The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1323349
12 THE WOLVERINE JANUARY 2021 INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS McNamara Will Earn It Before McCarthy Does By Austin Fox There is plenty of excitement surrounding incoming four- star quarterback J.J. McCarthy, and it's easy to see why. He has both the physical tools and the mental attributes to succeed at a high level in college, and was rated as the nation's sixth-best signal-caller by Ri- vals.com. Some even think he'll win Michigan's starting quarterback job next season as a freshman. Let's not write off redshirt freshman Cade McNamara though. Sure, the sample size has been small ( just 71 career passes), but the accuracy and touch he showed this past season were encouraging. The way his teammates rallied around him — specifically when he led U-M out of a 17-point deficit at Rutgers — was also a promising sign. McCarthy, on the other hand, may be good in time, but it'd be wise to pump the brakes. Freshman quarterbacks seldom start right off the bat, with the transition from prep ball to college serving as an immense learning curve. Having spent his senior year of high school at powerhouse IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., likely sped up the process for him, but the head start McNamara has on Michigan's playbook and his brief game experience will give him a leg up in the competi- tion next year. For McCarthy, The Future Is Now By Chris Balas Head coach Jim Harbaugh has taken some flak for not developing quarterbacks since he arrived in Ann Arbor, but Jake Rudock and Wilton Speight both had outstanding cam- paigns — better than anyone might have expected — in their first seasons as the starter, and Shea Patterson had his moments in 2018-19. But the Wolverines haven't had that game-changing, win-it-by-yourself guy in a long, long time. Chad Henne was probably the last "great" passer, and he graduated in 2007 before becoming a short-time NFL starter and long-time backup, still with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2020. J.J. McCarthy is currently Michigan's best chance to be that guy, and sometimes that's all it takes to get a program over the hump (see: Joe Burrow at LSU in 2019). He's got the big arm, can make all the throws and has escapability, plus the moxie needed to take the job and run with it from day one. As one plugged-in recruiting analyst put it, he's like former Texas A&M Heisman-winning quarterback Johnny Manziel without the baggage (no, we're not predicting that level of success — he just has the same skill set). Redshirt freshman Cade McNamara had a great game at Rutgers, but McCarthy is the future. U-M might as well give him the keys from day one and ride with him. POINT ❙ COUNTERPOINT WILL CADE MCNAMARA OR J.J. MCCARTHY BE U-M'S QUARTERBACK OF THE (NEAR) FUTURE? BY CLAYTON SAYFIE In perhaps the most unusual col- lege football season ever, Michigan football — the winningest program of all time — had one of its worst campaigns in school history. The Wolverines started off strong with a 49-24 win over Minnesota, but lost to in-state rival Michigan State in week two before stumbling to a 2-4 finish, capped off by three straight canceled games due to COVID-19 concerns. The 2020 season was tied for U- M's seventh-worst year, by winning percentage, all time. It's important to note that the Wolverines only played conference games, due to a Big Ten mandate having to do with safety concerns surrounding the ongoing global pandemic. That may have played a part in U-M picking up so few wins. But the numbers show that the Maize and Blue were historically bad. It actually could have been much worse, too, considering the Wolverines were massive under- dogs to both Ohio State and Iowa, the team's would-be final two oppo- nents. U-M did open as a seven-point favorite ahead of the Maryland game before it was called off. The most-recent dismal season, prior to 2020, occurred when U-M posted a win percentage of .250 back in 2008 under first-year head coach Rich Rodriguez. His team faltered nine times while winning only three contests. The worst season before that came in 1962, when head coach Bump Elliott and his Wolverines fin- ished 2-7. Here is a look at the poorest sea- sons, win percentage wise, in U-M program history: MCNAMARA MCCARTHY Season Record Win Pct. 1881 0-3 .000 1934 1-7 .125 1936 1-7 .125 1962 2-7 .222 2008 3-9 .250 1958 2-6-1 .277 1889 1-2 .333 2020 2-4 .333 The 2020 Season Was One Of Michigan's Worst Ever Jim Harbaugh's squad posted the program's lowest win total since U-M went 2-7 in 1962 under Bump Elliott. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL