Why Cade McNamara’s interception vs. Nebraska may have been a good thing

LINCOLN, Neb. — In a win, especially on the road, sometimes the negatives can have silver linings.

For the first time in his college career, Michigan quarterback Cade McNamara threw an interception vs. Nebraska, and it was costly, as it directly lead to points scored by the Huskers. However, after the game, Jim Harbaugh spun it as a good thing.

Of course, not the interception itself, but how McNamara responded on the ensuing drive.

“I always thought that was one of the huge tests for any quarterback,” Harbaugh said. “After they throw an interception, do they have the ability after an interception to drive the offense for points. Right there, in a nutshell, you can tell so much about any quarterback what happens on the next possession after they throw an interception. The really good ones can drive their team for points, field goal or a touchdown on the very next possession. Some guys can’t, they go in the tank or get ultra-conservative, cautious. That’s a huge indicator in a quarterback.”

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While none of this will do anything for McNamara’s detractors who still likely want to see true freshman J.J. McCarthy take the reins, Harbaugh does have a point. When Michigan needed a big play, if it wasn’t on the ground, going down the stretch, McNamara delivered and delivered again.

After the game, McNamara was all smiles, just happy that his mistake didn’t cost his team the contest. Asked what he remembers afterwards and who he talked to, he couldn’t quite recall, but he did remember getting a vote of confidence from the coaching staff before moving on.

“I’m not sure — that was the first one of my career, which is kind of crazy!” McNamara said. “In a way, it’s like — I don’t know — I don’t remember who was there to come off the field. I remember I talked to Coach Weiss at some point and he was there to tell me it was alright. We responded overall as an offense.”

Mistake or no, it’s a pretty incredible stat that McNamara managed to play in the final two games of last season and five games and nearly three quarters of 2021 before he finally surrendered a pick. He might not be the perfect quarterback, but he certainly is a resilient one.