Sharon Moore electrified the Big House fans before his first game as Jim Harbaugh’s official replacement, pumping his fists and screaming in the end zone.
The defending champions struggled offensively for most of Moore’s debut, but he turned things around on both offense and defense to lead the team to a one-sided victory.
Davis Warren and Alex Orji each threw touchdown passes, Will Johnson returned an interception for a touchdown, and No. 9 Michigan beat Fresno State 30-10 on Saturday night.
The Wolverines (1-0) have a revamped offensive line and a new quarterback behind Moore, who showed his enthusiasm before the game even began.
“That’s what I do,” he said. “I wear my emotions on my sleeve.
“I expressed it because I was excited, but I was so excited to watch our players play.”
The Bulldogs (0-1) entered the game down by just four points after two quarters and were down 16-10 midway through the fourth quarter before Michigan pulled ahead.
Warren, who was selected as the starting quarterback, beat Orji and threw an 18-yard touchdown pass to Colston Loveland to put Michigan ahead 23-10 with 5:43 left.
Johnson intercepted a pass on the ensuing possession and returned it 86 yards.
The game started with Orji throwing a 3-yard touchdown pass to Donovan Edwards, but Moore’s team didn’t get going until the second half.
Warren completed 15 of 25 passes for 118 yards with one touchdown and one interception, a solid performance from a former walk-on who beat leukemia in high school.
“I was able to definitely look back at the people who helped me get here, my family, and the people who supported me,” he said.
Orji completed 1 of 2 receptions with a 3-yard touchdown pass and ran for 32 yards on five passes.
Loveland, a preseason All-America tight end, had a career-high eight catches and 87 yards receiving, one yard shy of his career high.
Kalel Mullings ran for 92 yards on 15 carries for the Wolverines.
Mikey Keane completed 22 of 36 passes, including a 19-yard touchdown pass to Raylen Sharp in the fourth quarter, running for 238 yards to cut the Bulldogs’ lead to six points.
Fresno State hosts Sacramento State after a 42-24 loss to San Jose State at home on Saturday. Meanwhile, Michigan faces No. 4 Texas in a big nonconference matchup on Saturday on FOX (12 p.m. ET on FOX and the FOX Sports App).
Associated Press reports.
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