Matt Weiss on J.J. McCarthy: ‘Ahead of schedule — it’s hard to imagine how good he can be’
Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy leads the nation in completion percentage, having connected on 74.6 percent of his passes — and he’s not close to reaching his potential. McCarthy has been able to ease into the position with the running game performing so well, but the sophomore has been every bit as good as hoped since taking over for Cade McNamara.
Quarterbacks coach and co-offensive coordinator Matt Weiss said he’s been more than pleased with McCarthy this season, and anxious to see more.
“We’re just absolutely thrilled with the way he’s playing,” Weiss said of McCarthy. “He understands every single progression; he takes the right footwork. He knows where to go with the ball, with very few exceptions. That’s really hard to get a quarterback to do that. For him to be completing [74.6 percent] speaks to all those things. If you’re not doing those things, that’s not going to happen.
“Everybody in the country wishes they could have that type of completion percentage. The reason why people can’t do it is it’s really hard to do it on a play-to-play basis, what he’s able to do. Even basic stuff, going through progressions, taking the right footwork, knowing where to go with the ball … he’s very smart before the snap, being able to get us in the right play, seeing what the defense is doing, knowing where to go. All those things have been really impressive for a first-year starter.”
McNamara showed it last year, too. And in many ways, the offense is similar. It’s run heavy and pass opportunistic, and there’s still room for improvement on the deep ball. McCarthy is 4-of-18. 81 percent on throws downfield over 20 yards but 81 percent on everything else inside of that.
Expect that to improve under McCarthy, Weiss continued.
“We’d love to see some more deep ball touchdowns, but we’re thrilled with J.J. and the way he’s playing right now,” he said. “He’s way ahead of anywhere we expected him to be as a first-year starter at this point. It’s really a credit to him and his approach and how hard he works because he’s a really talented player. But he’s’ even surpassed our expectations of how fast he can grow and develop. We’re thrilled with where he is.
“I would say the pass game is working very well; the run game is working very well. We’re extremely efficient. I think if you look at efficiency, we’re one of the top teams in the country. Certainly, we’re in the top 10 in scoring. We’re also in the bottom 10 in drives per game because we’re so efficient that we rarely every punt. We drive the ball methodically down the field, and that means the other team rarely ever touches the ball, which is a great way to play complementary football and to win.”
They’ve built a foundation for a great offense, he said, adding, “those things will come.” Those passes get completed in practice, he said, and it’s “just a matter of time before it shows up in the game.”
Don’t expect anything to change other than a few more completions there.
“It’s been very effective, and it’s certainly a recipe for winning, which we definitely don’t apologize for,” Weiss said.
And remember, he added — McCarthy has only started seven games in his career.
“I would also say, he’s not a finished product,” Weiss said. “When he leaves here, he’s going to be even better. It’s hard to imagine how good he can be.
“But I’m really excited about J.J. and really happy with where he is.”
