McCaffrey to opt out of season, seek transfer
Can't have nice things.
September 16th, 2020 at 3:40 PM ^
And Nico, too, apparently. Can I edit the title here?
September 16th, 2020 at 3:41 PM ^
But Nico is transferring to the NFL.
September 17th, 2020 at 8:10 AM ^
Which makes sense...Dylan does not. It's a free year.
Just stay until Dec. 20 and if it doesn't work out, transfer then.
You don't gain anything by leaving now. Whatever roster you join now, could end up a lot different after a season. Injuries, freshman who don't start the year but get a shot in games 2 or 3 and take over a starting role, etc.
You're in school, you get the facilities and you're likely a play away from starting in a year that doesn't count against your eligibility.
See how the season plays out, what if Milton stinks it up and McCaffrey leads us to a comeback win. Starts the next game and throws for 400 yards in a rout. That job is his.
September 16th, 2020 at 3:41 PM ^
Good luck to him. Up until this moment - I have always held out great hope for some spectacular seasons with him as QB here.
September 16th, 2020 at 3:41 PM ^
And there it is... lets hope he stays and becomes a wr... because he can fly... but will be sorry to see him go.
September 16th, 2020 at 3:42 PM ^
Come on, man!
September 16th, 2020 at 3:42 PM ^
What really sucks is that both probably play during the season, and nobody loses a year of eligibility either.
September 16th, 2020 at 3:42 PM ^
Meanwhile the death star in Columbus is losing zero players. FML.
September 16th, 2020 at 4:47 PM ^
They might even be gaining players. Maybe Dylan is transferring there and will go on to win a Heisman. Actually, now that I really think about it, that's probably exactly what is going to happen.
September 16th, 2020 at 3:42 PM ^
Still rooting for the meteor in 2020. :(
September 16th, 2020 at 3:42 PM ^
Good luck to him. I do wonder what happened that it went from him being the likely leader to him apparently falling to #3.
September 16th, 2020 at 3:54 PM ^
Well, McCaffrey was always the high floor low ceiling guy. If Milton and/or McNamara have passed him I prefer to think 2 guys with higher ceilings did so.
Especially Milton. They had him run almost every time he was in, as I assume given he wasn't known as a runner, they wanted to give him reps against guys who would hit him, see how he responded. Also, he couldn't hit the broad side of the barn twice in row. If he can do those two things now, he certainly has the arm and measurables. Reading defenses would be the only other question, and you don't really know that until 5-6 games are played.
September 16th, 2020 at 10:41 PM ^
People talk about McCaffrey like he was some game manager; he was the 5th-rated QB in his class and a top-150 player. Milton had a big arm but wasn't particularly accurate in HS (which is fine especially on teams with limited talent) but I don't think the coaches ran him a bunch to see how he'd respond to getting hit; I assume it was because he struggled to throw the ball accurately and it was safer in blowouts to let him try that part of the offense.
Again, I feel like I'm ragging on the kid, but I am cynical enough to wonder if something happened with McCaffrey and the coaches are now trying to talk up Milton and McNamarra a bit. Not to say that Milton and McNamarra haven't made strides, but an offseason with limited game-style practice featuring a guy jumping from clear #3 to strangle hold on #1 doesn't seem like the type of good luck UM usually experiences. Love to be wrong, but most of what I've read is that Milton has good timing with the guys on campus but I haven't read a bunch about how he's clearly digested the playbook and has a read on defenses.
September 16th, 2020 at 3:45 PM ^
SMH...
I hope you make a lot of money, Nico. Congrats I guess.
September 16th, 2020 at 3:46 PM ^
Wish he got more playing time last year over Shea to see more of what he could do in game action. Best of luck to him!
September 16th, 2020 at 3:48 PM ^
McCaffrey getting injured at Wisconsin along with Nico not getting the touches he deserved will be one of the biggest what if's in the Harbaugh era.
September 17th, 2020 at 12:51 PM ^
Completely agree. I really wonder if, in the long run, the program would have been better off not grabbing Shea as a transfer, or at least, had he stayed for only one year. Dylan's throws just look soooo much better than Patterson's and I had thought he would have been able to develop into a really nice QB. The coaching staff knows more than me, and you'd hate to not grab a 5 star transfer who won't have to sit out a year, so I get it overall. Still disappointing not to get to see all of what Dylan had to offer. Hope this means Milton has really come along though.
September 16th, 2020 at 3:50 PM ^
We good with cancelling the season again?
September 16th, 2020 at 3:54 PM ^
Don't understand Nico's decision unless he had already did this prior to this announcement.
September 16th, 2020 at 4:01 PM ^
Hot Take: Harbaugh is seeing 2020 as a lost season (too many unknowns, inexperience, loss of leadership) and wants to get the QB with the highest ceiling game experience so that in 2021, he will be battle tested. DMC's progress has stagnated while Milton has risen dramatically, so it makes sense to give the job to the guy on the upward trajectory, even if it doesn't give your team the best opportunity to win in a season that might be pretty meaningless in the end.
September 16th, 2020 at 4:07 PM ^
Everybody here is convinced McCaffrey is a better QB than Milton, despite NO inside knowledge of how they've progressed since last year. Truthfully, even based on the little they've both played at M, it's impossible to say who's ahead except to say that McCaffrey was ahead. Things change and players development.
Despite every sign pointing to Milton being the guy this year, everyone is still clamoring for and convinced it's McCaffrey.
I desperately wanted Shea benched last year and obviously would prefer to have McCaffrey stay.
But Milton is THE GUY, and he's gonna show it. He's gonna be the explosive QB that takes Harbaugh over the top at M.
September 16th, 2020 at 4:25 PM ^
Over the top of the ramp and off the cliff?
September 16th, 2020 at 4:44 PM ^
ALL THE WAY
September 17th, 2020 at 2:00 PM ^
I hope you are right. I think we all do but there is no history of this ever happening at Michigan.
This hype train though, does happen every year it seems.... a guy goes down or transfers before the season and they start talking up the next guy and guys.
It's all fluff until we see it on the field and I just don't remember the hype actually showing up on the field. It usually becomes glaringly obvious as soon as they play a decent team.
But there is always a first time.
And McNamara is now one play away from being the starter which is terrifying.
September 16th, 2020 at 4:13 PM ^
Very bizarre, he came to the protest and was in great spirits and seemed to be getting along really well with everyone including Harbaugh. His mom was there, too. I think he had other family members there, but I'm not entirely sure. I didn't see this coming.
September 16th, 2020 at 4:15 PM ^
So wait a minute. He got beat out as starter before practice even started? No scrimmage? I doubt that was the case.
September 16th, 2020 at 5:12 PM ^
We are TWO PLAYS away from the debut of Dan Villari.
And what the heck happens if the QB room gets Covid-19 and all of them have to sit for 21 days? Triple option out of wishbone?
September 16th, 2020 at 5:32 PM ^
I mean, that's what I would do.
This actually happened to Baylor...3 or 4 years ago I want to say? They were down to third string and he got hurt, so they put a WR in at QB (who was one of those guys that played QB in HS but was never going to in college) and basically ran out of the shotgun spread every play with end arounds and a few screens sprinkled in.
September 16th, 2020 at 6:14 PM ^
You could probably put Michael Barrett (who was a really good HS QB) in for some snaps, but that’s some cold comfort right there.
September 16th, 2020 at 5:38 PM ^
I’m ready. Put me in.
September 16th, 2020 at 5:21 PM ^
I don't quite understand the DM immediate transfer decision. Worst case, he definitely plays as a backup and spot situations. Plus he could still be the starter if Milton underwhelms or gets injured. Unless he just didn't see himself fitting into the Gattis offense, now he has to start over somewhere else after sitting out a year. His decision I guess.
September 16th, 2020 at 5:52 PM ^
WTF?
Nico is somewhat understandable, even if the timing is strange. DCaff just doesn't make any sense whatsoever. There are FIVE weeks of practice left before a game is played. I can't believe he fell so out of QB favor in optional practice workouts. There has to be something else going on, other than just playing time or roster position. Maybe he decided to C-19 at home, with family? I dunno...
I hope we get more than the standard 'please respect my decision', but I doubt it. I wish him well and hope he ends up with a great career. I'm just perplexed...
September 16th, 2020 at 7:32 PM ^
It’s discouraging to see how many projected starters leave...and all the players who left Columbus return. Starting to wonder if dedication isn’t major difference between rivals.
But It also seems that values and traits such as dedication, honor and commitment are seen as dumb.
September 16th, 2020 at 7:48 PM ^
Despite Milton's off-season progress, McCaffrey was going to see plenty of playing time and was going to have every opportunity to become a Michigan legend. This makes no sense.
September 16th, 2020 at 10:05 PM ^
Time to lower expectations on offense. 100% OL turnover. Starting last year’s third string QB. Best WRs are gone.
Wholly fucking shit !!!
September 17th, 2020 at 5:11 AM ^
Man I don’t get this one. I understand, somewhat Nico, not Dylan. Now I’m forcing myself to believe that Milton and Cade are just that good....I hope.