Michigan football have a quarterback competition for the next few months after J.J. McCarthy led the team to a national championship and seems on his way to becoming a first-round draft pick.
But he’s not complete out the door, yet. McCarthy, the most accomplished and decorated college quarterback to ever put on a maize and blue uniform, is expected back in Ann Arbor this weekend and through next week’s Pro Day.
On Friday, a handful of former players like Drake Nugent, Trevor Keegan and Michael Barrett were going through workouts on one side of the Al Glick Field House, while the team’s new coordinators — Kirk Campbell on offense and Wink Martindale on defense — met with media to preview spring practice, which begins on Monday.
However the main topic of conversation with Campbell centered around the question at quarterback. Though the staff will not rush find an answer.
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“I don’t think we’ll have a timeline on that,” Campbell said. “I think whenever you put timelines on things, you’re hamstringing yourself and that decision maybe you’re not ready for, or don’t make the right one. We’re going to make the decision when the decision is to be made. But super excited about the room. I mean, we’ve got five guys right now in that room who will have a chance to vie for that starting job.”
Those five guys in competition: seventh-year Jack Tuttle, sophomore Alex Orji, sophomore Jayden Denegal, junior Davis Warren and true freshman Jadyn Davis.
Tuttle, a career backup, is the most experienced, though even that is relative.
He has played in 20 games and made five starts (all at Indiana) across his first six seasons and he completed 119 of 199 passes (59.9%) for six touchdowns and six interceptions. His best statistical season came last year in Ann Arbor, when completed 15 of 17 passes for 130 yards and a touchdown in five games of mop-up duty. He also ran four times for 35 yards.
The four other QBs have made zero career starts and thrown 20 total passes.
Warren has thrown 14 passes in his career, but was 5 for 9 for 89 yards last year and ran three times for 30 yards. Orji completed his lone career pass attempt in 2022 for 5 yards, but didn’t attempt one last season. He did however run 15 times for 86 yards and a touchdown as he carved out a set package in the U-M’s offense late in the season
Meanwhile Denegal completed 4 of 5 passes for 50 yards and a touchdown against Nebraska. So, what will Campbell be looking at specifically as and new head coach Sherrone Moore decide who will be U-M’s next quarterback?
“Everything’s an evaluation,” he said. “From meetings, to practice, to how they carry themselves in the weight room, how they get along with their team, to completion percentage to decision making. Just constantly evaluating them. We’ve got a lot of talent in there and it’s my job to get the best out of them.”
Michigan was fortunate to have a do-it-all quarterback last season in McCarthy — selfless enough to buy into the team-first mentality, charismatic enough to be the face of the program, smart enough to read a defense, accurate enough to facilitate the passing game and athletic enough to extend a play or even take off and run when need be.
“Anytime that you can put a guy out there that’s going to help you win the game first off and not lose the game, that’s probably the No. 1 thing,” he said. “Being able to play within the confines of a system, but then extending plays as well is also importnat.
“A guy who can play on time, deliver the football accurately and then have a little bit to his game to extend, that’s a great criteria to judge a starting quarterback by.”
Of course, nobody on this iteration of U-M football has had a chance to do that because spring practice doesn’t begin until Monday. When the Wolverines do put on pads, expect the quarterbacks to be very much in the mix.
There’s always a risk element to injuries in football, however Campbell and Moore aren’t going to shy away from the idea of being a physical football team. The fact of the matter is there isn’t enough experience at quarterback right now under true pressure.
So, this spring, there’s going to be pressure.
“When you’re in a competition in a quarterback job, I’d prefer those guys to be live a lot more than we would have last year with J.J. when it was like, stay away from him,” he said. “You’ve got to test them. How do they handle true pressure in their face? Not just a guy who is running by but not going to hit them. Live quarterback play for me would be extremely important to make the decision.”
The national championship banners were back lit by the sun through the south windows in U-M’s football headquarters, but that will soon be last season when spring ball begins on the other side of the weekend.
Even though the season is more than 150 days out, that’s when starters will begin separating themselves.
And even though he’s the youngest of three children, Campbell won’t let his childhood trauma affect what he sees as a fair way to determine the QB hierarchy heading into spring camp when he wants everybody on as level a playing field as possible.
“The pecking order going into spring will be who’s the oldest,” Campbell smiled. “Then, if they’re in the same class, we’ll go alphabetical order by last name who gets the next rep. So that’s how we will handle it on Day 1, then re-evaluate on Day 2.”
Contact Tony Garcia: apgarcia@freepress.com. Follow him at @realtonygarcia.
Now for a little bit more from Campbell about some of the players in the competition:
“Great leader, great way about him,” Campbell said of Tuttle. “Having him back is good for the entire culture of the program.”
“Jadyn will have opportunity just as the others to become a starter at the University of Michigan and if he’s ready to do that, he’ll be awarded with the opportunity,” he said of the highly regarded incoming four-star. “He embodies what you want in a quarterback: leadership, command, the care-factor, the it-factor, when you’re around him, his personality is infectious…he’s so coachable, he has a bright future.”
“Alex is is a very good leader, great way about him,” Campbell said. “Great understanding of the offense, his development of throwing the football from day one when I got here as an analyst is vast, he’s not event he same guy.”
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan football opens spring camp with QB battle; Here’s who’s in it
