There was little doubt surrounding the decision but, Monday afternoon, Michigan football head coach Sherrone Moore made it official: seventh-year quarterback Jack Tuttle has been named the starting quarterback moving forward.

If everything holds as expected, Tuttle will start for the No. 22 Wolverines (4-2, 2-1 Big Ten) on Saturday, when they next take the field in a ranked showdown at No. 21 Illinois (5-1, 2-1 Big Ten).

“He obviously hadn’t practiced for a whole length of time — then got to practice and play in the game,” Moore said Monday of Tuttle, who came into U-M's 27-17 loss to Washington in the second quarter. “They call him ‘Uncle Jack,’ the seventh-year guy that’s done it, seen it, been in the big games. He’s done a really good job and progressed, and continuing to do those things right now.”

From coaches like Moore, to offensive linemen like Josh Priebe, to skill position guys like Donovan Edwards, there was a near-consensus from the team that Tuttle gave them a "spark."

He completed 10 of 18 passes for 98 yards, one touchdown and one interception, and scored 17 points on the first three drives of the game to take Michigan from behind by two touchdowns to tied up late in the third quarter.

Still, it wasn't all perfect. The graduate quarterback not only fumbled, which set up the Huskies' game-winning drive, but threw a late interception that sealed the loss.

While turnovers were a problem for U-M's first anointed starter (Davis Warren) and a creating a semblance of a functional passing game was the issue for the next (Alex Orji), Moore attributed it more to his first live action in nearly a year than mistakes he feels will repeat themselves.

“For three days of practice, really, (he) went into the game and competed at high level,” Moore said. “Obviously the turnovers are what they are, and we’ve got to eliminate them, but we had to make sure we knew we were confident in him and what he could do.”

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Saturday will mark the first time Tuttle starts a game since he was named a team captain for Indiana in 2022 and started just one game before he suffered a season-ending shoulder injury. He appeared in 15 games with six starts during his four years with the Hoosiers, and last year as a back up to J.J. McCarthy, competed in six games before sustaining yet another injury.

While Orji will still "have a role" according to Moore, there's no mistaking this is now Tuttle's team. There could still be packages for Orji, but the down-to-down offense will be run by Tuttle, with Warren serving as the third option in the room.

U-M has now had two weeks to install a game plan for him and the players sound excited for what it will look like.

“It was pretty evident when he came in, we had a little bit of a burst,” Priebe said of when Tuttle took over in Seattle. “Just talking to the guys after the game, it was kind of the same thing. He came in and he was just a super-calming presence. Obviously he’s had some playing time at other schools and different places. He’s also been in some adverse situations in games before, so having that experience is definitely an advantage in those times.”

Wolverines add a 5th captain

While Tuttle was last named a captain two years ago, the Wolverines did add a captain to their ranks over the bye week.

Josaiah Stewart, a senior edge for the Wolverines who has an argument alongside Mason Graham and Will Johnson as the best defensive player on the team this season, was named a full-time captain during the off week based on his incredible first half production.

The 6-foot-1, 245-pound former transfer from Coastal Carolina was named an alternate captain when players voted on the leaders in August, however after his standout six weeks, coachse saw it fit to make sure the importance of his voice is reflected in his title.

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“A guy that is a senior and done everything the right way but plays as good as anyone in the country,” Moore said Monday night on 'Inside Michigan Football' with the team's radio color commentator Jon Jansen. “And does it all the time with extreme energy. He’s such a leader, he has a voice and I want him to use it.”

The four preseason captains were safety Makari Paige, fullback Max Bredeson, Edwards and the injured safety Rod Moore, with Stewart and Kalel Mullings serving in back-up capacities. Of course, Moore hasn't been able to take the field this year as he works his way back from a torn ACL he suffered in April.

Even though Stewart already missed a game with an undisclosed injury, he still has been named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week once already and has 18 tackles including nine for loss, a team-high five sacks and a forced fumble.

Best wishes to former Wolverines

While the press conference Monday was intended to preview the Wolverines upcoming game against the Illini and look back at what the coaches have learned through the first half the season, Moore also addressed some health related scares that happened in the NFL over the weekend to former Michigan men.

First, former coach Jim Harbaugh had to temporarily leave the sidelines during the Los Angeles Chargers game against the Denver Broncos when Harbaugh had what he later described as an “atrial flutter”. His brother, Ravens head coach John Harbaugh, said Monday he was scheduled to undergo tests later in the day.

Jim would return to the sideline and lead L.A. to a 24-17 victory and later at his press conference tried to lighten the mood by saying he is now 2-0 in arrhythmias after a similar situation happened during his time with the San Francisco 49ers.

But there was no lightening the mood in regards to what happened to Aidan Hutchinson. A former Heisman runner-up as a U-M edge rusher in 2021, Hutchinson broke both his tibia and fibula during the Lions' dominating 47-9 win over the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. The former U-M star had to be put in an aircast on the field, carted off the turf and stayed in Texas overnight after he underwent a successful surgery. Per his head coach, Dan Campbell, the recovery timeline is at least 4-6 months.

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“I also just want to say a prayer to him and his family,” Moore said of Hutchinson. “Horrific injury. I mean, what a great human being. Obviously, an outstanding player, but a great human being and left a legacy here. I mean, I know he's the heartbeat of that team.

"So I really just want to say a prayer to him and his family, tell them that they're in our thoughts. And also coach Harbaugh, I sent him a text. He's going to the doctor today, so he better go. I hope he's doing well. But just a prayer to both of them.”

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan football names Jack Tuttle starting quarterback