Rivals100 quarterback JJ McCarthy finished strong at the Elite 11 Finals.

The Michigan commit from Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy placed sixth in the Target Challenge competition and appeared to have done enough to secure his spot in the prestigious Elite 11 list for 2020.

“It was an awesome experience to build these relationships with all these amazing quarterbacks,” McCarthy said. “To be able to learn so much mentally and with emotional intelligence meant a lot. It was really eye opening and really beneficial.”

McCarthy entered the final day of the competition ranked No. 9 overall but should move up based on today’s performance.

Still, McCarthy was his own biggest critic following the event.

“I don’t think I performed the best that I could and what my potential is,” McCarthy said. “But I learned a lot. In order to succeed, you have to fail sometimes. It’s all about putting the pads on. It’s always great throwing in shorts and a t-shirt. When you look at Tom Brady, Joe Burrow and all those guys, they didn’t even make it here. It’s just the mentality of moving forward, getting past this and focusing on the next step.”

McCarthy will now head to California for a family vacation before embarking on his journey at IMG Academy in a couple weeks. McCarthy will then enroll early at Michigan and arrive in Ann Arbor in January.

When asked what how he’ll take his Elite 11 experience and apply it to IMG Academy, Michigan and beyond, McCarthy has this to say.

“Just the whole mentality that was brought into this, the confidence level and everything I’ve learned with my platform, I want to make a big difference in this world,” McCarthy said. “That’s something I’ll bring to IMG and Michigan. Those are two national brands with big fan bases that are well known. That’ll be a good way to make this world a better place.”

McCarthy committed to Michigan last May over offers from LSU, Miami, Michigan State, Ohio State, Penn State, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Wisconsin and several other major programs.

At 6-foot-2, 195 pounds, McCarthy is ranked as the No. 5 pro-style quarterback and No. 33 overall prospect in the country, per Rivals.com.

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