JJ finally has a chance to talk.
Sounds mature and ready to lead.
September 6th, 2022 at 9:42 PM ^
The media is clearly not doing their job well enough since Cade and JJ seem to get along. Also, where is the twitterverse and why aren’t they constantly pinging Cade to tell him he sucks and JJ is the man? Fans these days.
September 6th, 2022 at 11:33 PM ^
Here is the YouTube of McCarthy's press conference, in case the On3 article is behind a paywall.
September 7th, 2022 at 1:02 PM ^
My take way from this interview:
1. He's very poised
2. Very articulate
3. Seems to be self aware of what noise is surrounding the program
4. He seems like a team guy
5. Submitted to the coaching staff
6. Not arrogant.
7. Holds himself accountable
Kind of reminds me of a young TB a little bit. time will tell but he is definitely not going to allow this to cause division in the locker room. Love that he honored Cade for what we all have loved about Cade. I think we are in good hands if he's the guy.
September 7th, 2022 at 12:03 AM ^
JJ seems like a really good dude. Of course, as some on the board have pointed out, it hasn’t stopped the media from trying to make headlines. I heard something about JJ supposedly posting a comic about letting go of ego on social media after Cade’s comments and there’s some less reputable sources trying to turn it into a controversy.
September 6th, 2022 at 9:45 PM ^
Everything happens for a reason.
September 6th, 2022 at 10:14 PM ^
In the end the universe tends to unfold as it should.
Harold and Kumar
September 7th, 2022 at 7:53 AM ^
Great. It’s 7am and now I want sliders.
September 7th, 2022 at 7:18 PM ^
Because it's 7am and you're still high as a kite.
September 7th, 2022 at 8:11 AM ^
We have met the enemy and he is us.
Pogo
September 6th, 2022 at 9:47 PM ^
JJ is a really likeable dude. I'd love to meet him one of these days. Probably for a fee, right?
September 6th, 2022 at 10:08 PM ^
That sounds eerily like how prostitution works.
September 6th, 2022 at 10:08 PM ^
hey, college sports.
September 6th, 2022 at 10:14 PM ^
Hahaha, exactly. It's called pimping yourself out.
September 6th, 2022 at 10:47 PM ^
If the fee was “yeah, you can buy me a beer and we’ll talk football”, I’m in!
September 7th, 2022 at 12:40 PM ^
The money I shelled out to meet Jake Butt!
September 6th, 2022 at 10:07 PM ^
but can he play DT?
September 7th, 2022 at 7:58 AM ^
Our DTs are just fine-more than "fine".
September 6th, 2022 at 10:28 PM ^
Looks like Cade is losing ground in one of the few areas he may have had a lead in -- leadership.
September 7th, 2022 at 12:26 AM ^
Dude, you can think JJ might be better suited to start (even if the coaches aren't yet convinced) but man, it's crazy how much of a Cade hater you are. The guy has been outstanding, doing everything that's asked of him to the best of his ability and led the team to a Big Ten Championship, and yet, you bash him constantly.
September 7th, 2022 at 2:03 AM ^
Cade has also shown much more maturity than those who constantly feel the need to knock him.
September 7th, 2022 at 12:22 PM ^
I'm not bashing him. I'm assessing them. I think Harbaugh put pressure on them, purposefully. Pressure to perform on the field and in the locker room / media. He basically said as much with his criteria. Cade blew his shot on the field and in the presser. JJ could've came out and said he thinks he deserves the job, or made it about him. Instead, he talked about the team, he talked about being fine with splitting snaps or doing whatever Harbaugh decides, and he went out of his way to praise Cade. I don't think it's a stretch to say that JJ won the week 1 check list, both on the field and off the field. It's not a matter of burying Cade. It's just recognizing that JJ is climbing the ladder. I believe Harbaugh is seeing it similarly. Cade letting the pressure get to him is the worst thing that could happen for him.
September 7th, 2022 at 3:26 PM ^
I have no issue with McCarthy but you are reading a TON into pretty anodyne comments made by him. Also, I'd love to know how he'd feel if, say, he had led a team to its first championship in nearly 20 years and yet has been hearing for 18 months now how he's mediocre at his job and anything good that happened wasn't due to him but (waves hand) other stuff.
Also, there's little to show any actual "pressure" happened here. Yes he missed a couple of throws; he also had a couple of throws dropped by his receivers or they didn't complete the route. Was it his fault he got clotheslined because his offensive line had two guys go down? The idea that Cade McNamara is just now cracking under pressure is just silly, that somehow he's spooked because the guy who has been chasing him for a year now is...still chasing him. JJ really hasn't been put under any real pressure in meaningful games unless you want to talk about the MSU game last year (where he had a couple of missteps) or the Nebraska game in which he nearly ran UM out of FG range by losing 7 yards on 3rd-and-6 from the red zone. That's not to knock him but if we're going to go through this notion of "assessing" players on how they handle pressure let's at least be honest.
JJ will get his chance against Hawaii, maybe the second-worst team in the country depending on how you feel about NM State, and I hope he shines. But you aren't "assessing" anything - you're finding support for the conclusion that McCarthy is better than McNamara at being QB because of a press conference and a dozen plays in a blowout win against a bad MWC team.
September 7th, 2022 at 4:15 PM ^
... you aren't "assessing" anything - you're finding support for the conclusion that McCarthy is better than McNamara at being QB because of a press conference and a dozen plays in a blowout win against a bad MWC team.
^ exactly, thank you ^
September 7th, 2022 at 11:31 PM ^
I disagree that he "led" the team to a championship. For one, he lost the game that would've gotten us to a real championship. If he "won" us a conference championship, then he lost us a chance at a national championship. You can't have it both ways. Now, if we pull just the Big Ten Championship portion and grade only until the end of conference play, what games did he win? When did he put the team on his back? It definitely wasn't Ohio State. His poor pick in the redzone was equally bad to anything good he did in that game. It was a net zero at most. Against Iowa the biggest pass came from a running back, and the best run came with JJ at QB running read option -- freezing a defender and giving Corum a lane to take off. I appreciate Cade's ability to not screw things up, but my ceiling for a QB at Michigan is much higher. Obviously Harbaugh's looking for more out of the position, or this wouldn't even be an open competition. It'd be Cade's job.
September 7th, 2022 at 6:36 PM ^
You've been on the board bashing Cade all week in various ways (suggesting on another post that he simply rode a good team to the title instead of having an integral role, etc, etc).
You can favor JJ without bashing Cade who is a really good football player (24th in QBR last year, 4th highest in the league) that has done great things for the team.
September 7th, 2022 at 7:22 AM ^
Rob, I think it may be more like this…
Cade is sharing his approach to leadership and control of the huddle with JJ. JJ is listening and learning.
JJ is sharing his thoughts on mobility with Cade. Cade is listening and learning.
They sound like two mature young men who are pushing each other - and want the best for the team.
It also seems like both possess the confidence that they can lead Michigan’s offense.
Nice attempt to toss some shade.
September 7th, 2022 at 10:56 AM ^
How would McCarthy share his thoughts on mobility? “Hey Cade, try running a lot faster?” I don’t think Rob was throwing any “shade.” In fact, I think don’t think being pro-McCarthy meas being anti-McNamara, who no one is saying is awful, or anything close to that. It’s simply preferring the potential for greatness over the ceiling of competence. And as far as what Rob actually said, at this point, it’s easier for McCarthy to sound gracious and more team first in his public comments because he probably knows he’s won, and understandable McNamara would be frustrated about what’s happening and sound less so.
September 7th, 2022 at 12:35 PM ^
Exactly. Things are snowballing on Cade. Maybe missing those easy throws on Saturday was just a bad day at the office -- but it's impossible to not attribute some of it to pressure. Then the post game attitude was an extension of that (in my opinion). If he goes out and throws for 250 yards and 3 TDs, I doubt he has the same tone in that presser. But the QB battle, the bad performance, JJ showing flashes in his snaps -- it all piled up and resulted in an edgy press conference where he came off sounding defensive and entitled. JJ could've responded by campaigning for himself or propping up his performance, but he kept it classy and about the team. Harbaugh said he will be assessing all of this stuff. I don't think many people thought JJ would come out of week 1 with a more impressive showing on the field and off the field in the week that wasn't even his starting QB week. Combine that with the quotes about JJ being on fire and having his 4 best practices before camp ended, and it's hard to see Harbaugh leaning Cade's way. I guess this is a long-winded way of saying JJ did about everything he could do on Harbaugh's checklist in week 1 to win the job, and Cade's marks were satisfactory at best.
September 6th, 2022 at 10:46 PM ^
Well college kids, this is good life lesson.
You will constantly be in competition for the promotion.
Now get back to work and get off my lawn.
September 6th, 2022 at 11:19 PM ^
As a retiree (Dow Chemical) and 1985 UM grad, this is life in the corporate/real world.
Trust in yourself and trust in the process.
September 7th, 2022 at 6:46 AM ^
I’m a current Dow employee (plan to retire next year) and 1987 UM grad. I concur. I need to get up for work now.
September 7th, 2022 at 7:20 AM ^
If ever there was a company that believed in process it’s TDCC (and I say that with some affection).
September 7th, 2022 at 10:34 AM ^
There is a footnote to this quite excellent life lesson and it is: as you get closer to the top of the pyramid with fewer openings into which to elevate, it can sometimes resemble a knife fight in a phone booth. Check your tolerance for this behavioral requirement before aspiring to the C-Suites.
September 6th, 2022 at 11:09 PM ^
Give us a summary next time at least.
September 7th, 2022 at 6:29 AM ^
I'm not sure if its the race to be first to post, or just lazy, but there has been an epidemic of shitty posts like this. A quote and 2-3 sentence summary is all that's needed...
September 6th, 2022 at 11:18 PM ^
Count your blessings to have two high quality QBs available. My junior year (1984), JH got hurt and we had Russell Rein and Chris Zurbrugg around to QB us to three more wins vs.the likes of NW, Illini, and Minny.
Let this play out!
September 7th, 2022 at 8:13 AM ^
I remember 1984 well. I always wondered if UM's season was the universe's price for letting the Detroit Tigers win it all the same year.
If so, it was worth it.
September 7th, 2022 at 12:39 PM ^
Bless You Boys
September 6th, 2022 at 11:33 PM ^
When you have a QB with rushing capabilities, it's nice to have a backup with experience like winning a big 10 title experience. Let's see what JJ does under the lights.
September 6th, 2022 at 11:45 PM ^
It's an exciting time to be a Wolverine fan. Some great players that are easy to root for.
September 6th, 2022 at 11:45 PM ^
Would be cool to know what he said, but
September 6th, 2022 at 11:58 PM ^
Just read the transcript on 247sports.com, but too lazy to go back just to copy the link. Sorry!
It was already, nothing groundbreaking, said all the right things.
Really looking forward to watching him lead the team Saturday night. He just has to remember to stay calm and focus on the things he's worked on all summer. Can't revert back to throwing 100 mpg curl routes to TEs over the middle or running backwards 20 yards.
He looked GREAT on Saturday, just hoping the moment doesn't get him too excited. Would love to see him lead scoring drives, make good decisions, push the ball down field, and earn the starting job going forward.
September 7th, 2022 at 10:33 AM ^
Would we want him to be next Joe Montana the first game? Of course. But, expect some great plays and some not so good plays. Key is does he forget the bad play and step up the next play. I don't expect Hawaii to be a challenge but I sure hope they give him some looks to see how well he reacts. Everyone has to start somewhere and learn. I am hoping he shows enough to gain confidence for the future.
September 7th, 2022 at 12:01 AM ^
Listened to MMQB with Devin Gardner who does a solid job breaking down the gameplay.
Was brutal...sounded like he not only wants McNamara benched but sent to a gulag.
September 7th, 2022 at 12:07 AM ^
Devin’s a bit over the top but seems frustrated knowing the potential of the offense compared to Cade’s skill set.
Cade’s supposed to be the guy that is better at reading the defense but he’s missing easy throws as Devin points to in the tape and bailing from clean pockets.
But maybe it’s just me. That’s my take anyway.
September 7th, 2022 at 12:17 AM ^
Agree. I don't believe Cade reads defenses very well tbh. I think he reads well pre-snap, but gets stuck with that read and doesn't adjust. It seems he reads things well because he checks down so often.
One of his worst throws last year, imo, was when he threw deep ball to Roman Wilson against OSU and luckily we drew a PI on it because OSU defense was a cluster f**k that day. IF you rewatch that play, he has Honigford literally 7 yards further towards the middle of the field running free....he walks in to the endzone if thrown there. How he doesn's see that, I have no idea.
September 7th, 2022 at 8:17 AM ^
There is just as much, even more, an issue here with a segment of the fandom who is irrationally supporting Cade. This site is being dominated by folks who, somehow. believe that Cade is being violated here-this could not be further from the truth. Evaluating a QB from play in practice alone is both unwise and impossible. Jim Harbaugh has taken advantage of this schedule to construct as fair of an assessment process as is possible and folks are going off the deep end with their complaints. The foundation for the complaints being registered in this regard is built on sand. There is no good reason for reasonable people not to sit back and truly enjoy what is happening here. Sure, each of us are individually drawn to a favorite. But good lord, this is an interscholastic athletic endeavor and here the best players deserve to play-whether they are your favorite or not. Here, we have a 21 and a 19 year old. They are both young and as such are developing their skill sets. The changes here deserve to be assessed and reassessed on an on-going basis. This is not easily done and Jim Harbaugh, as per usual, has once again out-thought the conventional wisdom. "Don't worry, be happy".
September 7th, 2022 at 11:55 AM ^
bUt hE lEd uS tO a b1G 10 tiTLe!!!
September 7th, 2022 at 10:10 AM ^
I've read a bunch of comments on here about Devin being unfair to Cade, but I just listened to the segment and am not sure what, specifically, people view as unfair? Genuinely curious where you would push back on Devin's assessment. Seemed pretty cut and dry.