Iowa Coach Speaks Out About Possible QB Change

iowa Hawkeyes head coach Kirk Ferentz spoke out about a possible quarterback change.

Oct 12, 2024; Iowa City, Iowa, USA; Iowa Hawkeyes quarterback Cade McNamara (12) warms up before the game against the Washington Huskies at Kinnick Stadium. / Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

Once again last week, the Iowa Hawkeyes failed to get good production from starting quarterback Cade McNamara. In what has become a common trend for the team this season, they were unable to consistently throw the football and the overall passing game was a massive disappointment.

No one can point at McNamara as being the sole reason that Iowa lost to the Michigan State Spartans by a final score of 32-20, but he was certainly one of the reasons.

McNamara ended up completing just 11 of his 23 pass attempts for 150 yards, a touchdown, and one interception. A good chunk of his production was in garbage time down the stretch of the game when it was already decided.

Usually, head coach Kirk Ferentz has been very vocal that he's stick with McNamara as his starter. This week, that tune changed just a little bit.

While Ferentz did not say that he was considering a change, he also did not come out fully in support of keeping his starting quarterback in place. He did say that there was no discussion about making a quarterback change during the game.

“No, no real discussion on making a switch. But, I mean, basically we didn’t do anything well enough to win tonight. That would be included, Cade missing throws. So, we’re going to have to do better in a lot of areas. We’ll go back to work tomorrow, look at the film, see what it looks like and then just try to proceed forward,” Ferentz said.

Saying that he'll "look at the film" leads hope that he could be starting to consider making a change. With the team now just 4-3 on the season, a change would be reasonable.

Of course, the likely replacement would be junior quarterback Brendan Sullivan. He has played sparingly this season, completing both of his passes for 14 yards and a touchdown. He has also rushed nine times for 36 yards and two touchdowns.

Giving Sullivan a chance would be a good decision. He may not be a fix at quarterback, but he's worth taking a look at.

At the very worst, the Hawkeyes would continue not being able to move the football thorugh the air.

McNamara's constant lack of production has led to opposing defenses focusing on shutting down star running back Kaleb Johnson. That is exactly what Michigan State did, and they kept Johnson relatively in check outside of a 75-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.

All of that being said, fans can only hope that Ferentz is coming around to the idea that McNamara is not a capable starting quarterback.