Iowa Hawkeyes Bench Cade McNamara vs Northwestern

The Iowa Hawkeyes have benched quarterback Cade McNamara in the second quarter against Northwestern.

Oct 5, 2024; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Iowa Hawkeyes quarterback Cade McNamara (12) drops back against the Ohio State Buckeyes to throw during the first quarter at Ohio Stadium. / Joseph Maiorana-Imagn Images

The Iowa Hawkeyes are taking on the Northwestern Wildcats this afternoon and are currently down 7-3. Unfortunately, that touchdown for Northwestern wasn't even earned by their offense.

In the second quarter, Cade McNamara threw a pick six. That was the last straw for head coach Kirk Ferentz.

Coming into the game, Ferentz had openly stated that McNamara needed to play better. Following the pick six that he threw, Iowa made a change at quarterback.

On then ensuing drive, the Hawkeyes trotted out Brendan Sullivan at quarterback.

Fans have been hoping that Iowa would make a change at quarterback. McNamara has played poor football all year long and has literally played his team out of games already this year.

Time and time again, he missed easy passes. His mistakes cost the team points and drives.

It's unknown how long the change will be in place. Sullivan at least played the entire following drive. Ferentz might end up sticking with him for the rest of the game, or maybe he will give McNamara another chance.

That being said, Sullivan has a major opportunity ahead of him. On his first drive, the Hawkeyes weren't able to move the football. He did complete his only pass on the drive for two yards.

Hopefully, Sullivan can come in and make a major impact throughout the rest of the game. If he plays well, there is a very real chance that McNamara could lose the starting job moving forward.

One thing is for sure, which is the fact that McNamara's poor play week in and week out has clearly gotten old for Ferentz and the coaching staff. It will be interesting to see if this is a permanent change or not.