Combine Notebook: McCarthy is fastest riser at QB

Mar. 2—INDIANAPOLIS — Southern California's Caleb Williams, North Carolina's Drake Maye and LSU's Jayden Daniels are expected to be the first three quarterbacks taken off the board — perhaps with the first three overall picks — in April's NFL Draft.

But the fastest-rising player at the position might be Michigan's J.J. McCarthy.

That might be surprising simply from a statistical standpoint. His 2,991 passing yards and 22 touchdowns for the national champion Wolverines aren't as eye-popping as many of his peers' raw numbers.

But the only thing that's ever mattered to McCarthy is winning, and nobody did that better than Michigan in 2023.

That's been the basis of his selling point to teams this week at the NFL Scouting Combine.

"Honestly, it's just the mentality behind it," McCarthy said of operating without the passing game being the focal point of an offense. "Obviously, it's coaching. Obviously, it's a build up of the chemistry with the receivers and being on the same page as Coach (Sherrone) Moore. But it's just playing one play at a time, and you never get each play back, so just trying to focus in on doing the best I can within each play, whatever is asked of me, whether it's hand off and carry out my fake or ripping an end cut on the backside of the concept.

"Play calling is out of my control, but whatever's in my control, I'm going to do it to the best of my ability."

With McCarthy manning the controls, the Wolverines went 15-0 last season and won the national title for the first time since 1997.

He was looked at by many observers as a game manager, mostly along for the ride with a supremely talented team.

But many NFL evaluators see McCarthy in a different light.

"He has a really, really quick mind," NFL Network draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah said. "He has a quick release. Just everything he does is real smooth. I wrote in my notes that he never gets bored with completions. Some other guys in his class get in trouble big-play hunting. If you are going to give him check-downs or completions ... he is never going to get bored taking those.

"He can rev it up and drive the ball in the seams. He can extend plays, keep his eyes up. ... When I finished up watching him, I was like, 'Gosh, who does he remind me of?' There's some elements of Alex Smith coming out of college where Alex Smith had a similar build, played the game from the shoulders up really well and was pretty athletic to get out and make some plays. That was my comp there."

COMEBACK TRAIL

Michigan guard Zak Zinter missed the team's run to the national title after breaking his fibula and tibia during the regular-season finale against Ohio State.

He's at the Conbine this week meeting with teams and said he'll be ready to help when the new season rolls around.

Zinter also said his unexpected time on the sideline changed his perspective a bit.

"I think it made me like fall in love with the game again, you know what I mean?" he said. "I take that step back. I've been playing forever, and just the feeling I got not being able to play, I mean, really just showed me how much I loved it and how much I do love playing this game.

"So it kind of brought that spark back to me. I wanted to get back out there. (It's) pushing me to rehab this leg, get it back in fighting shape."

Zinter plans only to do the bench press during Sunday's Combine drills but believes he'll be able to be more active at the Wolverines' Pro Day later this month.

BACK HOME AGAIN

Missouri's Harrison Mevis was one of just six placekickers invited to this year's Combine, and the experience perhaps means just a little more coming in his home state.

He's a native of Warsaw, a town better known for its basketball heroes including two Mr. Basketball award winners and former NBA star Rick Fox.

Mevis put himself on the national map with a Southeastern Conference-record 61-yard field goal to beat Kansas State in September.

This week, he's happy to again be performing in Indianapolis — and this time on the gridiron.

"Back in the home state, it's awesome," Mevis said. "I've been to Indy many times — not enough for football, mostly for soccer, actually. But it's great."