Michigan Football: 3 Storylines to Watch for During Fall Camp

How much progress has J.J. McCarthy made?

This is the biggest story on the offensive side of the ball. How much of a leap will JJ McCarthy make in his second year as a starter? He’s received praise all offseason long, but it’ll be interesting to see how much better JJ looks.

While we won’t get an answer until the season starts, there’ll definitely be a reason to be excited if the hype continues to grow and if we see some video clips of JJ slinging it. If McCarthy truly makes as big of a leap as is being hyped up, this Michigan football team can reach a whole new level.

Look at this: Clemson made the playoffs every year from 2015-2020. That’s six seasons in a row. They went 4-2 in semifinal games, and 2-2 in national championships. From 2014-2020 Clemson finished with four top-10 recruiting classes and one top-five recruiting class.

They never out-recruited Alabama during that stretch, who was their biggest rival at the time. I’m sure many would consider their recruiting success relatively lackluster considering their on-the-field success. So why were they able to win?

Because they had Deshaun Watson and Trevor Lawrence. Two elite high-draft picks at quarterback. They were the reason why the Tigers were able to beat the odds and consistently beat teams that recruited much better than them. 

Michigan football is arguably a better recruiting school than Clemson. If JJ McCarthy becomes an elite, first-round caliber quarterback, this Michigan team can realistically win a national championship. It’s all about the quarterback.

The Wolverines need JJ to be an elite-level quarterback this season. Right now, the indications are that he looks poised to make a leap, but Fall camp will tell us much more about that.