Brian Ferentz discusses Cade McNamara's transition to Iowa offense

Cade McNamara went from piloting a Michigan offense to a Big Ten title to backup to potential savior of the Iowa offense.

There’s no question the Hawkeyes struggled in the quarterback department and had a less-than-exciting offense in recent years. McNamara could change things, according to offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz.

Ferentz commended the leadership abilities of McNamara.

“Every player is different,” Ferentz said. “We bought Cade in here to do a job and we felt pretty good about who he was and what he could do dating back to high school and we’ve seen him be able to progress through college and he’s lived up to the expectations.

“The reality is, just like any football player that we have on the roster, expectations don’t change. We want to see our guys make daily improvement, get better at the craft, hone in on their job and he’s done all of that.”

McNamara left Saturday’s practice with an apparent knee injury. The severity remains to be seen, but Iowa fans are certainly hoping he’s back and healthy for the season opener.

Prior to the injury, McNamara made quite the impact on his new school and teammates.

“The added dynamic of playing quarterback is that there’s leadership and responsibility that comes with it and I have been thoroughly impressed since he got here in January with what he’s been able to do with that,” Ferentz said. “I don’t think it’s an easy situation stepping into a new locker room with new teammates, but he’s been able to earn their respect from day one and he continues to do that.”

As the starter in 2021, McNamara threw for 2,576 yards, 15 touchdowns, six interceptions and a 64.2% completion percentage.

As a member of the Class of 2019, McNamara was a four-star recruit out of Reno (Nev.) Damonte Ranch, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He was the No. 1 overall prospect in the state, the No. 13 quarterback in the class and the No. 278 overall prospect in the class.

McNamara’s head coach, Kirk Ferentz, gave plenty of praise to the Michigan transfer back during spring practice and erased all questions about who his starting quarterback will be in game one.

“He clearly is our starter right now,” Ferentz said. “It is not a debate. Real happy about him being there.”