Newsstand: Jim Harbaugh, players share message to Cade McNamara after QB decision
Michigan football’s quarterback competition has come to an end with sophomore J.J. McCarthy putting his stamp on the job on Saturday night. An 11-for-12 performance for 229 yards and 3 touchdowns sent an emphatic message on his claim to the top spot.
Of course, for McCarthy to win the job meant he had to take it from the incumbent starter. Senior Cade McNamara is on the outside looking in and will now serve as the team’s backup quarterback. Head coach Jim Harbaugh has no reason to suspect it could be an issue.
“There are things that happen in football,” Harbaugh said after the game. “It doesn’t always go the way you want or hoped it would, even when you’re putting in all the work and doing everything you possibly can. Doing a heck of a job. If really seen the right way, there’s a burden there, laid on you, you treat it like ankle weights.
“It’s not always going to go every time be 12 for 12 in a game, either. It’s the nature of the business, playing football and quarterback. I know the competitor Cade is, and he’s got gravel in his gut and he’ll be ready for his next opportunity. That’s what I predict.”
McNamara followed up a 9-for-18, 136-yard and a touchdown performance completing 4-of-6 of his passes on Saturday night for 26 yards and an interception.
Wide receiver Ronnie Bell shared a message to his co-captain after the game, saying he was proud of the way he has handled the situation.
“Some unlucky things [happened],” Bell said. “I was proud of him the way he kinda carried it. A couple of things that happened [in the game], he couldn’t really control. The way he just took it on the chin, he was ready to go back in, ready for whatever we were going to do. I think he handled it well. And he did a good job, though, with what he did.”
Junior running back Blake Corum added: “I mean, I think Cade did good.”
McNamara was an instrumental part of Michigan’s 2021 success, quarterbacking the team to a 12-2 record, a win over Ohio State, a Big Ten title and a trip to the College Football Playoff. If the Wolverines need to call his number again, they have a more-than-qualified man for the job waiting for his next opportunity.
Tweets of the day
Michigan football quote of the day
“It’s very similar to that with Alex and Colin because they are both playing great at one point in the season. We were 6-2 and playing great ball with Alex Smith who had led us to the NFC championship the night before. Colin got his start on a Monday night against Chicago, and he lit it up.
“It’s not a matter of somebody losing it … as I’ve been saying, we’ve got two really good quarterbacks, two starting quarterbacks, two championship quarterbacks. A lot like that Monday night game against the Bears, that looked a lot like what JJ was able to do out there tonight.”
– Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh compares QB situation to Alex Smith and Colin Kaepernick with San Francisco 49ers
Headlines of the day
Michigan football vs. Hawai’i: Postgame reactions to the J.J. McCarthy show
Jim Harbaugh names J.J. McCarthy Michigan starter after ‘near flawless’ performance
Defense/ST notes: Quiet, but dominant, performance in Michigan 56-10 win over Hawai’i
Offense notes: Jim Harbaugh’s gut feeling at QB pays off in a huge way
