So far, Cade McNamara’s Iowa band is playing its same old sad song

IOWA CITY — The reason Kinnick Stadium sold out for the season is Cade McNamara.

Yes, Kinnick usually is at capacity or near-capacity for Iowa football games, but there was no bounce to be had from last season’s 8-5 Hawkeyes and their woeful offense.

However, McNamara announced he was transferring from Michigan to Iowa in mid-December, and the Hawkeyes’ 2022 season started to melt away in the wintertime even before the Music City Bowl was conquered.

You didn’t need to introduce McNamara to the consumers. He quarterbacked the Wolverines when they stomped Iowa 42-3 in the 2021 Big Ten championship. He played in a national playoff. He was the first Michigan quarterback to beat Ohio State in 10 years.

Happy days were here again. Enthusiasm for the Hawkeyes’ next season soared the moment McNamara declared himself a Hawkeye.

The guy had completed 64.2% of his passes over 14 starts in 2021, a number that was as distant here as the Milky way. He passed for 2,576 yards that season, had 15 touchdown passes to just six interceptions, and won.

That guy hasn’t really been here yet. It’s understandable. He had to sit out spring practice to protect a knee that had been operated on last year, then he hurt a quad muscle in an August open practice at Kinnick and missed a lot more practice time.

The McNamara tormented by Penn State defenders in Iowa’s 31-0 loss to the Nittany Lions last Saturday night in State College wasn’t the guy who tormented the Hawkeyes in Indianapolis two years ago.

This year’s Cade has four TD throws and three picks over four games. His quarterback rating is 30 points less than it was two years ago, and he’s averaging almost 70 fewer passing yards per game than in 2021.

The champagne that popped in Hawkeyeland last December with the news of McNamara’s arrival has gone flat. Iowa’s offense was flattened at Penn State, with embarrassing totals of four first downs and 76 yards.

The Hawkeyes find themselves 131st of the 133 FBS teams in total offense at 245.5 yards per game (thank you, Eastern Michigan and Sam Houston State), after closing 2022 at 130th of 131 at 251.6 ypg.

That’s not Michigan’s offensive line or its running game or its receiving corps McNamara is riding with now.

Last December, he was on a podcast called “The QB Room” with NFL quarterback Kyle Allen and former NFL quarterback Jordan Palmer. The hosts viewed Iowa as an offensive desert. McNamara saw gold under all the dust.

“I’m well-aware of how Iowa’s offense is viewed,” he said then. “But for me, it’s like the biggest opportunity to flip it, so that’s what I get fired up about.

“It’s like, OK, please just keep on saying that it’s the s___tiest offense in college football, please just think we’re going to be so s___ty next year. Please.”

McNamara was more subdued Tuesday, but without a whiff of surrender. His team’s 3-1 and has no more ranked opponents on the schedule. Not that it will matter if the offense doesn’t start playing something more than No. 131.

“The season is not over yet,” he said. “We’re continually evaluating every single week. We’re not even close to a finished product. There’s a reason why you play 12 games in a season. There’s a reason why there’s four quarters in a game.”

Immediately after the Hawkeyes got to their locker room following the egg they laid Saturday, McNamara took it upon himself to address his teammates.

He wouldn’t tell the outside world what he said, but did note “Usually, I have a pretty good feeling as to what needs to be said and when.

“I’m not going to say anything to put anyone down or anything. Everything is focused on getting better and making sure we’re all in the right place.”

When McNamara started for Michigan against Michigan State two years ago, he passed for 383 yards and two touchdowns in a 37-33 loss.

Iowa would settle for a big chunk of those 33 points and take its chances against the Spartans Saturday in Iowa City.

The season is 12 games long, yes, but those games come fast. As is known too well around here, you can’t stay at the bottom of the national offensive rankings all year and expect anything much better than a s___ty feeling at the end.

Comments: (319) 398-8440; mike.hlas@thegazette.com