The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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MARCH 2026 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 31 2026 FOOTBALL RECRUITING ISSUE Saline's 61-34 assault. He threw for an unofficial 508 yards, adding a touch- down run onto his barrage of TD tosses. Deeply satisfied as Short felt over Carr's performance, he expressed no shock. Short witnessed Carr's impres- sive growth over the past two seasons, putting him in position to commit first to Miami of Ohio, prior to switching to the school where his grandfather roamed the sidelines for decades and his dad Jason played quarterback him- self. "I saw a tremendous amount of growth," Short said. "He was always a very talented football player, but his jump from his junior to senior year was, in my opinion, arguably one of the best in the entire country at the quarterback position. I think Michigan saw that. "What set him apart was the mental side of the game — his poise, his under- standing of defenses, his ability to put the ball where it needs to be put, and get it to who it needs to get to on our offense. That was really, really special. That's going to translate very well to the University of Michigan. Hopefully, he continues to grow and develop physi- cally as an athlete, but the mental side separated him in his senior year." The 6-4, 185-pound QB racked up 5,247 passing yards over two seasons as Saline's starting quarterback, connect- ing on 357 of 514 (69.5 percent accu- racy), with 64 touchdowns. He rushed for an additional 589 yards and 14 TDs. As a senior, he completed 176 of 254 passes (69.3 percent) for 2,737 yards and 37 touchdowns, reaching the end zone eight more times on his 276 yards rushing. Short pointed out Carr's family ties certainly haven't hurt his development. "No doubt," he said. "His grandfather being a legendary coach, his dad being a helluva football player and also had coached previously, and his brother, CJ Carr, being in the quarterback world [at Notre Dame], definitely gives him an advantage. At the same breath, I think there was some disadvantage. He was behind a little bit, because he had to sit for two years, whereas he would have been able to start at probably 95 percent of other high schools across the state. He had to sit behind one of the best quarterbacks in the country, CJ Carr. But the advantages definitely outweigh the disadvantages." Tommy Carr and Short met several times a week this year before school, from January through August, honing the finer points of the QB cra. It paid off in a big way, combined with his nat- ural skills. "We were able to take base concepts and add tweaks and do things to tell other people on the field what to do," Short noted. "He was able to process and understand what that did to the small details of the play, and what that would change for him. He was able to snap a finger and get that and roll with it. We were able to add a bunch of shis, motions, more complexities to our of- fensive arsenal. He was able to take it and run with it, where he did a great job." Coincidently, Short coached Michi- gan's freshman QB Bryce Underwood as a freshman and sophomore at Belleville High, where they enjoyed a pair of state championships together. "So, for me, it's a win-win situation," Short stressed. "I love both of them. Being able to be Bryce's and Tommy's coach, they have a ton of similarities — the way they approach the game, their mental mindset, their competitive nature. I think they're going to be in a meeting room and be able to be really good friends and support each other, no matter who is on the field. The cool thing is, whoever is called, both of them will be ready." ❑ STATISTICS Year Comp. Att. Yds. TD INT Rush Yds. TD 2025 176 254 2,737 37 6 276 8 2024 181 260 2,510 27 3 313 6 TOMMY CARR QUARTERBACK 6-4 • 185 SALINE HIGH SALINE, MICH. RANKINGS STARS NAT. POS. STATE Industry ✪✪✪✪ 336 23 7 ✪✪✪✪ — 19 6 ✪✪✪✪ — 15 6 ✪✪✪ — 24 9 HONORS • Earned PrepStar All-Midwest Region honors. • 2024 and 2025 Associated Press All-State se- lection. • Michigan Sports Writers All-State honoree in 2024 and '25. • Two-time top-10 selection for MLive's Michigan High School Football Player of the Year (2024-25). • 2024 MLive Offensive Player of the Year. RECRUITMENT • Pledged to Michigan Nov. 16, 2025. • Picked U-M after decommitting from Miami (Ohio); also recruited by Bowling Green, Rutgers and Iowa State. DID YOU KNOW? • Across two seasons as the starter, totaled 5,247 yards on 357-of-514 passing (69.5 percent completion rate) with 64 touchdowns and 9 inter- ceptions; also rushed for 589 yards and 14 TDs. • Produced a 9-touchdown game (8 passing TDs) against Dexter High as a senior, tying the Michigan state record for the second-most touchdown passes in a game. • Son of Jason and Tammi Carr, both U-M graduates. • Father, Jason, played quarterback at U-M from 1992-95. • Brother, CJ, is the starting quarterback at Notre Dame. • Lost his brother, Chad, to Diffuse Intrinsic Pon- tine Glioma (DIPG) in 2015, and the family founded The ChadTough Foundation to raise awareness and research funds. • Both his grandfathers are College Football Hall of Fame inductees: Lloyd Carr, who joined Michi- gan's coaching staff in 1980, before becoming head coach 1995-2007 and guiding U-M to the 1997 national championship; and Tom Curtis, a two-time All-American at safety for U-M from 1967-69 who went on to play in the NFL, winning Super Bowl V with the Baltimore Colts. • Born Aug. 30, 2007. THEY SAID IT On3 Director Of Scouting And Rankings Charles Power: "Tommy Carr has shown really positive signs and growth as a senior, which shouldn't be surprising given this is his second full year as a starter at Saline. He has projectable size and a good frame. He looks to be well over 6-foot-3. I re- ally like his footwork. He moves well. He has quick feet. He pairs that with strong mechanics. He's naturally accurate and throws with touch. He has a solid technical foundation, which is something we saw from his brother. He can make some plays under duress. When you look at the production, it stacks up pretty well among the group. … Also, he added a quality rushing element to his game. He ran for 8 touchdowns this year." 2026 PROJECTION Carr was a strong upside take by the Wolverines who will spend time developing in a crowded quar- terback room before competing for the starting job after Bryce Underwood's departure.