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J.J. McCarthy reacts to Jim Harbaugh’s interest in the NFL, his Michigan future

Keith Farner

By Keith Farner

Published:

J.J. McCarthy was not fazed by Jim Harbaugh’s recent interest in returning to the NFL.

The former 5-star quarterback recruit told the Detroit News that he never considered transferring and is a Wolverine for the long term. McCarthy appeared in 11 games this past season, and was 34-for-59 passing for 516 yards with 5 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. He went 7-for-17 passing in the Orange Bowl loss to Georgia for 131 yards and a touchdown.

“I’m a Wolverine and will be for the entirety of my college career,” McCarthy told the Detroit News. “I came here to find out what being a Michigan Man is all about, and after one year I know it’s the best place for my development.”

Here’s his Michigan bio:

CAREER HIGHS

Passing
• Attempts: 10 – vs. Indiana (Nov. 6, 2021)
• Completions: 5 – vs. Indiana (Nov. 6, 2021)
• Yards: 80 – vs. Western Michigan (Sept. 4, 2021)
• TDs: 1, 4x – last at Maryland (Nov. 20, 2021)
• Int.: 1 – vs. Indiana (Nov. 6, 2021)
• Long: 69 – vs. Western Michigan (Sept. 4, 2021)

Rushing
• Attempts: 3, 2x – last at Nebraska (Oct. 9, 2021)
• Yards: 36 – vs. Northwestern (Oct. 23, 2021)
• TDs: 1, 2x – last at Maryland (Nov. 20, 2021)
• Long: 23 – vs. Northwestern (Oct. 23, 2021)

At Michigan
• Has appeared in 11 games as a reserve quarterback

Freshman (2021)
• In his U-M debut against Western Michigan (Sept. 4), completed 4-of-6 pass attempts for 80 yards with a 69-yard touchdown strike
• Went 4-of-6 passing for 42 yards and moved the chains with a 16-yard rush against Northern Illinois (Sept. 18)
• Completed a 56-yard touchdown strike at Wisconsin (Oct. 2) and added a rushing touchdown, the first of his career, in limited action
• Ran three times for 17 yards and also attempted a pass at Nebraska (Oct. 9)
• Passed five times with three completions for 34 yards against Northwestern (Oct. 23) and ran twice for 36 yards
• Completed three-of-four pass attempts with a 17-yard touchdown pass and three rush attempts at Michigan State (Oct. 30)
• Went 5-of-10 passing for 55 yards and one interception against Indiana (Nov. 6)
• Completed all five pass attempts for 58 yards and one touchdown at Maryland (Nov. 20) and ran for another
• Completed a 31-yard pass and picked up a first down rushing against Ohio State (Nov. 27)
• Went 1-of-3 passing and rushed four times for 23 yards and also threw a key block to spring a touchdown against Iowa in the Big Ten Championship (Dec. 4)
• Registered career-highs with 7-of-17 passing for 131 yards with one touchdown and 24 yards rushing against Georgia in the Capital One Orange Bowl/CFP Semifinal (Dec. 31)

Keith Farner

Keith Farner has written about college football for newspapers and web sites since 2005.