The process was always going to be a fascinating one.

When Shea Patterson decided to leave Ole Miss for Michigan this offseason, he did so with an understanding that part of his game was going to have to adapt to fit into the basic principles of Jim Harbaugh's offense.

On the other side, when Harbaugh decided to pursue Patterson, Michigan's head coach — and his staff — knew the basic principles of his offense were going to have to adapt to fit the natural gifts owned by his new starter.

Everything, at some point, was going to have to meet in the middle.

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"In the spring, we weren't sure where (Patterson's eligibility quest) was going to end up so we weren't able to commit all the reps to one person," Michigan offensive line coach Ed Warinner said earlier this month. "Then Shea was cleared. We went through the summer and training camp, he rose to the top and won the job. We weren't sure what direction to go (at first).

"We were kind of, I wouldn't say all over the place, but very diverse on offense in the spring not really knowing where it might go."

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In hindsight, this may have been a good thing.

Because eight weeks into the season, Michigan has found the center point of Harbaugh's scheme, Patterson's strengths and how all of it blends together in a diverse, multi-faceted offensive system that suddenly looks to be on the verge of something very promising.

Harbaugh came to Michigan with a reputation for power football. Everything about the offense was West-Coast based and rooted in a traditional pro-style system. On the ground, it was gap-based blocking schemes from heavy personnel packages that centered around big, powerful offensive linemen who were strong enough to win one-on-one blocks and savvy enough to handle multiple checks in real time.

The pass concepts featured tight ends and timing-based staples. Ball control underneath. Formational shifts to make the simple look complex. Take small chunks and eventually turn those into drives and points.

Patterson, of course, came from a no-huddle, react-first-talk-later spread system that relied heavily on run-pass option, zone-read and, well, zone-everything. Warinner also comes from a zone background. It's simpler. It's easier to understand.

"Zone concepts block all defenses," Warinner says.

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When you're relying heavily on gap plays, as Michigan did in 2017, you're attacking one spot. You, as an offense, choose a gap and attack it to create a hole. There's not much for the defense to think about. It's man vs. man. If your offense is powerful and savvy and experienced? No problems. In college, that's not always easily achieved.

Zone schemes force defenses to defend multiple gaps at once on any given play. The idea is to stretch the line of scrimmage and pop several gaps along the front, giving the back an opportunity to make his own decision and forcing defenses to adjust on the fly.

When you pull all this off and your quarterback has the ability to not only run but also handle the football and make reads in real time, then you've got something going.

"(Patterson) came in already really good at that part of the game. But it does take a lot of work," said Harbaugh, whose offense is rushing for 212.8 yards per game while throwing for 207.6 yards. "With more time on task, (we're) getting better at it. And it's been a real weapon for us."

Michigan's offense in 2018 has morphed into one of the more unique blends in college football right now. The Wolverines have the ability to switch from spread zone-read concepts to double tight end, double fullback iso plays without missing a beat.

All of Harbaugh's West-Coast passing looks are still at his disposal. So is the power game. But Michigan's schematic balance now also offers a variety of edge plays that take advantage of Patterson's mobility. He's not the fastest player in the country, but he's fast enough. And when Michigan went for the win Saturday at Michigan State, it went into the zone-read well.

Dylan McCaffrey, Patterson's backup and possibly the future of Harbaugh's offense, in some way or another, might be faster than he is. True freshman Joe Milton, all 234 pounds of him, can run. Incoming 4-star quarterback commit Cade McNamara is physically similar of Patterson.

Harbaugh will keep his fullbacks, tight ends and power pieces. But if he continues to incorporate mobility under center (and in a shotgun/pistol-style offense), his offense will continue to become more diverse, less predictable and a unique blend of power and space.

"(All the quarterbacks) see that this is effective. When you see another good player doing something, it always (makes you) emulate that and try to (get as good at it as you can)," Harbaugh said of quarterback reads in the run game. "Players are coming in (with that skill set), coming in from high school. Dylan's really good at it and so is Joe. Brandon (Peters) is good at it, too.

"We're working on it and we don't mind people knowing that."

Adjustments have been made and the process is happening.

And, for Michigan, it's working.

Contact Nick Baumgardner: nbaumgardn@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @NickBaumgardner.