On Monday, the Michigan Wolverines released an official depth chart for the upcoming game against Oregon State, and there was one extremely notable change. After an entire off-season of competition at the quarterback position between Jake Rudock and Shane Morris and an "or" distinction prior to the opener against Utah, Jim Harbaugh elected to remove any doubt from the equation for this week.
Videos by FanBuzz
Jake Rudock is the starter.
Harbaugh was asked about Rudock's performance during a Monday press conference, and he had this to say (h/t Nick Baumgardner of MLive.com)
"He did a lot of really good things and was involved in some really punitive plays, he had fingerprints on them along with other players, but that's the way that goes ... welcome to football. I thought he was accurate, that's what he showed in camp. Consistently accurate ... I thought he managed the game very well, no fumbled snaps or going the wrong way on a handoff. He kept the ball off the ground and showed really good courage in the pocket.
"Overall, I was impressed with the way he played."
In further supporting his quarterback, he tried to let Rudock off the hook for one of his three interceptions, saying that freshman WR Grant Perry ran the wrong route, and later in the presser, he simply stated that Rudock is "consistently doing the best" among quarterbacks. There has been a groundswell of support for Morris, given that the final result was unfavorable for Michigan in Salt Lake City, but Rudock continues to provide Harbaugh and his staff with the best chance to win.
The seat could heat up for Jake Rudock with another below-average performance, but the job is clearly is for now.
