The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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QUARTERBACKS 44 ■ THE WOLVERINE 2024 FOOTBALL PREVIEW BY JOHN BORTON M ichigan's quarterback battle seemed sure as a Buckeye fan's belligerence just 365 days ago. It was J.J. McCar- thy and then everybody else scuffling for scraps. Now, everybody else is fighting for the right to become successor to the one whom the previous head coach deemed Michigan's best college quarterback of all time. Just in case that wasn't enough pres- sure, there's the small matter of following up a 15-0, national championship season. So, the job entails first being good enough to win the job, and second delivering to the point that people are glad you did. Some were even saying through spring practice that Michigan's 2024 quarter- back might not even be on the roster yet, hinting at a transfer portal solution. After the spring game, offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Kirk Campbell gently closed that door. "That's not part of our thought process right now," Campbell said. "Roster evalu- ation is always part of the process but, right now, it's not something that we're looking at." That means Michigan's scholarship QBs — grad Jack Tuttle (injured and out for spring ball), senior Davis Warren, ju- nior Alex Orji, junior Jayden Denegal and freshman Jadyn Davis — remain option No. 1 for Michigan's coaching staff. Most analysts are betting on one of the first three to emerge, or possibly a combina- tion of two of them. However it shakes out, the cupboard isn't bare regarding quarterback talent. It's simply a matter of who rises to earn the job as the most-scrutinized individual in all of Michigan athletics. "For me and the University of Michi- gan, one is the production on the field," Campbell said. "They've got to be low- turnover, high- completion play- ers. There's stuff off the field that we're looking at. They're all great leaders, but who is the best guy to go out there and lead this team? We were fortunate enough to have a guy last year who was outstand- ing at that, and we need to see a guy who can replace that." A p p ro a c h - ing his seventh year of college football, Tut- tle certainly possesses ex- perience in abun- dance. He wasn't on the field for the spring game, but that says noth- ing about his chances once fall camp rolls around and the season itself draws near. Head coach Sherrone Moore, invoking an old Jim Harbaugh dodge on giving out specifics, noted Tuttle was "working through some things" when spring practice rolled around. "Uncle Jack, they call him," Moore said of Tuttle. "A guy that has played a lot of foot- ball. He's got a great arm, great ability and can run. He can be a dual-threat guy and also is very cerebral in the pocket. He's been very impressive with everything he's done in the past, and I'm excited for him." Tuttle appeared in six games of the 2023 national championship [FYI] ❱ J.J. McCarthy started all 15 games behind center and led Michigan to the promised land in 2023, but he was one of five quarterbacks to take a snap and four to attempt a pass. Graduate Jack Tuttle (15- of-17, 130 yards, 1 TD), senior Davis Warren (0-of-5) and junior Jayden Denegal (4-of-5, 50 yards, 1 TD) also threw in games, while junior Alex Orji was used as a runner, registering 86 yards and 1 touchdown on 15 carries. McCarthy took 826 of a possible 945 offensive snaps (87 percent). ❱ Tuttle is entering his seventh season of college football, four of which were spent at Indiana. Appearing in 21 games with five starts, he's completed 59.8 percent of his passes for 1,031 yards and 6 touch- downs with 6 interceptions. However, he's just 17-of-58 (29.3 percent) on passes that travel 10-plus yards beyond the line of scrimmage, according to Pro Football Focus. ❱ Michigan ranked first in the Big Ten and 15th in the nation with 8.9 yards per pass last season. Mc- Carthy averaged 8.7 yards per pass on 713 attempts throughout his career, ranking second in program history behind Jim Harbaugh (9.0). He stands No. 1 in U-M's record book in career completion percent- age (67.6), career pass efficiency (160.5 rating) and career touchdown-to-interception ratio (4.5:1). ❱ U-M finished sixth in the country and first in the conference with 11 yards per attempt on play-action passes, according to Sports Info Solutions. The Wolverines were 120th with 83 such attempts. SCRAMBLE FOR THE JOB Starting QB Battle Is Far From Over Graduate student Jack Tuttle will suit up for his seventh collegiate season in his second year at U-M, and he is battling for the starting role at quarterback. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL