Michigan 30, East Carolina 3
By LARRY LAGE
Associated Press
ANN ARBOR, Mich. - J.J. McCarthy threw three touchdown passes to Roman Wilson, helping No. 2 Michigan rout East Carolina 30-3.
The Wolverines (1-0) were without coach Jim Harbaugh, who began serving a school-imposed, three-game suspension for breaking NCAA rules.
McCarthy showed up at Michigan Stadium wearing a blue shirt backward, writing “FREE” in black on white athletic tape and placing it on his chest above Harbaugh's name.
The Wolverines appeared to pay homage to Harbaugh in the first quarter with a single-file formation on offense as each player raised an arm over their head.
McCarthy probably made his coach proud, completing 26 of 30 passes for 280 yards and throwing a a touchdown pass to Wilson in each of the first three quarters.
All-America running back Blake Corum, coming off knee surgery, ran for 73 yards on 10 carries and had a 2-yard touchdown run that gave Michigan a 14-0 lead early in the second quarter.
The Pirates (0-1) were overmatched as expected against a team with national championship aspirations that's coming off two straight Big Ten titles and trips to the College Football Playoff.
East Carolina's Mason Garcia was 11 of 18 for 80 yards and had a deflected pass picked off by Mike Sainristil. Garcia shared time with Alex Flinn, who was 6 of 11 for 52 yards.
The Pirates avoided a shutout with Andrew Conrad's 33-yard field goal as time expired.
FILLING IN
Harbaugh’s game-day roll was filled by defensive coordinator Jesse Minter. Offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore also missed the game, suspended by the school for one game due to violating unspecified NCAA rules.
THE TAKEAWAY
ECU: The Pirates refused to say who would start at quarterback and they may not know who will take the first snap next week because both struggled.
UM: To beat top teams, the Wolverines know they have to pass more effectively than they did a year ago and they're off to a good start toward that goal.
Michigan athletics press release
September 2, 2023
| Scoring Summary |
| First Quarter |
ECU | Mich |
| Mich |
TD |
5:43 |
Roman Wilson 14 yard TD pass from J.J. McCarthy (James Turner Extra Point) |
0 |
7 |
| Second Quarter |
ECU | Mich |
| Mich |
TD |
14:13 |
Blake Corum 2 yard TD run (James Turner Extra Point) |
0 |
14 |
| Mich |
TD |
5:32 |
Roman Wilson 10 yard TD pass from J.J. McCarthy (James Turner Kick Failed) |
0 |
20 |
| Mich |
FG |
0:00 |
James Turner 50 yard field goal |
0 |
23 |
| Third Quarter |
ECU | Mich |
| Mich |
TD |
9:13 |
Roman Wilson 15 yard TD pass from J.J. McCarthy (James Turner Extra Point) |
0 |
30 |
| Fourth Quarter |
ECU | Mich |
| ECU |
FG |
0:00 |
Andrew Conrad 33 yard field goal |
3 |
30 |
| Team Stats |
| |
East Carolina |
Michigan |
| First downs |
13 |
24 |
| Rushing |
7 |
4 |
| Passing |
5 |
17 |
| Penalty |
1 |
3 |
| 3rd Down Efficiency |
5-13, 38% |
6-10, 60% |
| 4th down efficiency |
0-1, 0% |
0-1, 0% |
| Rushes-Yards |
26-103 |
31-122 |
| Passing Yards |
132 |
280 |
| Return Yards |
14 |
21 |
| Completions-Attempts-Int |
17-29-1 |
26-31-0 |
| Sacks-Yards Lost |
0-0 |
0-0 |
| Punts |
5 |
2 |
| Fumbles Lost |
0-0 |
1-0 |
| Penalties - Yards |
10-87 |
5-36 |
| East Carolina Passing |
| Player |
Cmp |
Att |
Yds |
TDs |
Int |
| M. Garcia |
11 |
18 |
80 |
0 |
1 |
| A. Flinn |
6 |
11 |
52 |
0 |
0 |
| Michigan Passing |
| Player |
Cmp |
Att |
Yds |
TDs |
Int |
| J. McCarthy |
26 |
30 |
280 |
3 |
0 |
| D. Warren |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| East Carolina Rushing |
| Player |
Carries |
Yds |
Avg |
TDs |
| M. Garcia |
8 |
36 |
4.5 |
0 |
| R. Harris |
5 |
22 |
4.4 |
0 |
| J. Bond |
4 |
16 |
4.0 |
0 |
| M. Gunn Jr. |
5 |
16 |
3.2 |
0 |
| A. Flinn |
3 |
14 |
4.7 |
0 |
| J. Patterson |
1 |
-1 |
-1.0 |
0 |
| Michigan Rushing |
| Player |
Carries |
Yds |
Avg |
TDs |
| B. Corum |
10 |
73 |
7.3 |
1 |
| D. Edwards |
12 |
37 |
3.1 |
0 |
| K. Mullings |
3 |
14 |
4.7 |
0 |
| C. Stokes |
2 |
6 |
3.0 |
0 |
| B. Hall |
2 |
2 |
1.0 |
0 |
| J. McCarthy |
1 |
-2 |
-2.0 |
0 |
| D. Warren |
1 |
-8 |
-8.0 |
0 |
| East Carolina Receiving |
| Player |
Rec |
Yds |
Avg |
TDs |
| J. Bond |
3 |
31 |
10.3 |
0 |
| J. Johnson |
3 |
30 |
10.0 |
0 |
| J. Garner |
4 |
22 |
5.5 |
0 |
| J. Patterson |
3 |
20 |
6.7 |
0 |
| G. Green |
2 |
17 |
8.5 |
0 |
| J. Hatfield |
2 |
12 |
6.0 |
0 |
| Michigan Receiving |
| Player |
Rec |
Yds |
Avg |
TDs |
| R. Wilson |
6 |
78 |
13.0 |
3 |
| C. Johnson |
5 |
71 |
14.2 |
0 |
| C. Loveland |
4 |
57 |
14.3 |
0 |
| D. Edwards |
4 |
33 |
8.3 |
0 |
| F. Moore |
2 |
18 |
9.0 |
0 |
| M. Bredeson |
1 |
14 |
14.0 |
0 |
| B. Corum |
3 |
5 |
1.7 |
0 |
| D. Clemons |
1 |
4 |
4.0 |
0 |
| East Carolina Interceptions |
| Player |
Int |
Yards |
| Michigan Interceptions |
| Player |
Int |
Yards |
| M. Sainristil |
1 |
7 |
| East Carolina Punting |
| Player |
Punts |
Yards |
Avg |
| A. Trafford |
5 |
245 |
49.0 |
| Michigan Punting |
| Player |
Punts |
Yards |
Avg |
| T. Doman |
2 |
89 |
44.5 |
| East Carolina Punt Returns |
| Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
| Michigan Punt Returns |
| Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
| J. Thaw |
3 |
6 |
2.0 |
| K. English |
1 |
8 |
8.0 |
| East Carolina Kick Returns |
| Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
| Michigan Kick Returns |
| Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
| East Carolina Missed FG |
| Player |
Length |
| A. Conrad |
51 |
| Michigan Missed FG |
| Player |
Length |
| J. Turner |
52 |
