JJ McCarthy on Michael Penix Jr.: 'He had my Heisman vote'

JJ McCarthy, if he had a vote, would’ve voted for Michael Penix Jr. to win the Heisman Trophy. Funny enough, the two quarterbacks face off Monday in the College Football Playoff National Championship.

Penix Jr. was on another level this season and only got better down the stretch. In the Sugar Bowl against Texas, the lefty could not be stopped.

McCarthy will get an up close and personal view Monday, but tipped his cap to the Washington quarterback.

“He had my Heisman vote, I’m not gonna lie,” McCarthy said at CFP Media Day. “Like Michael Penix, everything that he’s been through, all the adversities battled through, his injuries and you know, just continuing to stick to the process and keep pressing on. 

“You know, that’s something that coach always talks about. A future favors those who press on. And he’s a perfect epitome of that and just the player he is, the touch he puts on his ball, the accuracy, the ball placement and everything about him, he’s just a tremendous quarterback and I just have so much respect for him.”

The award is already in the books for LSU’s Jayden Daniels. Still, one of McCarthy or Penix Jr. will have the last laugh with an undefeated season.

Penix Jr. is focused on picking apart Michigan’s defensive unit — a group that has gained his respect over the course of the season.

“That’s a good team over there,” Penix Jr. said after taking down Texas in the CFP semifinal. “They’re coached up very well. But we’re going to be ready for the challenge. They mix up the picture quite a bit. They try to get the quarterback off his mark. But we’ll be ready for it. We know that.

“Obviously it’s the biggest game right now mainly because it’s our next one but obviously because it’s the championship, as well, for the national championship, but I’m super excited for the opportunity. We’re just going to continue to prepare the same way that we do each and every week. We know that we have what it takes to be able to come out with a W — we’ve just got to go out there, execute and do it.”

McCarthy and Penix Jr. can both light it up, but it’ll truly come down to who makes less mistakes in the passing game.

Michigan and Washington square off for the national title Monday at 7:30 p.m. ET in Houston.