COLUMN: If Saturday is any indication, Michigan's QB battle is over
ANN ARBOR, Mich.— Good stories still have endings.
On a hot game day afternoon in Ann Arbor, Cade McNamara walked off the field, into the locker room, and to the podium with the cadence of someone who knows they're about to lose their job.
A fourth-year senior from Reno, Nev., McNamara earned every bit of his success so far at Michigan.
He came to the program undersized, decently athletic, and oozing confidence in 2019.
In 2020, the quarterback's second season, he took over for Joe Milton as the starter in an away game at Rutgers that ended in a 48-42 triple overtime victory.
He gave a post-game speech that went viral in a video where he was begging the question, "what happens if we win out?" after the team's 2-3 start.
McNamara started against Penn State the following week in a 27-17 loss before the program's final three games were canceled due to COVID.
For the next 644 days, he remained Michigan's starting quarterback.
Last year, he fought off J.J. McCarthy, a true freshman, and the most anticipated quarterback recruit in program history, en route to one of the best team seasons in program history.
McCarthy still mixed in as a mid-game sub to run offensive designs made specifically for him. And he made the most of his time, scoring seven touchdowns on 27 carries and 59 passing attempts.
After a historic season that answered many questions about Harbaugh's tenure, ending it with a blowout loss to Georgia in the national semifinal raised another question.
How does Michigan return to the playoff and win it?
McNamara's story is one of great persistence and a masterclass in what confidence can do to maximize an athlete's ceiling.
From an undersized game manager to a Big Ten champion, team captain, and one of only three U-M quarterbacks to beat Ohio State in 20 years, "Cade" won't be forgotten by the fan base he helped reinvigorate.
The worst part about a good story is when it ends.
If Saturday was any indication of Michigan's quarterback battle, there isn't one.
"I thought (McNamara) was really good. He had a couple of balls that were dropped," Harbaugh told the media after Saturday's game. "Very good. Executing, as I said, no issues. Give credit to the quarterback as well when that's taking place on offense. Move the football, score points, and I thought he had a really good game."
No, he wasn't "really good."
McNamara went 9-of-18 for 136 yards and a touchdown.
Without a 61-yard bubble screen, he totaled 75 yards.
Of his nine completions, only two were longer than 10 yards, and only one of those throws was longer than 10 yards. Erick All caught the other seven yards ahead of the line of scrimmage, then went for 15 yards after the catch.
In four trips to the red zone, McNamara was 1-of-6 for four yards. His only red zone possession that ended in a touchdown was on a 7-play, 48-yard drive where he didn't attempt a pass.
Cornelius Johnson and Ronnie Bell dropped passes they should've caught. That doesn't change that both were loose and underthrown balls to the sideline.
One of McNamara's red zone mishaps ended as an incompletion after it was originally ruled an interception. Erick All fell on the route. Still, the ball was behind his target and in the defender's chest.
Last season, McNamara showed many times he can throw the deep ball -- especially off of play-action. It wasn't his strength. That was his accuracy and poise, evidenced by a completion percentage of nearly 70 percent with only six interceptions on 327 attempts.
If this is the best football of his life, he's played his last game ahead of McCarthy.
Because the sophomore from Chicago is making Harbaugh's choice an easy one.
McNamara came out on the offense's first drive of the second half and completed two four-yard passes. After an incompletion on the sixth play of the drive, at Colorado State's 38-yard line, McCarthy came in and handed the ball off to freshman back CJ Stokes, who ran 18 yards for a first down.
McCarthy kept the handoff on the next play and went 20 yards for a touchdown.
The sophomore phenom finished 4-of-4 for 30 yards with 50 yards rushing on three carries. Both of McCarthy's drives ended in a touchdown. He only faced pressure on a third down in the red zone. He evaded it, rolled right, and threw a perfect pass on the run to AJ Henning for a first down.
On McCarthy's second and final drive, up 37-0 in the third quarter, he attempted a pass on the first play, then three more times before handing the ball off to Donovan Edwards for a touchdown at the goal line.
In game one of the two-game competition, McCarthy, who didn't start, shined and looked night and day better than his competition. And based on the designs we saw Saturday, the staff has an offense built solely for him.
Meanwhile, McNamara was tasked with handing the ball off seven times consecutively in the first half.
Coming off of a perfect game in relief for a struggling McNamara, the stage is set for J.J. to be the household name he already is in Ann Arbor.
Based on the contrasting game flow, it's as if Michigan's staff is begging McCarthy to win the job, giving him far more designed opportunities even in a backup role.
Maybe that's because they can do more with McCarthy. And if that's so, what else is there to analyze?
The ultimate question is answered if both quarterbacks continue to look like they did on Saturday.
How does Michigan return to the playoff and win it?
Starting McCarthy gives them the best shot.
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Speaking to the media following the game, McNamara was visibly frustrated and transparent with his perspective of Harbaugh's decision to leave the quarterback battle up to the first two games.
"Yeah, I'd definitely say it was pretty unusual," McNamara said when asked about the method Harbaugh went with. "It was a thing I wasn't expecting by the end of camp. I thought I had my best camp. I thought I put myself in a good position. And that was just the decision that Coach (Harbaugh) went with."
Win or lose, McNamara will continue to help captain the ship.
"I was confident in the way I performed over camp. Definitely felt that way," McNamara said. "However, it's not my decision. Whatever my role is, I'm honored that my teammates recognized me for the role I have currently."
Next week, for the first time in 651 days, the kid from Reno will be Michigan's backup quarterback.
Following Saturday, it likely won't be his last.
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