Former U-M coach Jim Harbaugh provides a powerful comment on J.J. McCarthy’s season-ending injury.

Jim Harbaugh and J.J. McCarthy enjoyed a terrific three years together at Ann Arbor. McCarthy arrived to Michigan as a true freshman in 2021.

Harbaugh played his star-in-the-making with start Cade McNamara throughout the season. Harbaugh then made McCarthy the starting quarterback at Michigan his sophomore season and the rest is history. McCarthy finished 27-1 as the starter and helped Michigan win a national championship last season — his junior season.

Both McCarthy and Harbaugh departed Michigan for the NFL. McCarthy became the 10th overall pick to the Minnesota Vikings while Harbaugh became the Los Angeles Chargers’ head coach. While both are in two completely separate areas, they are nonetheless connected and do exchange messages.

During his press conference on Thursday with the Chargers, Harbaugh was asked if he heard the news about McCarthy. The Vikings’ franchise quarterback sustained a torn meniscus and will miss the whole 2024 NFL season after having surgery to correct it.

McCarthy’s old ball coach said he called McCarthy. He claimed he knows how the movie will go and it’s not going to keep him down.

“Yeah, sure did,” Harbaugh remarked on if he heard about McCarthy’s injury. “I called him. He called me back, left a message, that kind of thing.

I know how the story’s gonna end with J.J.. I’ve been to this movie with him. There’s nothing that can hold him down. It’s not gonna be life-altering. Bump on the road. I think that’s the way Coach [Kevin O’Connell] explained it as well.”

McCarthy was performing really well at Vikings’ training camp. He sliced up the Raiders’ defense after throwing an early interception in the first preseason game.

McCarthy ended up with 188 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception. He sat out Monday’s practice with Minnesota with ‘knee pain’ and then news came on Tuesday that he would be having knee surgery.

With McCarthy’s first season officially in the books, the former Wolverine will seek to seize control of the quarterback job in 2025.