Michigan Head Coach Jim Harbaugh has a lot of confidence in second-year starter JJ McCarthy.
Comparing your starting quarterback to two of the NFL’s great quarterbacks is…. something? JJ McCarthy has been a talented quarterback at Michigan, but not to the talent level that Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen displayed in college.
Jim Harbaugh Makes Bold Comparison About QB JJ McCarthy
Harbaugh made this comparison when asked by John Borton of the Wolverine, “What would the next logical steps be for JJ McCarthy as a quarterback.”
Why Jim Harbaugh Needs to Pump the Breaks
With these comments at Big Ten Media Day, Jim Harbaugh is maybe trying to take the pressure off himself. It was announced that Harbaugh is expected to serve a four-game suspension for lying to NCAA investigators stemming from recruiting violations committed by him and Wolverines staff members (Via Yahoo Sports).
Harbaugh got what he wanted, which is some NFL buzz about his quarterback, but it’s ludicrous to view McCarthy as anything more than another good quarterback at Michigan.
McCarthy has benefitted from being at Michigan because he’s surrounded by top-end talent. Mahomes and Allen didn’t have that coming out of their respective schools, nor did they have Jim Harbaugh, whose not only a successful college coach but great at developing quarterbacks.
But calling him generational? Ever heard of Tom Brady That’s what a generational quarterback at Michigan looks like. McCarthy led the Wolverines to a 12-1 record, and led them to the College Football Playoffs. He started 13 games, threw 22 touchdowns, five interceptions, and a completion percentage of 64.6.
In his final four regular season games, McCarthy completed less than 60 percent of his passes… that’s not what I would call elite.
Jim Harbaugh put a lot of undue pressure on his young quarterback after one good season, and at the very least, McCarthy has to go out and prove how good he is by not just getting to the College Football Playoffs, but winning the whole thing.
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