Jim Harbaugh: Not saying which QB I've picked as the starter

Michigancoach Jim Harbaugh said Tuesday that he has informed competing quarterbacks Jake Rudock and Shane Morris of his decision on a starter for the Wolverines' opener Thursday night at Utah.

But Harbaugh won't make a public announcement.

"They know," Harbaugh said during his first appearance on the weekly Big Ten coaches' teleconference. "We know who's going to start. We know who's going in second or who's going to go in next. I want them both to prepare like they're going to be the starter. I don't know how to make it any more clear than that."

Rudock, a senior in his first season at Michigan, and Morris, a junior, have competed amid a secretive environment since the school opened preseason practice.

Harbaugh said he did not plan at the outset of camp to limit access for an extended period. Michigan players and coaches went three weeks after practice opened without conducting interviews.

"One week turned into two," Harbaugh said, "and nobody really said anything about it. So we went to three. So really, it's kind of on the fly. But it was good for us. We got a lot of work done."

Rudock started 25 games at Iowaover the past two seasons, landing at Michigan this summer as a graduate transfer. Morris has started two games for the Wolverines and completed 14 passes in 40 attempts last season.

"I want both of them to go into this game with a mindset that they're one play away or they're starting," Harbaugh said. "It's the mindset I always want our quarterback and our backup quarterback to go into the game with."

So is his stranglehold on information an attempt to keep the Utes off balance?

"If that's another positive or byproduct of it," Harbaugh said, "then we'll take that as well."