For most of his career at Michigan, JJ McCarthy has played with Jim Harbaugh as his head coach. So, it is only natural for him to appreciate Harbaugh (and vice versa). However, that does not shy JJ McCarthy away from praising Harbaugh’s successor, the one who had sky-high expectations mounted on him, mainly because he took over the reins of Michigan after the legendary time of Harbaugh and a National Championship.

McCarthy believes that Moore is just as much of a ‘Michigan man’ as Jim Harbaugh was. Being a ‘Michigan man’ on the UM campus is the title of the highest degree, which only the best of the head coaches get. Even though Moore has yet to display any on-gridiron action as a head coach, McCarthy and all the Michigan fans have seen plenty of offensive strides in the past 6 years with Moore as the OC. Hence, amidst the questions on Moore’s capabilities to run the UM program as smoothly as Harbaugh was hurled at him, McCarthy had to defend the head coach at Michigan.

” The most important quality of a head coach at the University of Michigan is being a Michigan man. And he’s got that. He’s earned his stripes and you know the boys love him. They’re behind him. And with those two things, they’re going to be successful no matter what,” McCarthy asserted in his recent press conference.

There is no denying Sherrone Moore being in unison with Michigan’s most-upheld value of being the ‘Michigan Man’. It was one of the first wows that Moore took as the head coach of Michigan.

Sherrone Moore on being the ‘Michigan Man’

Initially, when Sherrone Moore took over the head coaching duties at UM, he presented some relatively set-in-stone words asserting he would run Michigan “his way as he can’t be Jim Harbaugh.” The strong words landed a bit too strongly on the analyst’s desk as questions surrounding his role at Michigan started circulating again!

So Moore had to play his part in proving himself, and no better way than promising to help the one value that has kept Michigan’s spirit alive in CFB throughout the years: being the ‘Michigan Man’. “It’s a united front. A brotherhood. Tough Blue Collar hardworking, and does everything the right way in any way possible for the person next to him. It’s a Brotherhood that’s really unbroken,” Moore said on the Pat McAfee show.

READ ALSO: Sherrone Moore Pledges to Uphold Jim Harbaugh’s 1 Long-Standing Tradition Despite Declaring to Run Michigan “My Way”

The values at Michigan were of the utmost importance for Jim Harbaugh, a legacy that Moore is ready to carry sans complaints. JJ McCarthy knew this by heart, jumping to his defense. So what do you think about the new ‘Michigan Man’?