TAMPA, Fla. — Michigan football needed all of the help it could get in the ReliaQuest Bowl against an Alabama team that had thought it belonged in the College Football Playoff. And at the outset of the game, the Wolverines gained exactly what they needed.

The Michigan Wolverines got a solid effort from incumbent starting quarterback Davis Warren early in the ReliaQuest Bowl against Alabama as they jumped out to a 16-0 lead over Jalen Milroe and Kalen DeBoer's team. Warren's injury gave way to Alex Orji taking the reins at the position while Michigan held on for a 19-13 New Year's Eve win.

Sherrone Moore’s Michigan team was a two-score underdog entering Tuesday’s ReliaQuest Bowl matchup with Alabama football. The Wolverines were missing starters, while Alabama had most of its top talent and was expected to roll.