In three years with Michigan, quarterback J.J. McCarthy has risen to become one of the most decorated signal-callers in college football history. The Wolverines have lost just once with the La Grange Park, Ill. native running the show—to TCU in the 2022 Fiesta Bowl.
Now, McCarthy is a national champion. Though his numbers weren't overwhelming down the stretch—he threw for between 140 and 148 yards in four of his last five games—he did more than enough to take Michigan to the Promised Land.
The question becomes, what is next for a quarterback who is both a proven winner and still a bit of an unknown quantity as an NFL prospect? On Tuesday evening, Wolverines fans made their pitch.
#Michigan fans chant “One More Year” to JJ McCarthy at the Schembechler Hall celebration, as the team returns from Houston. #GoBlue pic.twitter.com/pNzxjrsYkw
— Zach Libby (@LibbyOn3) January 10, 2024
As McCarthy addressed jubilant Michigan fans outside Schembechler Hall in Ann Arbor, he was serenaded with chants of "one more year."
The Wolverines will undertake one of the most difficult title defenses in college football history next year. Michigan is scheduled to meet Texas, USC, Washington in a national championship rematch, Oregon and Ohio State.
Another year of McCarthy wouldn’t solve all of the Wolverines’ (likely substantial) forthcoming issues on and off the field, but there’s no better place to start.
