Michigan football has the fifth-most returning production in the country, and, most importantly, it returns its man under center, quarterback J.J. McCarthy.
Especially if he is good, a returning QB generally pays dividends in terms of wins and losses, given that the signal-caller is the most important player, handling the ball every offensive snap. For McCarthy, coming off his first year as the Wolverines’ starter, the hope is he’ll improve and help take Michigan to the next level, which would be a national championship.
Of those returning in 2023, ESPN ranked the top 10, and McCarthy made the cut. He came in at No. 8, behind USC‘s Caleb Williams, Washington’s Michael Penix, UNC‘s Drake Maye, Oregon‘s Bo Nix, FSU’s Jordan Travis, Utah’s Cam Rising and ND‘s transfer (via Wake Forest) Sam Hartman.
8. J.J. McCarthy – Michigan
Upcoming year: Junior
2022 stats: 2,719 passing yards, 22 passing touchdowns, 5 interceptions, 306 rushing yards, 5 rushing touchdowns, 79.1 QBR.
Points: 35Before last season, the knock against Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh carried a bit of irony: He hadn’t found a true difference-maker at quarterback, the position where he starred for the Wolverines. McCarthy arrived with fanfare, as ESPN’s No. 25 overall recruit in the 2021 class. Although Michigan returned a starter at quarterback (Cade McNamara) from its first CFP team — and McCarthy had missed much of the offseason with a shoulder injury — Harbaugh looked toward the future entering last season. After McCarthy delivered a near-perfect performance in his first career start, albeit against Hawai’i, the QB1 title became his own. He operated a mostly safe passing game with precision, eclipsing 69% completions in each of his first six starts.
McCarthy went through growing pains late in the season, but he also showed electric playmaking ability when Michigan leaned more on its passing game after star running back Blake Corum went down with a knee injury. McCarthy accounted for four touchdowns (three pass, one rush) in Michigan’s road upset of No. 2 Ohio State, and followed with three more scoring strikes in the Big Ten championship against Purdue. His challenge going forward is blending accuracy with creativity/explosiveness, and limiting major mistakes like the two pick-sixes he threw against TCU in Michigan’s CFP semifinal defeat. McCarthy doesn’t lack any confidence and uses meditation and philosophy to guide his mental approach. He hopes to join Harbaugh among Michigan’s great quarterbacks and ultimately lead the team toward more success in the postseason. — Rittenberg
None of this is wrong and his seeding seems about right, despite that he hasjal much more upside than most on the list ahead of him. He, himself, is ahead of LSU QB Jayden Daniels and Kansas’ Jalon Daniels, but if Michigan decides to be more pass-heavy (a big if given Corum and Edwards also return), and with the supporting cast as a whole, there’s no reason why McCarthy couldn’t finish in the top three if not No. 1 should the season go the way it very well might.
[lawrence-auto-related count=3]