When Jim Harbaugh entered freshman linebacker Hayden Moore’s house for a recruiting visit prior to Moore joining the Michigan football team, the Wolverines’ coach went through his usual list of things to go over with the prospective players and their families. But he quickly found out they were more than on top of it all.
The application process? The scholarship? The on campus living situation? Check. Check. Check.
Harbaugh gave up telling them about the logistics, he had nothing else to add — Moore and his family already knew it all. Instead of telling them more facts and figures, Harbaugh asked them the classic, ‘why Michigan?’ question that’s asked so often on the recruiting trail.
A question asked a million times, but an answer that still rings for Harbaugh.
“It’s how you treat the walk-ons, coach,” Harbaugh said Monday, quoting Moore. “… (At Michigan) you don’t know who’s a walk-on and who’s a scholarship player — and J.J. hugs everybody.”
At the time of that recruiting visit, J.J. McCarthy’s leadership was already clear. That was before he entered this season as Michigan’s bonafide QB1, before he posted scorching passing numbers to open the year and before the Wolverines began relying on his arm more than ever. He was already known as someone who treats everyone like the star of the show, even though he’s billed as the star himself.
While those traits were already evident earlier into his Michigan tenure, McCarthy’s continues to grow into his leadership role. His other role as the offense’s central facilitator — one previously reserved by senior running back Blake Corum — is growing alongside it.
Taken separately, McCarthy is checking both aspects of a quarterback’s job description so far.
On the field, his play has spoken for itself.
“So explosive in the passing game, J.J. is phenomenal,” Harbaugh said. “So on fire, so on point. The throws that he is making from the pocket, doing severe damage when he leaves the pocket, keeping his eyes downfield. … They’re NFL caliber throws into tight windows. The accuracy is off the charts.”
Off the field, his impact has spoken for itself.
“The thing that stands out the most is he’s about the team,” Harbaugh said. “He never comes off about himself, and he’s willing to do anything for anybody on the entire team, no matter what. … He’ll raise (others) up and lower himself to raise a teammate up, as opposed to the guy that pushes other people down and raises themselves up.”
Taken together, the Wolverines now have a passing attack confidently thriving in the hands of an emerging leader. Gone are the days of run-first, pass-only-when-you-need-to football, a commonplace even when McCarthy won the QB1 job last season. The strive toward a balanced, 50/50 attack is starting to take form, and it comes behind a quarterback who places equal emphasis on both leadership and play on the field.
With his orchestration clear in both facets, and Harbaugh calling the way McCarthy conducts himself as “the secret” to quarterback leadership, it’s easy to pick each side of his growth out individually.
But often both abilities have gone hand in hand, letting his growth as both a player and unselfish leader shine. On occasion where he has abandoned the pocket entirely and used his legs to gain yards multiple times this season, he’s taken hits instead of sliding, putting himself on the line for his team. The plays add a key wrinkle to Michigan’s schemes — despite keeping coaches on edge.
“I just want him to get down, and get out of bounds,” offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore said. “… I call him a psychopath sometimes and he loves it. I’m like ‘dude you got to get down,’ and he’s like ‘I want that contact, coach.’ ”
With an improved air attack, McCarthy is sure to have plenty of more chances to run as the defense backs up — chances he’ll unselfishly keep taking for the good of his team, despite the risk. It’ll also mean he’ll have more chances to keep growing, but for now, he’s already checking the boxes to get Michigan on solid footing.
A quarterback who continues growing as a leader? Check.
A passing game that is starting to grow alongside him? Check.
A team with a stable offense and well-rounded dynamic as a result so far?
Check.