Jim Harbaugh Compares 'Once-In-A-Generational' J.J. McCarthy To Two NFL Stars In Unique Way

It was known when J.J. McCarthy committed to Michigan back in 2021, he was going to be special. Jim Harbaugh confirmed just how special he is.

INDIANAPOLIS -- Entering his junior season, Michigan fans know this could be the last year they get to see former five-star quarterback J.J. McCarthy suit up in the NFL. There have been NFL draft analysts already slotting him into the first two rounds of the 2024 NFL draft, and if McCarthy continues to improve, there's a high chance Michigan will be searching for its next starting quarterback next season. 

But nobody is higher on McCarthy than his head coach, Jim Harbaugh. During Day 2 of the Big Ten Media Days, Harbaugh was asked about McCarthy and what the next step is for his game. Harbaugh didn't hesitate by calling McCarthy a "once-in-a-generational" quarterback. Harbaugh couldn't think of someone who had a better first year as a starting quarterback than McCarthy. 

"Well, talking about J.J. McCarthy, the first year he played, he played as a true freshman in games sparingly, became a full-time starter in 2022," said Harbaugh during Big Ten Media Days. "I have searched my memory for somebody who has been a first-time starter and had a better first year as a first-time starter and I can't come up with one."

"He's a once-in-a-generational type of quarterback at Michigan, and his progress continues to grow. Daily he's at the top of his game right now, really in all aspects. Everything that he does athletically, everything that he does throwing the football is at the elite level, and then I think the thing that makes him the most special, differentiating good and great, is that he's willing to do anything for his teammates, anything for his team."

McCarthy threw for 2,719 yards, 22 touchdowns, and five interceptions last season. That earned him a spot on the All-Big Ten team and McCarthy has early projections to be in the Heisman race in 2023. 

The next thing Harbaugh said was very interesting. The Michigan coach compared his second-year starter to NFL stars: Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen. Yes, McCarthy was compared to the two-time Super Bowl champion and two-time MVP Award-winner in Mahomes.

But it was in a unique way. He bases his comparison on the way Allen and Mahomes treat their teammates and are "willing to do anything for their team". He believes McCarthy would do anything for his teammates and his teammates would do anything for him -- like Mahomes and Allen. 

"I think some compare him to Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, would be two," said the Michigan head coach. "And I know there's others that have that level of talent plus the quarterback position willing to do anything for their team."

"I base that off of watching the way that Patrick Mahomes interacts with his teammates, what he says about his teammates, what they say about him. Josh Allen, what he says about his teammates, what they say about him. So just looking through the keyhole that way. But that's what I see in J.J. McCarthy every single day."

Michigan is set to begin fall camp on August 2 and will start the season on September 2 against East Carolina.