With J.J. McCarthy, Jim Harbaugh finally found his Michigan football version of Andrew Luck

Confirmation came long before Saturday, when he watched from afar as Michigan football blasted UNLV.

As Jim Harbaugh tells it, it arrived as soon as J.J. McCarthy stepped on the field for his first practice two years ago. It was then that Harbaugh realized he may have finally found his next Andrew Luck, a maize-and-blue facsimile of the Stanford star he coached once upon a time.

“It’s just the presence that they have,” Harbaugh said with a tinge of romanticism Monday.

But even more so it’s about what they could do on the field, how they make plays others couldn’t, unleash pinpoint passes few would dare throw and run with the conviction most would never muster. Luck was special, in Harbaugh’s eyes.

“A quarterback that’s once-in-a-generation,” he crowed.

MORE FROM SABIN: J.J. McCarthy delivering precise passes — and converts — for Michigan

He feels the same way about McCarthy, whose 87.3% completion rate is best in the nation. This past Saturday, while serving the middle segment of his school-imposed three-game suspension, Harbaugh was captivated by McCarthy’s play, and as he put it, the "NFL-caliber" throws he delivered. He saw him surgically dissect the Rebels while hitting on 22 of his 25 attempts for 278 yards and two touchdowns.

“The accuracy was off the charts,” he cooed in one breath.

“So on fire,” he blurted in another.

It was a visual feast for Harbaugh, who has patiently waited to savor this smorgasbord of superior quarterbacking since he returned to coach his alma mater in December 2014. For the first seven years of his tenure, he cycled through the steady stopgap Jake Rudock, the unremarkable Wilton Speight, the frustratingly faulty John O’Korn, the overhyped and inconsistent Shea Patterson, the talented but undeveloped Joe Milton and the reliable yet physically limited Cade McNamara.

Harbaugh’s search for the next Luck took him everywhere. He dipped into the transfer marketplace to find Rudock, O’Korn and Patterson. He scoured the high school ranks before signing Brandon Peters, Dylan McCaffrey, Milton and McNamara. But he came up empty each time because none of them were nearly as good as the dual-threat, pro-style passer who helped trigger the rise of Harbaugh’s Stanford program from Pac-10 doormat to a top-five team in the late aughts.

Then McCarthy came along, joining the Wolverines at the nadir of Harbaugh’s tenure. The five-star prospect stepped on campus with a tantalizing blend of arm strength, speed and pluck, ready to resurrect a program that just endured a losing season in 2020.

YEAH, BUT ... : Michigan isn't worried about run game, but thrilled to have J.J. McCarthy

When McCarthy took the field for his first practice later that winter, Harbaugh remembered being struck by what he saw, which jogged old memories of the best college quarterback he ever coached.

“This is very Andrew Luck-like,” he thought then. “The presence, the demeanor, the ... everything.”

Now, the similarities between the two players are materializing on Saturdays in the heat of competition. It’s there where McCarthy has thrived and expanded the dimensions of a passing game that was sometimes neglected during his first two years in Ann Arbor, a period when Michigan won 25 of 28 games and two Big Ten titles while running the ball 60.6% of the time. The imbalance, while stark, was a necessary ingredient in the Wolverines’ winning formula, so McCarthy didn’t grouse about it when he became the starter last September. Instead, he carried out his assignment in games, then went behind the scenes to refine his repertoire and work on his craft to show he deserved more agency over the offense.

“All aspects of my game have improved this offseason,” he said last weekend.

McCarthy’s development inspired confidence within the coaching staff and Harbaugh, in particular. So, they gave him more ownership of the scheme. That has been evident in Michigan’s efficient use of play-action, a concept McCarthy executed well last year and one Harbaugh’s assistants aimed to further enhance. This year, it has produced incredible results. He has thrown for 219 yards and completed all 12 attempts on dropbacks when he has faked a handoff before firing the ball downfield.

The most memorable of those passes was a 47-yard touchdown strike to Roman Wilson in the victory Saturday. McCarthy stepped up in the pocket and rifled a dart to Wilson, who was tracing a pattern across the field. The ball hit him in stride before Wilson turned the corner and went the distance.

“It feels like the real J.J. McCarthy,” the wideout said. “Look at him, bro. He’s been playing real good out there. ... It’s been, like, perfect.”

It’s also unlike anything seen around these parts in recent seasons. Fellow receiver Cornelis Johnson can attest to that. The fifth-year senior played alongside Patterson, Milton and McNamara, who each were the point person for a passing game that produced spotty results. Now with McCarthy performing at an optimal level, Johnson said, “The world is ours.”

It certainly feels that way, according to Harbaugh.

As reporters peppered him with questions about McCarthy, Harbaugh gushed with enthusiasm.

“The goal is for J.J. to be the best quarterback in the country,” he said, “on the best football team.”

Both seem possible now because Harbaugh, at long last, can lean on someone at Michigan who reminds him of Luck.

Contact Rainer Sabin at rsabin@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @RainerSabin.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Jim Harbaugh's search for next Andrew Luck ended with J.J. McCarthy