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Michigan football quarterback Jack Tuttle announces his sudden retirement

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Michigan football quarterback Jack Tuttle has announced his retirement from the game.

The seventh-year quarterback announced on social media Monday night that he played his final game after suffering the fifth concussion of his career. He thanked his teammates and coaches for helping him along the way and assured the Maize and Blue faithful that he won't go far.

“Today I am announcing my retirement from college football. While this decision is difficult, it was made after careful consideration and heartfelt discussions with my family, doctors and loved ones,” the post reads in part. “I want to thank Coach Moore, the staff and my teammates – I love you all. I will continue to help Team 145 as we prepare for the remainder of the season.”

“Although it is unfortunate to close this chapter, my passion for football will always remain a part of me. I am determined to find another role in the game and plan to take up a coaching role.”

Tuttle played in seven games for the Wolverines over two years, completing 45 of 67 passes for 436 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.

Tuttle's injury history is well known, but perhaps not as detailed as Tuttle laid out in his post. Tuttle, a four-star recruit in the 2018 class, was listed as “out” on Michigan's availability report in Saturday's 24-17 win over Michigan State after playing in the previous two games.

That came after he missed nearly the entire offseason recovering from an injury to his ulnar collateral ligament, which left him out of the quarterback competition initially won by Davis Warren.

Still, Tuttle bounced back, and after Warren was benched for turnovers and Alex Orji was retired for inefficiency, head coach Sherrone Moore turned to Tuttle as a backup in a 27-17 loss to Washington.

He had only been cleared by doctors to train the week before and had only recently started throwing a football again. In his retirement post, Tuttle stated that this was due to the injuries: not only had he not fully recovered from his arm ailment, but he had also suffered another concussion.

“The past year has been challenging, marked by a UCL repair to my throwing arm from which I have not fully recovered, resulting in ongoing problems,” he said. “And unfortunately, the recent experience of my fifth concussion has revealed the painful truth: that I need to start prioritizing my health.

“During my college career, I struggled with numerous injuries, culminating in this difficult decision to leave the sport I love.”

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Tuttle transferred to Utah out of high school, but immediately transferred to Indiana after his freshman season. He spent four years there as a career backup, mostly behind Michael Penix Jr. He started five games during his career in Bloomington, but was never referred to as “the guy.”

He moved to Ann Arbor for a sixth season in 2023, knowing he would serve as JJ McCarthy's backup. Not only did he win a national championship, but he was cleared for a seventh year due to his medical redshirts, so he returned to Michigan to try to compete for the job, which never happened due to his UCL surgery.

His career ended with 149 of 249 passes (59.8%) for 1,337 yards, six touchdowns and seven interceptions. He also had 118 rushing yards in 20 games played.

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