Iowa Hawkeyes 2023 Snapshot Profile: No. 12 Cade McNamara

The Iowa Hawkeyes offense needs a complete facelift after falling flat on its face the past two seasons. A unit that truly was offensive, the Hawkeyes’ inability to sustain drives and put points on the board hampered what could have been an all-time great Iowa team last year.

Whether or not all of the blame deserves to go to quarterback Spencer Petras is irrelevant. The fact is that of the many, many problems that the Iowa offense had, quarterback definitely was a contributing factor. It made a less-than-ideal situation truly disastrous.

Iowa football doesn’t plan on making any seismic shifts to their mentality for the 2023 college football season. The fact is that Kirk Ferentz and Co. have enjoyed a lot of success throughout the years all based on the fundamentals of football. They want to have a strong rushing attack to complement their stifling defense with an efficient leader at the quarterback position to orchestrate it all.

Iowa may have just found the quarterback that they’ve been searching years for now. Graduate transfer Cade McNamara made perfect sense for the Hawkeyes once his decision to leave the University of Michigan was announced. Iowa swiftly picked up the Reno, Nev., native. The Hawkeyes were impressed by his intangibles and play over the past few years for the Wolverines.

McNamara may not be the most dynamic quarterback, and he more than likely isn’t going to put up the gaudy statistics of an Ohio State quarterback. However, for what Iowa wants from their quarterback, McNamara looks to be the perfect fit. He will be asked to step up, make the right decisions, and make key throws when needed.

Basically, he needs to be the ultimate game manager that the Black and Gold have desperately needed over the past few years. All season people pondered what could have been if the Hawkeyes just had a solid offense. Well, folks, you might just see that happen with this man at the helm. Here is a look at your new starting quarterback Cade McNamara.

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Preseason Player Profile

Joseph Cress/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK

Hometown: Reno, Nev.

Ht: 6-1

Wt: 206

Class in 2023: Sr.

McNamara's Recruiting Profile

Career Stats

Joseph Cress/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK

Provided by CFB at Sports Reference: View Original Table
Generated 5/4/2023.

Depth Chart Overview

Joseph Cress/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK

If there were any doubts that Cade McNamara would be the starting quarterback in 2023, head coach Kirk Ferentz quickly put them to rest. Unlike the somewhat media-manufactured quarterback controversy from last year, Ferentz has stated that McNamara is clearly Iowa’s starter.

“When you’re on the field with players, it’s kind of like NFL prospects, sometimes you get a really strong feeling about a guy. We had great respect for Cade, the way he played going into the game. We played him in December. Certainly had even more after that.

“Now we get to work with him, get him in your building, get to be around him firsthand, on a personal level. To me, he has a lot of the characteristics and qualities you’re looking for in a quarterback. You can see why he was successful where he was before.

“The fact that he’s been on the field and done it, doing it… There’s something to be said for doing it. He’s got that on his résumé. So he’s got a confidence that I think is earned. He’s helped bring that to our football team. He has a little edge to him, which is good. Good at every position.

“So far so good. He’s been a really great addition to our team. I won’t speak for everybody on our team, but I think they’ve all really embraced him, are really glad he’s here. He clearly is our starter right now. It is not a debate. Real happy about him being there,” Ferentz said.

For good reason, too. McNamara brings Big Ten starting experience at Michigan, leading the Wolverines to a Big Ten Championship and College Football Playoff Appearance in 2021. He will be an immediate upgrade at the quarterback position, lending his great leadership to command a new Iowa Hawkeyes offense.

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Story originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire