Michigan Football: How New Quarterbacks Have Fared Under Jim Harbaugh
Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh is entering his fourth season as U-M's coach, and will begin the year with his third different starting quarterback — likely junior transfer Shea Patterson (although both redshirt sophomore Brandon Peters or redshirt freshman Dylan McCaffrey would also qualify should they be named the starter).
Known as an offensive coach with an expertise in quarterbacks, given that he played the position at Michigan and in the NFL, the success of his team's field general is often looked at under a microscope. We put together a list of the primary starters under Harbaugh from his time at San Diego, Stanford and Michigan, along with the NFL's San Francisco 49ers.
We compared how each player performed before being named a starter — often times not even under Harbaugh — and how they fared once they become the big man on campus with Harbaugh at the helm.
| Player | Team - Year | Career Stats Before Starting Under Harbaugh | First-Year Starter Under Harbaugh | Team Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Todd Mortensen |
San Diego - 2004 |
14 GP, 27-77 (35.1%), 217 yards, 1 TD, 4 INT |
11 GP, 234-389 (60.2%), 2,874 yards, 25 TD, 6 INT |
7-4 |
|
Josh Johnson |
San Diego - 2005 |
8 GP, 12-22 (54.5%), 135 yards, 0 TD, 1 INT |
12 GP, 260-371 (70.1%), 3,256 yards, 36 TD, 8 INT |
11-1 |
|
T.C. Ostrander |
Stanford - 2007 |
22 GP, 167-351 (47.6%), 2,361 yards, 8 TD, 8 INT |
8 GP, 130-229 (56.8%), 1,422 yards, 7 TD, 3 INT |
4-8 |
|
Tavita Pritchard |
Stanford - 2008 |
14 GP, 97-195 (49.7%), 1,114 yards, 5 TD, 9 INT |
12 GP, 147-254 (57.9%), 1,633 yards, 10 TD, 13 INT |
5-7 |
|
Andrew Luck |
Stanford - 2009 |
None |
12 GP, 162-288 (56.3%), 2,575 yards, 13 TD, 4 INT |
8-5 |
|
Alex Smith |
San Francisco 49ers - 2011 |
54 GP, 864-1,514 (57.1%), 51 TD, 53 INT |
16 GP, 273-445 (61.3%), 3,144 yards, 17 TD, 5 INT |
13-3 |
|
Colin Kaepernick |
San Francisco 49ers - 2013 |
16 GP, 139-223 (62.3%), 1,849 yards, 10 TD, 3 INT |
16 GP, 243-416 (58.4%), 3,197 yards, 21 TD, 8 INT |
12-4 |
|
Jake Rudock |
Michigan - 2015 |
25 GP, 417-691(60.3), 4,819 yards, 34 TD, 18 INT |
13 GP, 249-389 (64.0%), 3,017 yards, 20 TD, 9 INT |
10-3 |
|
Wilton Speight |
Michigan - 2016 |
7 GP, 9-25 (36.0%), 73 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT |
12 GP, 204-331 (61.6%), 2,538 yards, 18 TD, 7 INT |
10-3 |
|
Shea Patterson |
Michigan - 2018 |
10 GP, 238-392 (60.7%), 3,139 yards, 23 TD, 12 INT |
TBD |
TBD |
Notes and Observations
What immediately stands out is that every single player improved dramatically under the tutelage of Harbaugh. Every player's completion percentage went up and each player's touchdown to interception ratio went up — with the exception of Colin Kaepernick. However, Kaepernick's "before" numbers came under Harbaugh in 2012. He split time with Alex Smith, who began the season as the starter and finished with more games played, bumping Kaepernick's official first season as a starter to 2013.
Andrew Luck is the only player that had not seen game action before taking the field under Harbaugh.
Harbaugh's time in San Diego is full of quarterback success. He took Todd Mortensen, who transferred from BYU for one season with the Toreos, and turned him into a star. He was signed by the Detroit Lions as a free agent after the season.
He followed that up with Josh Johnson, who only got better as time went on — ultimately throwing 43 touchdowns to one interception in his final year at San Diego in 2007, just after Harbaugh left for Stanford. Johnson was drafted in the fifth round of the 2008 NFL Draft by Tampa Bay.
Harbaugh's quarterbacks struggled during his first two years with the Cardinal, but things turned around once he recruited Luck to campus. T.C. Ostrander split time with Tavita Pritchard in 2007, meaning most of Pritchard's "before" stats also came under Harbaugh.
Luck was brilliant in his first year. In addition to his passing numbers, he totaled 354 yards and two scores on the ground. He went on to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2012 NFL Draft by the Indianapolis Colts.
At Michigan, it's taken some time to develop players Harbaugh recruited. We're entering the years where his guys will be taking over, whether it's Peters, McCaffrey or freshman Joe Milton — any presumably would come after Patterson. Jake Rudock has been the team's best signal caller, with his 2015 performance edging out Wilton Speight's in 2016. Rudock was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the sixth round in 2016.
Patterson has the best numbers coming in compared to any of the other quarterbacks Harbaugh has coached, and brings a lot of hype after being a five-star recruit and showing promise last season. It will be up to Harbaugh and company to bring out the best in him. If that happens, it's sure to be a bright year for the Maize and Blue.
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