Iowa QB Brendan Sullivan ‘willing to accept’ any role after transferring from Northwestern

IOWA CITY — Iowa quarterback Brendan Sullivan has quickly left an impression on his teammates.

“I’ll show up like an hour-and-a-half before the lift, and I’ll see him here all dressed up, ready to go,” offensive lineman Gennings Dunker said of the transfer quarterback.

Sullivan said being the first one in and last one out was “something I was raised on.” After committing to Iowa in May via the transfer portal, the ex-Northwestern quarterback’s early routine also helps make up for lost time as he acclimates himself to Iowa football.

“I feel like I’m behind,” Sullivan said. “All the guys have been here learning this offense since this spring, so I got to catch back up and watch some film on the offense and get through my routine.”

Sullivan, in his first time talking to Iowa reporters since transferring, said this week he has “a lot of confidence” that he will learn the offense and “do what I can do in the offense.”

What exactly he will be doing in the offense, though, remains murky with six weeks to go until the start of Iowa’s 2024 slate.

Kirk Ferentz, approaching his 26th season as head coach of the Hawkeyes, said in May that Cade McNamara is “our starter” if he is healthy. McNamara has indeed been healthy, as he reiterated this week that he is “100 percent.”

So where does that leave Sullivan? QB2? He is “not sure” where he stands in the quarterback pecking order.

“I’m just trying to compete, trying to do the best I can to fight my way to the top,” Sullivan said. “I’m somebody that’s willing to accept my role, whatever that is. And I feel like that’s something I’ve shown throughout my career.”

A “big goal” for Sullivan is “to play in the NFL,” but standing behind McNamara on the depth chart in 2024 does not entirely preclude that possibility.

He has two years of eligibility remaining (versus McNamara’s one). McNamara’s health is not to be taken for granted either after his last two seasons ended with major knee injuries — his right knee in 2022 and his left knee in 2023.

McNamara, when asked about the addition of another quarterback who has starting experience in the Big Ten, said any “level of competition is good.”

“We got down to like two quarterbacks in our quarterback room, so they got to add someone eventually,” McNamara said with a laugh. “Whoever they brought in, that’s awesome. But at some point, there has to be depth. … Even the NFL has more than two guys.”

Sullivan already has delivered an offseason win for the Hawkeyes. Ex-Northwestern wide receiver Jacob Gill — Sullivan’s roommate in Evanston, Ill. — said Sullivan was “pretty influential” in his decision to join the QB in Iowa City this spring.

“Seeing that he saw something in this program was pretty big for me as well,” said Gill, who also is Sullivan’s roommate at Iowa.

On the field, Sullivan considers himself to be a “versatile quarterback, a gritty guy,” and the numbers back that up.

He completed 63.6 percent of passes with six touchdowns versus two interceptions in 2023 while also showing an ability to make plays on his feet. He had at least one 10-plus-yard carry in five different games last year, including a 35-yard touchdown run against Howard.

“Obviously at Northwestern, I ran the ball a decent amount,” Sullivan said. “I’m not sure how much they have planned for this offense. It’s not really a conversation I’ve had yet.”

Sullivan saw action in eight games in 2023 and started in four. He spent most of the year behind Ben Bryant, a graduate transfer from Cincinnati.

With Bryant out of the way, Sullivan seemed to be the most likely candidate to be Northwestern’s starting quarterback for the 2024 season — something that made his decision to enter the portal after spring practices somewhat surprising.

“Definitely prayed about it, definitely talked to my family and sat down with the coaches at Northwestern,” Sullivan said of the decision to enter the portal. “Mutually, me, my parents and the coach at Northwestern thought that my best options were to explore other schools.”

Asked if there was anything that changed considering his seemingly favorable situation in Evanston, Sullivan said “nothing that I’ll speak on.”

“I’m just excited to be a Hawkeye, excited for new opportunities here,” Sullivan said.

Iowa was not necessarily an obvious landing spot for Sullivan when he entered the portal.

New offensive coordinator Tim Lester tried recruiting Sullivan when he was the head coach at Western Michigan — enough so for Sullivan to know he is a “great human being” and a “great coach” — but Lester’s recruitment of him did not go far.

“When I narrowed down my schools, they weren’t really the ones I was kind of looking for,” Sullivan said of Lester’s Western Michigan team.

The Hawkeyes “weren’t necessarily the first to reach out” when he entered the portal either.

“I think I’m a Big Ten football player,” Sullivan said. “Whatever’s best for me — and I think that was playing Big Ten ball. And then Coach Ferentz is a great guy and has a great program. So it was the best fit for me.”

His most recent game ironically was against Iowa when he went 12-of-19 for 81 yards and one touchdown against the Hawkeyes’ stout defense. Iowa won that game, 10-7. It could have gone the other way if one of Sullivan’s quarterback sneaks from inside the 1-yard line was successful.

“I was in on that QB sneak,” Sullivan said eight months later.

Soon, he will be seeing that same defensive front — or at least several players from that defensive front — every day in practice as teammates rather than foes.

“Everybody in the country can tell you Iowa is a tough, gritty team,” Sullivan said. “They’re not fun to play against defensively, and I’m kind of excited to play against them every day and get better and grow.”

Comments: john.steppe@thegazette.com

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