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The Hawks Would Be Crazy Not to Snatch Up a Portal QB

IowaLaw

IowaLaw

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I'm hearing Iowa isn't interested in a portal QB this year because the 2026 roster ha a grand total of two career backups plus a freshmen walk-on who will transfer the minute his dad gives him the green light to join him at Michigan State. That is mind blowing in this day and age.

Since when was having 2 mediocre caliber scholarship QBs going into a season enough? Especially when one is Hank Brown, who is as slow as Nate Stanley and completed just 11 passes for 107 yards this year. His only meaningful snaps where against Indiana where he threw the biggest interception Iowa has suffered in the past decade, costing the Hawks the chance to beat the #1 team in the nation. The other option stands just 5'10 and completed 2 passes for 8 yards this year. Sure, he's "confident" and has swagger, which seems to be his only claim to fame from the homer media, but so did Cade McNamera and Deauce Hogan. Hecklinski's only offers out of high school were Georgia Southern and lowly Wake Forest (who finished 15th in the ACC last year and 11th this year). We're going to put all our eggs in THAT basket?

Take take a moment and think about the lowest hanging fruit out there available in the portal:

In 2023, Jaxon Smolik was a star QB recruit out of Dowling. He's from Hawkeye country. He ultimately picked blue blood QB factory Penn State, but they fired their coach. The guy would come in as a sophomore next year and have 3 years of eligibility. Is he not at least worth a look?

In 2024, Alex Manske was an elite 11 QB out of small town Algona. The Hawks wanted him bad, as did Nebraska. He picked Iowa State, probably because they actually had a passing game and real WRs. Iowa State's coach and 80% of their roster bailed and Manske is in the portal. The guy would come in with 4 years of eligibility. Is he not every bit as capable as Hecklinski and Brown but with the benefit of being an in-state kid?

These are just two options out there of home grown talent we let get away but who are now a little more seasoned and available for the pickin. I'm sure there are dozens of other QBs out there who would at least consider coming to a perennial Top 25 program with a huge opening at the starting QB position. We should be at least sniffing around and seeing what's out there. We can't have yet another season where the Hawks rank last in the Big 10 in passing.
 
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Jonesy5960

Jonesy5960

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I don't know if they'll be "snatching one up" or what they've seen with the guys they have, but it would be program malpractice if they weren't evaluating potential options for the most important position on the team. Just have to wait and see what happens.
 
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iahawkeyes17

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Well what op is “hearing” doesn’t mean it is definitively true or not. Sure after bowl and portal window opens if they need depth at qb they’ll look. Question is does Lester feel good about guys he has as starters next year? Because if so that frees up lot of $ to spend at other positions of need. If they want a developmental unproven qb I could see them dip their toes into market like they did for brown. If little to no faith in what they got then maybe they go after a big fish. But as we’ve seen getting a stater with experience that’s 7 figure minimum.

schools like ND, byu and Minn. to name a few rolled with young guy with no experience instead on of hitting portal again for a starter. Most part turned out ok for them. Also the knock on Hecklinski for lack of offers doesn’t mean anything. How many years do we see guys from non P4 school who had few offers out of HS put up big numbers then have all the P4 after them when they enter the portal. Cam Ward #1 pick had only an Incarnate Word offer. Point and case our Qb this year only had FCS offer had more than just Iowa after him. Also the WF program put up massive passing stats under previous staff Hecklinski was recruited by and actually had their qb 2 years ago go to ND.
 
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DukeSlater

DukeSlater

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IowaLaw said:
I'm hearing Iowa isn't interested in a portal QB this year because the 2026 roster ha a grand total of two career backups plus a freshmen walk-on who will transfer the minute his dad gives him the green light to join him at Michigan State. That is mind blowing in this day and age.

Since when was having 2 mediocre caliber scholarship QBs going into a season enough? Especially when one is Hank Brown, who is as slow as Nate Stanley and completed just 11 passes for 107 yards this year. His only meaningful snaps where against Indiana where he threw the biggest interception Iowa has suffered in the past decade, costing the Hawks the chance to beat the #1 team in the nation. The other option stands just 5'10 and completed 2 passes for 8 yards this year. Sure, he's "confident" and has swagger, which seems to be his only claim to fame from the homer media, but so did Cade McNamera and Deauce Hogan. Hecklinski's only offers out of high school were Georgia Southern and lowly Wake Forest (who finished 15th in the ACC last year and 11th this year). We're going to put all our eggs in THAT basket?

Take take a moment and think about the lowest hanging fruit out there available in the portal:

In 2023, Jaxon Smolik was a star QB recruit out of Dowling. He's from Hawkeye country. He ultimately picked blue blood QB factory Penn State, but they fired their coach. The guy would come in as a sophomore next year and have 3 years of eligibility. Is he not at least worth a look?

In 2024, Alex Manske was an elite 11 QB out of small town Algona. The Hawks wanted him bad, as did Nebraska. He picked Iowa State, probably because they actually had a passing game and real WRs. Iowa State's coach and 80% of their roster bailed and Manske is in the portal. The guy would come in with 4 years of eligibility. Is he not every bit as capable as Hecklinski and Brown but with the benefit of being an in-state kid?

These are just two options out there of home grown talent we let get away but who are now a little more seasoned and available for the pickin. I'm sure there are dozens of other QBs out there who would at least consider coming to a perennial Top 25 program with a huge opening at the starting QB position. We should be at least sniffing around and seeing what's out there. We can't have yet another season where the Hawks rank last in the Big 10 in passing.
Click to expand...
I understand where you're coming from, but no player comes with a guarantee. I think Hecklinski, Brown, Sullivan, Fitzgerald, and the 4-star freshman coming in are all good QBs. I think they're capable of leading Lester's offense, including a vastly improved passing attack. And most important, the top 4 guys have been learning Lester's offense, which is vital because of its complexity. That's why even a 5th-year senior star like Mark Gronowski was unable to develop any consistency in the passing game. He missed spring ball, and he's still learning the Iowa offense, even as they go into their bowl game on Wednesday.

Lester's offense is NOT plug-n-play. It's an excellent offensive system, but it takes time to learn. The guys who've put in the time and effort, such as Hecklinski, Brown Sullivan and Fitzgerald, deserve the chance to battle it out for the No. 1 job. My money's on Hecklinski, and I think he'll be the guy to demonstrate what the full Lester-Shanahan offense can do.

So that's why ignoring the guys in the portal makes sense to me. Recruit your guys, coach 'em up, and pay them. When it comes to the portal I think it might be worth remembering what that great college football guru William Shakespeare said: "All that glitters is not gold."
 
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squeezebox_1

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83Hawk said:
I trust the Iowa coaches on this, not a message board hack.
Click to expand...
Stephen Colbert Popcorn GIF
 
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Hawk-A-Doodle-Doo

Hawk-A-Doodle-Doo

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First, Ol' Doodle agrees wholeheartedly that Iowa should be hitting the portal and looking at quarterbacks. Hopefully they actually are, and their public statements to the contrary are just so as not to tip their hand.

But it is also interesting that you initially decry Iowa's QB room as being full of career backups who haven't played meaningful minutes or put up substantial stats and then your two examples of who Iowa should go after to solve the "problem"...guys you claim are "more seasoned now"...have the following career stat lines:
  • Alex Manske Career Stats: 4 completions in 5 attempts for 28 yards.
  • Jaxon Smolik Career Stats: 0 completions in 0 attempts for 0 yards.
 
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r_desihawk

r_desihawk

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Hawk-A-Doodle-Doo said:
First, Ol' Doodle agrees wholeheartedly that Iowa should be hitting the portal and looking at quarterbacks. Hopefully they actually are, and their public statements to the contrary are just so as not to tip their hand.

But it is also interesting that you initially decry Iowa's QB room as being full of career backups who haven't played meaningful minutes or put up substantial stats and then your two examples of who Iowa should go after to solve the "problem"...guys you claim are "more seasoned now"...have the following career stat lines:
  • Alex Manske Career Stats: 4 completions in 5 attempts for 28 yards.
  • Jaxon Smolik Career Stats: 0 completions in 0 attempts for 0 yards.
Click to expand...
bang on. if at all iowa considers a portal qb it should be a experienced gron 2.0 type baller.
also in retrospect for the first time in a long while i don’t feel like 2nd guessing the staff on anything despite only going 8-4 this year
 
Palmerhawk

Palmerhawk

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CFB mimics the NFL now.
Quick turnarounds in NFL are teams like pats,bears,panthers,Texans...all have cheap young qbs which allowed them to devote resources to trenches upgrades

Iowa has limited nil so the GM has find the proper balance.
Our program will benefit if in- house qbs can handle the position.
Lester's QB judgement is going to be tested.

One thing is certain..unless Iowa wins the national title and heck wins Heisman, the op will be on here second guessing KF.
 
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oldxbbc

oldxbbc

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Not sure of what you would have to shell out for someone who could legitimately compete for #1 qb, when top of class guys are getting 4mil supposedly. Personally I would like the NIL used for other positions this year. I get tired of seeing and using that amateur erasing term.
 
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QChawks

QChawks

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we need another passing fullback

a statue with a big arm doesn’t work when you have the worst WRs in all of P4
 
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JerseyCityHawk

JerseyCityHawk

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iahawkeyes17 said:
Well what op is “hearing” doesn’t mean it is definitively true or not. Sure after bowl and portal window opens if they need depth at qb they’ll look. Question is does Lester feel good about guys he has as starters next year? Because if so that frees up lot of $ to spend at other positions of need. If they want a developmental unproven qb I could see them dip their toes into market like they did for brown. If little to no faith in what they got then maybe they go after a big fish. But as we’ve seen getting a stater with experience that’s 7 figure minimum.

schools like ND, byu and Minn. to name a few rolled with young guy with no experience instead on of hitting portal again for a starter. Most part turned out ok for them. Also the knock on Hecklinski for lack of offers doesn’t mean anything. How many years do we see guys from non P4 school who had few offers out of HS put up big numbers then have all the P4 after them when they enter the portal. Cam Ward #1 pick had only an Incarnate Word offer. Point and case our Qb this year only had FCS offer had more than just Iowa after him. Also the WF program put up massive passing stats under previous staff Hecklinski was recruited by and actually had their qb 2 years ago go to ND.
Click to expand...
Absolutely well said
 
IowaLaw

IowaLaw

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Hawk-A-Doodle-Doo said:
First, Ol' Doodle agrees wholeheartedly that Iowa should be hitting the portal and looking at quarterbacks. Hopefully they actually are, and their public statements to the contrary are just so as not to tip their hand.

But it is also interesting that you initially decry Iowa's QB room as being full of career backups who haven't played meaningful minutes or put up substantial stats and then your two examples of who Iowa should go after to solve the "problem"...guys you claim are "more seasoned now"...have the following career stat lines:
  • Alex Manske Career Stats: 4 completions in 5 attempts for 28 yards.
  • Jaxon Smolik Career Stats: 0 completions in 0 attempts for 0 yards.
Click to expand...
Doodle misses the point.

The problem with Lester's statement last week that "the Hawks are all set at QB and aren't looking to add anyone through the portal," isn't just that the 2 scholarship QBs on the roster were not highly sought after and have not played meaningful minutes...the problem is having only 2 scholarship QBs on the roster in the first place. Injuries happen all the time. What kind of logic is that? The points about Iowa having limited NIL funds are well taken...that's why I'm not advocating going after a Power 4 starter from ASU or somewhere like that. Instead, a more affordable highly touted young guy who played behind and learned from an elite QB.

Unlike the guys on the roster, Manske and Smolik were both big time in-state recruits. Both were just freshmen this year playing behind elite QBs. Penn State had Drew Allar (who was thought of as a 1st round NFL prospect before his injury). Iowa State had Rocco Becht, who has already thrown for over 9,000 yards and was one of ISU's all time greats.

Iowa's backups were head and shoulders behind the Big 10's 16th best QB. Yet at no point did they challenge him for playing time...even in the early games when he was throwing for 70 yards per game. If Brown and Hecklinski couldn't challenge a guy with a 122 pass rating (17th in the Big 10) for even spot minutes, what makes us so sure they are the best possible answer at QB next year?

Sure, we hope they improve, but QB regression at Iowa has been a long running theme. QB is the most important position on the field and the Hawks have had duds for far too many years in a row. This is why we have such a lengthy streak of losing to ranked opponents.
 
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Palmerhawk

Palmerhawk

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Scholly qbs next year: heck,brown,Sullivan,bessinger...walkon Fitz.
By my count that is 4 scholly with 1 walkon..a total of 5 qbs

These numbers seem sufficient.
Op wants a 5th scholly qb to get six- deep.

I will trust Lester.
 
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2D

2D

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How do you know they're mediocre? Both are young and have time to develop. And Lester has gone on record saying he's thrilled to finally have quarterbacks that have more than a year of experience in his system.

Slaw is just obsessed with whatever the shiny new thing is without ever daring to think for five seconds.
 
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squeezebox_1

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IowaLaw said:
Unlike the guys on the roster, Manske and Smolik were both big time in-state recruits. Both were just freshmen this year playing behind elite QBs. Penn State had Drew Allar (who was thought of as a 1st round NFL prospect before his injury). Iowa State had Rocco Becht, who has already thrown for over 9,000 yards and was one of ISU's all time greats.
Click to expand...
Um no
 
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HoggI74

HoggI74

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In 2024, Alex Manske was an elite 11 QB out of small town Algona. The Hawks wanted him bad, as did Nebraska. He picked Iowa State, probably because they actually had a passing game and real WRs. Iowa State's coach and 80% of their roster bailed and Manske is in the portal. The guy would come in with 4 years of eligibility. Is he not every bit as capable as Hecklinski and Brown but with the benefit of being an in-state kid?

So if he turned Iowa down the first time because " Iowa doesn't have a real passing game or WRs ", why does he change his mind now?
 
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jhoosh43

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Anon1751543574 said:
Scholly qbs next year: heck,brown,Sullivan,bessinger...walkon Fitz.
By my count that is 4 scholly with 1 walkon..a total of 5 qbs

These numbers seem sufficient.
Op wants a 5th scholly qb to get six- deep.

I will trust Lester.
Click to expand...
Bring in a starting caliber transfer and Iowa will lose at least 1 scholarship player that has more experience in the offense.
 
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Kceasthawk@77

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jhoosh43 said:
Bring in a starting caliber transfer and Iowa will lose at least 1 scholarship player that has more experience in the offense.
Click to expand...
Exactly. This will be our third year basically with a first year QB who didn't participate in spring. I think Lester is exciting to see what he can do with his entire QB room in their second year in his system. Maybe we should see how that goes, hmmm.....
 
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Jonesy5960

Jonesy5960

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Kceasthawk@77 said:
Exactly. This will be our third year basically with a first year QB who didn't participate in spring. I think Lester is exciting to see what he can do with his entire QB room in their second year in his system. Maybe we should see how that goes, hmmm.....
Click to expand...
Or maybe not, depending on the talent level of the QB's they have. Just don't bring in any more injured guys that are going to miss the off season recovering from surgery.
 
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EvilMonkeyInTheCloset

EvilMonkeyInTheCloset

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IowaLaw said:
I'm hearing Iowa isn't interested in a portal QB this year because the 2026 roster ha a grand total of two career backups plus a freshmen walk-on who will transfer the minute his dad gives him the green light to join him at Michigan State. That is mind blowing in this day and age.

Since when was having 2 mediocre caliber scholarship QBs going into a season enough? Especially when one is Hank Brown, who is as slow as Nate Stanley and completed just 11 passes for 107 yards this year. His only meaningful snaps where against Indiana where he threw the biggest interception Iowa has suffered in the past decade, costing the Hawks the chance to beat the #1 team in the nation. The other option stands just 5'10 and completed 2 passes for 8 yards this year. Sure, he's "confident" and has swagger, which seems to be his only claim to fame from the homer media, but so did Cade McNamera and Deauce Hogan. Hecklinski's only offers out of high school were Georgia Southern and lowly Wake Forest (who finished 15th in the ACC last year and 11th this year). We're going to put all our eggs in THAT basket?

Take take a moment and think about the lowest hanging fruit out there available in the portal:

In 2023, Jaxon Smolik was a star QB recruit out of Dowling. He's from Hawkeye country. He ultimately picked blue blood QB factory Penn State, but they fired their coach. The guy would come in as a sophomore next year and have 3 years of eligibility. Is he not at least worth a look?

In 2024, Alex Manske was an elite 11 QB out of small town Algona. The Hawks wanted him bad, as did Nebraska. He picked Iowa State, probably because they actually had a passing game and real WRs. Iowa State's coach and 80% of their roster bailed and Manske is in the portal. The guy would come in with 4 years of eligibility. Is he not every bit as capable as Hecklinski and Brown but with the benefit of being an in-state kid?

These are just two options out there of home grown talent we let get away but who are now a little more seasoned and available for the pickin. I'm sure there are dozens of other QBs out there who would at least consider coming to a perennial Top 25 program with a huge opening at the starting QB position. We should be at least sniffing around and seeing what's out there. We can't have yet another season where the Hawks rank last in the Big 10 in passing.
Click to expand...
 
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5

52317Hawk

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IowaLaw said:
I'm hearing Iowa isn't interested in a portal QB this year because the 2026 roster ha a grand total of two career backups plus a freshmen walk-on who will transfer the minute his dad gives him the green light to join him at Michigan State. That is mind blowing in this day and age.

Since when was having 2 mediocre caliber scholarship QBs going into a season enough? Especially when one is Hank Brown, who is as slow as Nate Stanley and completed just 11 passes for 107 yards this year. His only meaningful snaps where against Indiana where he threw the biggest interception Iowa has suffered in the past decade, costing the Hawks the chance to beat the #1 team in the nation. The other option stands just 5'10 and completed 2 passes for 8 yards this year. Sure, he's "confident" and has swagger, which seems to be his only claim to fame from the homer media, but so did Cade McNamera and Deauce Hogan. Hecklinski's only offers out of high school were Georgia Southern and lowly Wake Forest (who finished 15th in the ACC last year and 11th this year). We're going to put all our eggs in THAT basket?

Take take a moment and think about the lowest hanging fruit out there available in the portal:

In 2023, Jaxon Smolik was a star QB recruit out of Dowling. He's from Hawkeye country. He ultimately picked blue blood QB factory Penn State, but they fired their coach. The guy would come in as a sophomore next year and have 3 years of eligibility. Is he not at least worth a look?

In 2024, Alex Manske was an elite 11 QB out of small town Algona. The Hawks wanted him bad, as did Nebraska. He picked Iowa State, probably because they actually had a passing game and real WRs. Iowa State's coach and 80% of their roster bailed and Manske is in the portal. The guy would come in with 4 years of eligibility. Is he not every bit as capable as Hecklinski and Brown but with the benefit of being an in-state kid?

These are just two options out there of home grown talent we let get away but who are now a little more seasoned and available for the pickin. I'm sure there are dozens of other QBs out there who would at least consider coming to a perennial Top 25 program with a huge opening at the starting QB position. We should be at least sniffing around and seeing what's out there. We can't have yet another season where the Hawks rank last in the Big 10 in passing.
Click to expand...
This isn't Indiana where you go out and get a transfer QB and go 10-2 and make the CFP, then go out the next year and get a transfer QB who wins the Heisman and has his team as the #1 seed.

This is Iowa. Iowa develops their QB's.
 
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T

The Big Z

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Jonesy5960 said:
Or maybe not, depending on the talent level of the QB's they have. Just don't bring in any more injured guys that are going to miss the off season recovering from surgery.
Click to expand...
Unless you have a proven commodity coming back(we don’t) you 100 % should always be looking at getting the best QB you can get. Gronowski really came on late for us, and it was huge having the running ability he had. Hecklinski I believe was on the roster at 175 lbs. Grono was 230? If we run Hecklinski like that he’ll get killed. And no offense but hearing about an Iowa QB “slinging it” I just have to see. I hope I’m wrong.
 
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_Mjolnir_

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If Iowa has a chance at Manske, OSU's Lincoln Kienholz, Notre Dame's Kenny Minchey, or Missouri's Beau Pribula they should do everything they can to land one.

Don't let QB be a position that holds you back next year. Experience will matter. Talent will matter. Both Kienholz and Minchey barely missed out on winning QB#1. Pribula has experience and talent. Manske at the very least gives you another talented young QB.

The Iowa pass game has a decent chance next year with the young talent at WR and TE. RB will be solid. OL could be solid. A lack of production at QB could be all the difference next year.
 
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