JJ McCarthy offers strong defense of Michigan football offensive coordinator Kirk Campbell

Chris Breiler | Nov 27, 2024

Junfu Han/USA TODAY NETWORK / USA TODAY NETWORK

Former Michigan QB JJ McCarthy made an appearance on The L.A.B. podcast this week to discuss his recovery and the upcoming matchup between Michigan and Ohio State. McCarthy cemented his status as a Michigan football legend by finishing his three year career with a 2-0 record against the Buckeyes as a starter, along with two consecutive Big Ten championships, a Rose Bowl championship, and a national championship.

Now with the Vikings, McCarthy is focused on rehabbing his knee due to an injury that forced him to miss the entirety of his rookie season. But he'll certainly be in front of a television this weekend to watch the annual matchup between Michigan and Ohio State, and he seems to like the Wolverines' chances as the underdog in Columbus.

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During the discussion with former U-M tight end Jake Butt, the topic of Kirk Campbell and the Michigan offense came up. McCarthy obviously has a close relationship with Campbell after working with him as the quarterbacks coach at Michigan, and he offered a strong endorsement of Campbell as the offensive coordinator. From McCarthy's perspective, the criticism of Campbell is the result of folks being too quick to judge, along with not fully appreciating the challenge he faced when taking over in that role.

"So, you're taking over the offensive coordinator job of the defending national champions," McCarthy said. "You lose the head coach, you lose the head strength coach, you lose all six - all starting six offensive lineman, you lose one of the best running backs in Michigan history, you lose your quarterback, you lose the best two wide receivers...and go make something out of it. Go play against Oregon, go play against Washington at Washington, go play against Texas week two. Like, that's pretty tough... that's pretty tough. And, needless to say, try to do it with three different quarterbacks. It's really, you know, a lot on his plate... where of course everyone is going to be quick to judge. That's the society we live in."

Although McCarthy clearly doesn't agree with the criticism directed at the OC, he knows that the standards (and expectations) at Michigan are high - and he believes Campbell is built for that pressure.

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"This is exactly what he asked for, and Kirk is a competitor. Gritty, you know, western PA guy. He's built for it. But I just feel like the fans... you know, these things take time. And you understand, when you look back at our success over the last three to four years, it took a lot of time."

When it comes to Campbell and the offense, McCarthy's advice was for everyone to have a little more patience with what's happening in Ann Arbor.

"I'm not saying that the glory years are over or anything, but just a little bit of patience has to be put into place because it's just not the same coach Harbaugh team anymore," McCarthy said. "It's a new era with coach Moore and what he's doing, it's the right way of doing things. So it's just going to take a little patience, take a little time, and a little grace to let these to let these guys really get their hands on the program, and let their culture, philosophies, ideas really get into play."

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