Michigan opened its 2019 regular season with an impressive 40-21 win over Middle Tennessee Saturday night at the Big House. There were plenty of moments that made you smile, especially with the new-look offense under offensive coordinator Josh Gaddis. We’ve been curious to see what that new offense was going to be like, and it was definitely a good first step.

That final score was a little deceiving because Middle Tennessee added a touchdown in the final minute, so this was a convincing win, as it should have been for the seventh-ranked team in the country.

Here are our grades from Michigan’s Week 1 win over Middle  Tennessee:

What I liked

Shea Patterson’s big-strike touchdown throws

Shea Patterson came back for his senior year at Michigan primarily because he loved all the weapons he had to work with. That, and some unfinished business, of course. He showed how dangerous this passing game can be on Saturday. He threw three touchdown passes to three different receivers, and they were all for long distances, further proof that this offense is going to be able to score from anywhere. He hit Tarik Black for a 36-yard score, and Nico Collins and Sean McKeon from 28 yards each. That’s a great sign going forward.

Zach Charbonnet had an impressive debut

Freshman sensation Zach Charbonnet had a great debut for the Wolverines. He gained 90 yards on 8 carries and had an impressive 41-yard run that has everyone looking forward to big things ahead. Christian Turner added 49 yards on 11 carries, too, as the Wolverines rushed for 233 yards and averaged 5.2 yards per carry. Charbonnet earned the start after a good month of camp, and he didn’t disappoint. “Just felt like Zach throughout training camp was performing at the highest level,” Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh said. “He was No. 1 on the depth chart when we finally made the depth chart. I thought he played really well, in protection, seeing the holes, making the cuts, protecting the ball.” No doubt, he’s going to be a star.

The defense was good enough with new faces

At first glance, the fact that Middle Tennessee scored 21 points might make you think the Michigan defense struggled a bit. Frankly, they were just fine. They had to defend a few short fields after turnovers and, as mentioned, that late TD in garbage time didn’t mean much. Don Brown turned up the heat when he had to and the secondary, which has been something of a concern, held up well. It was good to see Ambry Thomas back from his illness. This defense will always be better with him on the field.

What I didn’t like

Slow starts continue to be a theme

Michigan’s first three possessions featured a turnover, a punt and a field goal after a 12-play, 57-yard drive fizzled at the 16-yard line after a missed opportunity on third down. That’s not something I wanted to see in the season opener, because that was something of a concern last year, those slow starts. Things picked up in a hurry after that, of course, so we won’t blow any gaskets over this. It is something to monitor going forward, though.

Shaking my head over the two-QB offense sets

What’s the point in having Dylan McCaffrey on the field with Shea Patterson? Look, Patterson is a veteran and he’s firmly entrenched as the starting quarterback on this team. If you want to get McCaffrey some playing time at quarterback, then just do it. It won’t bother Shea any. It made no sense to have them both on the field at the same time, and that little trickery threw off any kind of consistency that the Michigan offense — which was mostly good all night — was trying to establish. Sometimes creative coaches outthink themselves, and  this was a perfect example.