CBS Sports links QB Brendan Sullivan to Iowa via Tim Lester’s Western Michigan ties
Let’s call a spade a spade: Cade McNamara has a mighty uphill climb to return to his true form after two season-ending injuries in each of the last two years he has played. His mobility during spring ball was suspect at best even with roughly four months before the season begins.
The Iowa Hawkeyes need quarterback depth and possibly even someone to push for the starting job. After Deacon Hill and Tommy Poholsky hit the transfer portal, Marco Lainez is alone alongside McNamara in the QB room.
Lainez has a high upside, but he has very limited playing time: mop up duty in last season’s bowl game. He is getting first team reps while McNamara rehabs, but it could be a stretch to imagine him being thrust into the starting role.
That leaves Iowa with a need for QB depth at worst and a hidden gem to take over the starting role at best. While it is late in the game to bring a quarterback in, one in the transfer portal has ties to Iowa and could make sense. CBS Sports believes Northwestern transfer Brendan Sullivan could rekindle his connection with Tim Lester and join the Hawkeyes.
If I had to bet on a likely outcome, I’d look at Brendan Sullivan. Sullivan was viewed as the likely favorite to win Northwestern’s starting QB job this fall but made a surprising decision to enter the portal. Sullivan is from Michigan, and when he was still a three-star prospect going through the recruitment process, one of the schools that offered was Western Michigan. Western Michigan’s head coach at the time? Current Iowa offensive coordinator Tim Lester. – Tom Fornelli, CBS Sports
Relationships matter now more than ever in college football with the transfer portal. Sullivan has that with Lester. Obviously there was an interest from Lester to bring Sullivan to Western Michigan. That feeling could still exist and even be exacerbated by Iowa’s glaring QB need.
Brendan Sullivan was the No. 49 QB in the class of 2021 on the 247Sports composite. Last year, Sullivan was 63 of 99 for 714 yards with six touchdowns to two interceptions. He is a career 68.7% passer with a two-to-one touchdown-to-interception ratio. He also has ran for 257 yards in his collegiate career.
Lester’s new offense can be enhanced by a quarterback with more mobility. Sullivan is objectively more mobile than McNamara and more experienced than Lainez. Could the Wildcat be headed to Iowa City.
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