Staff Roundtable: Can Michigan Football handle the Hawkeyes?
By Josh LaFond
Do you have any worries about JJ McCarthy heading into the Iowa game?
Cameron: Nah, not really. I see the Maryland game as just growing pains. He’s not going to look like a Heisman finalist every single game, plus, last week was his first taste of Big Ten competition as a starter. With that being said, he needs to hold onto the ball this weekend. It is so imperative. Michigan football cannot afford to allow Iowa’s offense a short field to work with due to the carelessness of JJ’s play. JJ needs to treat the football like it is his child, especially on scrambling plays or read options.
Brady: Not particularly. I think the only real concern with JJ for most Michigan fans is ball security. I know they spent a lot of time this week at practice working on JJ’s ability to carry the ball and not fumble. I don’t love JJ scrambling for yards because I think he tends to take more hits than he needs to, but when he does it’s crucial that we hang onto the ball.
Josh: Not one bit. His worst game is probably what we saw last week against Maryland, and honestly, that wasn’t that bad. I think the game plan will be to lean on Edwards and Corum in the run game and let JJ settle in slowly in a hostile environment. He will get the deep ball misses rectified as well because that’s probably his best attribute as a quarterback. He will be fine this week and going forward.
Chris: I’m not worried. He’ll learn from his mistakes. He still threw for 220 yards and two touchdowns. We’ve seen a lot worse from Michigan quarterbacks. McCarthy will learn and his dynamic playmaking ability is undeniable.