Iowa Coach Offers Murky Thoughts on QB Situation

Iowa Hawkeyes head coach Kirk Ferentz offered some murky thoughts about the quarterback situation.

Oct 26, 2024; Iowa City, Iowa, USA; Iowa Hawkeyes head coach Kirk Ferentz walks off the field after a game against the Northwestern Wildcats at Kinnick Stadium. / Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

Kirk Ferentz and the Iowa Hawkeyes will head into this weekend's game against the Wisconsin Badgers on Saturday night with a new starting quarterback. Brendan Sullivan has taken over for Cade McNamara under center.

While fans are excited about the quarterback change, Ferentz offered some murky thoughts about the situation.

Speaking after the big win over Northwestern last week, Ferentz did not seem super committed to Sullivan as his starter. Only time will tell what happens, but there is no guarantee that he won't go right back to McNamara at some point in the near future.

"Yeah, we’ll see on that. Permanent’s a strong word," Ferentz said. "It’s like super glue or whatever. We had already made the decision during the week that we were going to rotate Brendan in a little bit. Thought third or fourth series depending on how it played out, so it just worked out that way. And then he did a really nice job. Cade was shook up also after the hit he took."

Basically, he's going to give Sullivan a chance to start but he's not sold on the decision. That isn't what fans will want to hear.

McNamara has been nothing short of terrible this season. He has missed easy throws all year and hasn't made much of an impact through the air.

Without star running back Kaleb Johnson, there is a very real chance that Iowa could be a losing football team. Johnson has literally been their entire offense and he has been able to produce despite defenses not having to respect the passing game at all.

At least with Sullivan, the Hawkeyes can use the quarterback as a running decoy as well. He may not be an elite passer, but he has great athleticism and he can make plays with his legs.

In an ideal world, Sullivan will come out this week, play well, and prove that he should keep the starting job. No one, except maybe for Ferentz, wants to see Iowa go back to McNamara.

All of that being said, it will be interesting to see what the Hawkeyes do at the quarterback position moving forward. For now, Sullivan will be the starter, but that sounds subject to change.