Given the standard Jim Harbaugh set for the position at his alma mater in the mid-1980s, it's not a surprise that so much of the speculation surrounding his first offseason as Michigan's head coach focused on who would be his first starting quarterback in his debut season in Ann Arbor.
And when the Wolverines offense took the field for its season opener against Utah on Thursday night, we finally received our answer, as it is Jake Rudock inheriting the same position that Harbaugh manned for the Maize and Blue 30 years ago.
But unlike his head coach, don't expect any guarantees from Rudock, who couldn't be more dissimilar from Harbaugh when it comes to both his playing style and personality.
Whereas Harbaugh's brash, in-your-face reputation has followed him throughout his coaching career and dates back to his playing days at Michigan, Rudock could be seen as shy and mild mannered. Asked to describe his strengths as a quarterback upon arriving in Ann Arbor this summer as a graduate transfer from Iowa, Rudock dodged the inquiry.
"I hate that question," Rudock said quietly. "The media loves that question."
Perhaps the reason Rudock isn't fond of discussing his playing style is because any compliments of it could be viewed as backhanded.
Rudock is safe but not spectacular, as evidenced by a 2014 campaign with the Hawkeyes that saw him complete 61.7 percent of his passes for 2,436 yards and 16 touchdowns while throwing just five interceptions.
The 6'3", 208-pounder's passer rating of 133.5 as a junior ranked fourth in the Big Ten but wasn't enough to prevent Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz from naming C.J. Beathard the Hawkeyes' quarterback of the future at the end of the season, paving the way for Rudock to wind up in Ann Arbor.
And while Rudock may not possess the same personality traits as his new head coach, it was clear that Harbaugh's presence was one of the primary factors that led to his landing at Michigan.
"He's competitive as hell," Rudock said of Harbaugh. "He likes to have fun. Very energetic. I think that's the biggest thing."
But just because he doesn't show it doesn't mean he doesn't have it in him, too, as Rudock has already been lauded by his new teammates for his leadership, despite the Weston, Florida, native having been on campus for just a few months now. Tight end Jake Butt said it's apparent that Rudock "has been there before" given the two seasons he spent as the starter in Iowa City.
"He's already established himself as a starter," Butt said. "He knows what it takes to win."
A record of 14-11 from 2013 to 2014, however, wasn't enough for Rudock to keep his job at Iowa, as Ferentz moved on to Beathard in hopes of getting more playmaking out of his quarterback position. But Rudock's safer, more efficient style of play should be a welcome addition in Ann Arbor after quarterback Devin Gardner threw 15 interceptions during the Wolverines' 5-7 campaign in 2014.
In fact, Rudock's ability to take care of the ball was likely one of the deciding factors in Harbaugh choosing him as his first starting quarterback at Michigan over junior Shane Morris, a gunslinger type who is more reminiscent of Harbaugh as far as playing style goes but has yet to live up to his 4-star billing coming out of high school.
"I definitely think Jake’s a guy that can come in and cement things offensively and with the team that could take them to play at the next level for a lot of guys," said Ken Mastrole, Rudock's personal quarterbacks coach who has worked with him since high school. "Maybe playing above what they’re used to from a push."
Having won the starting job—at least for now—Rudock will have the opportunity to do just that. He'll likely be more Alex Smith than Colin Kaepernick in Harbaugh's system, but as the former Michigan signal-caller proved during his time coaching the San Francisco 49ers, that can still win you a lot of games.
How many it will help the Wolverines win this season remains to be seen, but Harbaugh has finally named his man as the most anticipated Michigan season in recent memory is officially underway.
Ben Axelrod is Bleacher Report's Big Ten lead writer. You can follow him on Twitter @BenAxelrod. Unless noted otherwise, all quotes were obtained firsthand. All statistics courtesy of cfbstats.com. Recruiting rankings courtesy of 247Sports.
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