What they're saying about Michigan's blowout win over Hawai'i, J.J. McCarthy's coming out party

Michigan football’s 56-10 win over Hawai’i was headlined by a near-perfect performance from sophomore quarterback J.J. McCarthy in his first career starter. He went 11-for-12 for 229 yards and 3 touchdowns on Saturday night, wrapping up the starting quarterback job moving forward for the Wolverines.

McCarthy’s coronation is by far the biggest storyline to emerge from the win. Hawai’i might just be the worst team in the FBS, so clarity on Michigan football’s quarterback situation moving forward is the takeaway most are fixated on.

Here is a sampling of what the local and national media are saying about Michigan coming off the big victory. This will be updated as more opinions come in from around the media sphere.

What Jim Harbaugh said about Michigan QB J.J. McCarthy

JJ, near flawless performance. 11 for 12, and one was dropped. That’s tough to do in a week in practice. I thought he had a great game. Playing really well. We’ll start J.J. next week.

Chris Balas, The Wolverine

Michigan 56, Hawai’i 10 — Notes, quotes, and observations

To be clear, we’ve seen great performances by Michigan quarterbacks against overmatched opponents before. John Navarre shined against Ball State and Rice, replacing injured Drew Henson in 2000. Devin Gardner set records against an Indiana team that looked like it was playing with 6 defenders.

McCarthy won’t be judged on what he did against Hawai’I (or UConn, even Maryland in Big Ten play in two weeks). It will be about moving the ball in Iowa City in a few weeks, against Penn State and Michigan State at home, and — of course — in Columbus at the end of November. 

Heading into this game, though, you wondered if Harbaugh might have a decision to make in a few weeks — go with the experienced, Big Ten champion quarterback who has played in such tough environments or roll with the gunslinger with the golden arm. 

Now there’s no question, and you wish it was only because McCarthy was that good (he was). Unfortunately, the weight of the competition seems to have broken McNamara. Harbaugh said all the right things about his senior having “gravel in his gut” and predicting he’d be ready when his number was called. But to say McNamara lost his confidence at this point would be an understatement. 

In fairness, he didn’t have a chance on his first half possession. Three of his starting linemen whiffed in succession on three straight snaps — Ryan Hayes, Trente Jones, and Zak Zinter — leading to a punt. 

If he wasn’t already feeling the pressure before, he certainly was in the moments that followed. Sadly, a number of zeroes in the crowd booed like it was his fault, the ultimate “what have you done for me lately.” He looked like a defeated man when Harbaugh put him back in with the first-string offensive line and threw a terrible pick toward a well-covered Andrel Anthony. 

McCarthy is the guy going forward, and you hope — at least the sane portion of the fan base does — that there are still some good moments for him going forward. It’s a long season, and they might need him at some point. 

John Borton, The Wolverine

Wolverine Watch: McCarthy completes the takeover

This wasn’t about the game. That was over before the team from paradise ever boarded a jet to humiliation hell on the way to a $1.9-million check. This was all about McCarthy, and what he could deliver in his first start, regardless of who stood (or stumbled) in the way.

The Kid delivered a statement worthy of Doc Holiday at the OK Corral.

You want a dynamic option at quarterback? I’m your huckleberry …

Yes, it was Hawai’i. Yes, the Warriors look like one of the worst teams in college football this year. It isn’t about that.

Here’s what it’s about. McCarthy underscored with striking emphasis his ability to make plays, get Michigan into the end zone, and check all the boxes when it comes to individual ability.

Need a rifle shot of a pass zipped in between defenders at the goal line? There’s McCarthy, blazing one into the waiting hands of grad wideout Ronnie Bell.

Need time and space purchased for a scoring play to develop? The kid features the legs as well as the arm to make it happen, like he did on a scramble TD pass to senior wideout Cornelius Johnson during the 42-0 first-half tidal wave.

McCarthy gives Michigan the opportunity for a dynamic result on every play, and every series. He’s the U-M football program’s most heralded quarterback recruit since Chad Henne, but he’s Henne blessed with elusiveness and multiple extra gears.

He’s also Michigan’s new starting quarterback, next week against Connecticut and going forward.

Heather Dinich, ESPN

College Football Playoff Week 2 lessons: Notre Dame’s done, Alabama’s shaky and the field is open

Reason for optimism: In theory, Michigan’s quarterback saga should be over. J.J. McCarthy was nearly perfect in his debut, completing 11 of 12 passes in the first half for 229 yards and three touchdowns. Yes, it was against winless, unranked Hawai’i, but he seemed to do all he could to separate himself from Cade McNamara, who started in Week 1. How that plays out in the locker room remains to be seen, but the fact that coach Jim Harbaugh used the first two games to put them through an audition was drama enough. After Saturday’s game, Harbaugh named McCarthy the starter for Week 3. The Wolverines should know their offensive leader with time to spare before the Big Ten schedule begins.

Reason for concern: The nonconference schedule against Colorado State, Hawaii and UConn. If Michigan stumbles in the Big Ten, it’s not going to have an impressive nonconference win to help it win a résumé battle if it needs to. This won’t be an issue if the Wolverines finish as one-loss or undefeated Big Ten champions, but if their only loss is to Ohio State and they don’t win the East, it could keep them out of the top four. While other teams have been tested, Michigan will have started the season with four straight home games against unranked opponents.

Rainer Sabin, Detroit Free Press

How Michigan football QB J.J. McCarthy lived up to his billing in first college start

McCarthy’s tour de force materialized a week after Cade McNamara, Michigan’s Week 1 starter, underwhelmed.

Admittedly bothered by the Jim Harbaugh’s decision to carry the team’s quarterback competition beyond the preseason, McNamara failed to show why he deserved to retain the featured role he held throughout last season. He completed only 50% of his 18 attempts for 136 yards and a touchdown in a 44-point victory over Colorado State.

McCarthy, on Saturday, gave Michigan what McNamara could not the week before. McCarthy completed two deep passes, connecting with Wilson for a 42-yard touchdown and later with Johnson on a 54-yard bomb. Mixed in with those two strikes was a 16-yard run that netted Michigan a first down.

When McNamara relieved McCarthy, he reverted to the form he showed in the opener and the offense sputtered.

Playing with backups, McNamara’s limitations were further exposed. On two of the first three possessions he directed, McNamara was sacked. Then he threw an interception to cap another disappointing performance when he threw for just 26 yards.

John Niyo, The Detroit News

Niyo: McCarthy is last man standing in Michigan’s quarterback competition

J.J. McCarthy had waited long enough for this moment.

So what if he had to wait an extra 60 minutes or so?

McCarthy knew his time would come, and a couple hours before an early-evening thunderstorm pushed back Michigan’s scheduled 8 p.m, kickoff against Hawaii, the Wolverines’ sophomore quarterback was enjoying a moment of zen. He sat with his legs crossed, leaning against the goal post in one end zone of the Big House, meditating for 10-15 minutes Saturday, just as he does before every game.

But this was his game, he knew. This was his first start, his big opportunity. And if this was the calm before the storm, well, McCarthy looked completely at ease.

The game itself would be no different, in that sense, as the fourth-ranked Wolverines hammered an overmatched opponent and McCarthy played flawlessly, turning in a near-perfect performance in his formal audition for the starting quarterback job.

A job that is now officially his, based on head coach Jim Harbaugh’s postgame comments. After following a scripted plan to alternate starts between the incumbent Cade McNamara and the irrepressible McCarthy in the first two games of Michigan’s non-competitive nonconference slate, Harbaugh was asked whether Saturday’s showing had, in fact, ended the debate.

Indeed, it has.

Isaiah Hole, Wolverines Wire

Michigan takes over top spot in Big Ten Power Rankings

Let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves — Hawaii is maybe the worst team in the FBS. But with J.J. McCarthy under center, Michigan looked flat-out sharp offensively, and dominant defensively.

The final score, 56-10, does not indicate how lopsided this one was. The Wolverines took a 42-0 lead into the locker room at halftime and started rotating in players who generally don’t see the field.

The big story here was McCarthy, though. He was precise, with his only miss being a drop by the receiver. He earned the starting job and looked elite in the process.

Again, we’ll have to see it against a defense worth a salt — which he won’t see in Week 3 when he starts against UConn, nor in Week 4 against Maryland — but Michigan looks like a team with very few flaws, and has won convincingly against two overmatched teams.

At the moment, the only question is: how much will the Wolverines win by?

Barrett Sallee, CBS Sports

Michigan gets an ‘A’ grade for Week 2 performance

J.J. McCarthy dazzled in his audition for the starting quarterback spot, and Michigan topped Hawaii 56-10. Coach Jim Harbaugh said after the game that McCarthy will start next week. He earned it on Saturday.

Bill Bender, Sporting News

Rave reviews for the Wolverines, but with caution

Michigan started J.J. McCarthy in a 56-10 blowout against Hawaii, and the sophomore did not disappoint. McCarthy led five TD drives in six possessions, and through two games the Wolverines have scored TDs on eight of his nine drives. McCarthy finished 11 of 12 for 229 yards and three TDs; an average of 19.1 yards per attempt. Cade McNamara (4 of 6, 26 yards, INT) struggled in relief. It’s tough to over-react too much knowing the competition, but Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh named McCarthy the Week 3 starter against UConn.