Probably maybe Beathard this week

IOWA CITY — Kirk Ferentz never did say that C.J. Beathard will be Iowa's starter this weekend. The closest he came was that the sophomore quarterback was Iowa's starter for Tuesday afternoon's practice.

Probably don't read too much into that. Ferentz also acknowledged that junior starter Jake Rudock did sit out Tuesday with a soft-tissue injury. Rudock, whose streak of 17 straight starts is up in the air, was hit by a pair of Pitt defenders near the end of the first half of Iowa's victory. He didn't return to the game, and Beathard came in to lead three second-half scoring drives.

A lot of words were used, but few specifics were given. Going into a bye week after Saturday's Big Ten opener at Purdue (2-2), it's probably safe to assume Beathard is the starter and will hold the spot until Rudock returns.

'Jake is going to be day-to-day from what I can tell,' Ferentz said Tuesday. 'I think right now, C.J. is definitely our starter today [Tuesday] because Jake won't be practicing. We'll just see how the week plays out.'

Ferentz said Rudock's injuries were in a couple of different spots. He didn't specify beyond 'soft tissue.'

'The good news is there is nothing torn or really bad,' Ferentz said. 'He feels better this morning than he did yesterday, and getting the test results back was a real positive.'

Lots of words, few specifics, which is the course nearly 100 percent of colleges coaches take in regard to injuries and QB playing time. Maybe this answer best illustrates where Iowa (3-1) is at the quarterback position for this game and beyond.

'If Jake had sputtered [last season, his first as starter], it probably would've maybe played out the way that one did,' Ferentz said in response to a question about the 2008 QB shuffle between Jake Christensen and Ricky Stanzi. 'But Jake didn't sputter. He took control of things. Now, we're in a situation more by fate than anything else, where C.J. has been able to play when Jake's been hurt.

'We've been able to discover some good things about C.J. without having the 'do we, don't we' stuff. It's all good.'

It was all good in Beathard's first extended playing time of 2014. He completed 7 of 8 passes for 98 yards, including a 62-yarder that wide receiver Damond Powell grabbed with one hand. Beathard helped the Hawkeyes overcome a 17-7 halftime deficit.

In class Monday, people knew he was. People interested in Iowa football probably already knew. The major difference between Rudock and Beathard is Beathard's long, curly hair that he's grown for around 18 months. The hair with the Tennessee accent, Beathard sort of sticks out.

Linebacker Quinton Alston let students know in the Monday lecture in 'Arts of Africe' that the quarterback hero of the weekend was sitting among them.

'Yeah, it was embarrassing,' Beathard said. 'We're in there for school. He's a cool teacher and a good teacher, I just wasn't ready for it.'

During his postgame radio interview on Saturday, Ferentz mentioned a practice last Thursday that Beathard struggled in. That commented was noted by several Hawkeyes fans. Maybe reading into it that Rudock would be back in ASAP. Or, maybe, folks just read too much into it.

'If you guys had seen Thursday practice the answer would be yes, I was surprised,' Ferentz said when asked if Beathard's performance opened his eyes. 'I was underwhelmed with what I saw Thursday, but Tuesday and Wednesday were pretty good. That's kind of like our whole team, the consistency factor.

'C.J.'s a really good quarterback, and I don't think I would be surprised by anything he did or Jake. I think both of them are capable of playing really well. I thought Jake played a good first half.'

How bad was it Thursday? Did you throw the ball through someone's car window?

'It was just one of those days,' Beathrard said. 'It wasn't a great practice all around. It was lacking energy, it just wasn't a great practice.'

Where does QB go after Purdue? Let's not look too far ahead. Ferentz was political in his comments. He was asked if an injured player can lose his job. He said there is no set policy. He also was careful to mention Rudock, who wasn't expected to work with trainers on Tuesday, alongside Beathard in nearly every comment.

'I read a couple things coming home that night,' Ferentz said, referring to the Saturday night reviews on Iowa QB. 'If we catch that one ball, and he got a turnover credited to his count instead of a big completion, his numbers look pretty good, too. So, again, I think we have two pretty good players.'

Rudock was 5 of 10 for 80 yards with a TD and an interception, which flipped out of Powell's hands and into a Pitt defender's for one of your more unfortunate interceptions. (No, Powell said that had never happened to him. Yes, he did change his gloves after that play, too.)

Rudock didn't return to game after halftime, but he was on the field and worked the headphones and communicated with Beathard. Before Beathard ran out for the last offensive play, he tapped Rudock's shoulder and gave him a nod.

'This guy [Rudock] is not your average player,' Ferentz said. 'This is an exceptional young man going back to his organic chemistry test last year and all that stuff.

'Jake is just really wired the way you would want a player to be wired, any player, especially a quarterback.'

Beathard has certainly flashed on the field. Rudock hasn't sputtered. Ferentz said he has two quarterbacks he trusts and believes in.

There really isn't a need for any declarations on what happens at QB after this week. The answers will come.

l Comments: (319) 398-8256; marc.morehouse@sourcemedia.net