In evaluating quarterbacks, many go straight to statistics. Joe Milton is one example why they probably shouldn’t.
Milton completed less than 50 percent of his passes his last year at Orlando (Fla.) Olympia, but his big arm actually worked against him. Though he’d never point fingers, Milton saw his supporting cast drop passes frequently, struggling to corral his big throws.
Even Michigan’s receivers marveled at his cannon this spring.
“He’s got a very high ceiling,” head coach Jim Harbaugh said this spring in France. “Big arm. You’d have to be there to see it.
“You may have heard. Just ... to see it in person is pretty [impressive] … you’ve got to be there. It’s pretty good. It’s really good.”
Milton’s spring assessment, though, begins and ends with the team — how they fought together, stuck together and improved while each of the quarterbacks battled behind them. All four of them got the same amount of reps, and all have their strengths.
The four of them all pushed each other to improve.
“It’s all about making each other better, no matter who is doing it or not,” Milton said. “It’s all about focusing on what you can do, because each quarterback has got different accountabilities, different skill sets. Who can bring it to the table better; who can lead better?
“My transition was [tougher] in the beginning, like, ‘oh I’m here now,’ so I kind of froze a little bit. Once I got the hang of it, it was all about, ‘can I do it?’”
And he’s showing he can. He just turned 18 years old, but he approaches the game like a seasoned veteran. He’s got some swagger, has thrown the ball 85 yards in the air (heaves it 75 on an average day) and isn’t a certain redshirt despite the talent around him.
“At this point in time I’m still learning, only 18,” he said. “I’m not going to base my age on it, but my skill set … I just want to pick up my game better and learn they whole system, just get used to everything. Then again, I just want to be coached right and put into the right situation.”
He’s getting that from Hamilton, he said. The coach has been hard on him, and Milton said he wouldn't want it any other way.
“I’m still going to compete, regardless of [whether I start],” he said. “I’m going to compete no matter who it is. I’m still going got compete.
“Before I got up here I was like, ‘oh, there’s going to be a lot of competition,’ but I’m ready for it. On my Apple watch I have a reminder that says, ‘Joe you can do it. Trust in the Lord …’ and I say Amen after that. ‘Always have focus, always believe,’” he said.
“A second one says, ‘don’t worry about the clock — do what it does, keep going. Keep going no mater what happens.’ You’ve got to fight through adversity.”
The competition is going to be strong this fall, after all. He’s got to fight for it, he said, and see where the chips fall.
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