16-yard corner route on third-and-7, to keep the Wolverines' first touchdown drive alive. In all, Wilson hauled in six receptions (tied for a career high) for 78 yards and all three of U-M's touchdowns, becoming just the fourth U-M player in 10 seasons with three receiving scores in a game. The 6-foot, 190-pound speedster — his 40-yard dash time was clocked at 4.37 seconds — also caught a handful of third-down passes en route to a career-high receiving grade (81.1) from Pro Football Focus.
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Kenneth Grant: Often, the big fellas in the middle of the defensive line get overlooked. Linebacker Junior Colson said as much Saturday afternoon while answering questions about his performance. Colson attributed his team-high two tackles for loss, thanks to the linemen in front of him eating up blockers and on Saturday. And no one was more effective than Grant. The sophomore played 20 snaps — 14 against the pass, six against the rush — and didn't record any tackles; but he was credited with two QB hurries, including one that led to nickel back Mike Sainristil's interception. Grant's 20 snaps were the second-most of his two-season career, behind only his September 2022 game against Hawaii, as was his PFF grade (85.5).
Three down
Donovan Edwards: It's too soon to worry much, but Michigan's star running back not named "Blake Corum" — call him RB1-A — didn't appear to have his usual burst. Perhaps it was a product of ECU stacking the box, or the Pirates' work to prevent him from turning the corner, but Edwards was bottled up. The junior was given a team-high 11 carries but managed just 37 yards (he also had four catches and 33 yards receiving). Edwards had a bit of success around the edges, with five rushes for 29 yards, but only one went more than seven yards — a 14-yarder in the first half. Between the tackles, he had six carries for 8 yards. Edwards' rushing grade (62.2) from PFF was only slightly above average while his pass-blocking grade (58.8) was below average.
Myles Hinton: U-M's offensive line clearly didn't get the same push in the rushing game as last year. Hinton, a transfer from Stanford who started the opener at right tackle — it's unclear if he will start Week 2 or if Trente Jones will get an audition — had a particularly tough afternoon. Despite playing a team-high 58 snaps — 32 passing and 26 rushing — Hinton was graded out in the "poor" range by PFF in both blocking types, with scores of 49.8 and 49.7, respectively. Of 25 Wolverines who registered a rush-blocking grade from PFF, only tight end Josh Beetham and receivers Cornelius Johnson and Wilson scored lower than Hinton.
Jaylen Harrell: Harrell was a pass-rush specialist going against a team determined to get the ball out quickly and protect redshirt sophomore Mason Garcia in the second start of his career. That made for a frustrating afternoon for U-M's starting edge rusher. The junior was in on 13 pass attempts and rushed 10 times, with nary a hurry or sack. His PFF pass-rush grade (53.7) was the lowest on the team and he was charged with two missed tackles. Fellow edge rusher Josaiah Stewart — a transfer from Coastal Carolina who rotated at the same position — graded out as the second-worst pass rusher (54.3).
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan football stock watch: Time to worry about Donovan Edwards?
