Iowa’s quarterback competition is finally the real thing, and that’s exactly how Kirk Ferentz and Tim Lester want it heading into fall camp.
The Hawkeyes are not close to naming a starter, and there’s no sense that anyone inside the program is bothered by that. Camp opens Monday, with Iowa’s first official practice set for Wednesday, and the message from the program has been consistent: compete, develop, and let the battle play out.
That approach makes sense given where Iowa is now. Lester inherited a complete overhaul at quarterback when he arrived in 2024, and now, for the first time, the Hawkeyes have real depth and a true fight for the job. Even better for Iowa, multiple quarterbacks are entering their second full year in Lester’s system.
Auburn transfer Hank Brown has looked like a different player this summer than he did a year ago. He’s been more composed in the pocket, more consistent with his footwork and more willing to push the ball vertically when the chance is there.
That showed up during spring work, and Brown’s growth has gone beyond mechanics. He has continued building relationships with coaches and teammates, and the extra reps have helped him take another step.
“It's huge. Preparation breeds confidence,” Brown said this summer.
“When you're in a system for that long and you understand there are so many nuances within this offense and so many minuscule details that you don't necessarily need to know, but are helpful to know, it builds confidence in what you're doing. And so, when you already know the concepts, the formations and the nuanced details, you can keep your focus on what the defense is doing so that what we're doing just becomes natural.”
Wake Forest transfer Jeremy Hecklinski brings a different kind of challenge. He’s been compared to former Iowa quarterback Drew Tate because of his gunslinger style, and his game leans more toward improvisation than Brown’s traditional pocket-passer build.
He’s smaller in stature, but he can fit throws into tight windows and create big plays when things break down. Over the past few months, he’s also been pushed to sharpen his decision-making, something he’s taken seriously.
Ferentz, meanwhile, has spent the summer giving reporters very little to work with. At Big Ten Media Day, he was asked about the quarterback battle over and over again, and he never budged. Instead, he leaned on his usual habit of drawing comparisons to past Iowa situations, including one from 2008.
“Sometimes it's obvious who is going to be the guy. That's for sure.
Sometimes, it's truly a not sure at this point, and that's where we are in the competition at this point,” Ferentz said. “I think what's going to end up happening - I don't know if it's going to happen, but I always reference 2008 when Ricky Stanzi was our second-team quarterback and Pat Angerer was our second team linebacker in August, then both of those guys became starters in October.
Played really well that year and then really great in 2009, which was our Orange Bowl year.”
“I think we're going to have a lot of stories like that this year, quarterback is where there's a lot of focus right now, but we'll make that decision when it comes time and rely on the staff's opinion. No one knows more than Tim Lester. He coaches the quarterbacks and played that position, and he's calling the plays, so he'll have a big vote on that.”
The most telling part of Iowa’s recent interviews is what’s not there: no panic. Brown and Hecklinski have both said they’re best friends off the field, and the staff has framed the offseason as a chance for both quarterbacks to push each other toward their ceiling. Their skill sets are different, their strengths are different, and that’s part of what makes the competition so interesting.
Iowa also made a decision this offseason by not returning to the transfer portal for another quarterback. Ferentz and Lester want the position to grow from within, and that fits the way Iowa prefers to build. As Zach Lutmer put it, both quarterbacks have brought something different to the spring.
“They're both different quarterbacks and you're thinking different things when they're both in there. Hank is a super, relaxed, calm dude.
He gets the job done. He's going to go out and throw the deep ball now, he's put that into his game.
He's shown that throughout the spring,” Lutmer said. “Jeremy is the same way.
He's always been that guy who is going to throw it deep and make plays on his feet when he needs to. They've both given us challenges throughout the spring and it's going to be super fun to see the battle and how close it is.
They're both competing every single day and there is no turmoil, which is awesome to see.”
Now the real work begins. Iowa is headed into camp with a genuine quarterback race, and the next few weeks will show whether Brown or Hecklinski can start separating from the pack.
In Other News...
Tavion Banks Leaves Iowa With Ben McCollum Facing Another Roster Test
Tavion Banks departure adds another early roster wrinkle for Ben McCollum as he continues shaping Iowas mens basketball program for the future. Banks announced on Instagram that he will not return to the Hawkeyes despite having another year of eligibility, closing the book on a season in which he quickly became a key contributor after transferring in from Drake.
For Iowa, the move is another reminder that roster building under a new staff is rarely smooth, especially when a player who helped last season decides to move on. Banks thanked the coaching staff, teammates and fans in his farewell message, leaving the Hawkeyes to absorb one more exit while McCollum keeps working through the lineup decisions that will define his first roster in Iowa City. [Read more 🡒]
Iowa Faces 3 Huge Camp Battles That Could Define This Season
Iowa heads into fall camp with a roster that looks far less settled than usual, and that alone makes the next few weeks worth watching. With only 10 starters back, the Hawkeyes are trying to sort out multiple jobs at once, and the most visible uncertainty sits at quarterback, where Hank Brown and Jeremy Hecklinski are both still in the mix as the staff looks for someone to grab hold of the offense.
The questions do not stop there, either. There are openings along both lines, where departures have created a wide path for new faces to compete for starting roles and reshape the front on both sides of the ball. For a program that usually leans on stability and development, this camp could end up defining not just who starts, but how quickly Iowa can turn a thin list of returnees into something sturdy enough for the season ahead. [Read more 🡒]
Tavion Banks Just Left Iowa Fans Waiting On One Big Decision
A Colorado judges ruling has given members of the 2022 recruiting class, including Tavion Banks, another year of NCAA eligibility under the new five-year model, and it immediately turned what looked like a straightforward Iowa decision into something much more complicated. Banks had already applied for a fifth year after exhausting his eligibility, and he had initially signaled a desire to come back to Iowa, which made the Hawkeyes one of the obvious teams watching this story closely.
Now the picture is less certain. Banks is weighing his next move and the ruling has created uncertainty not just for his college future, but for programs trying to plan around players suddenly eligible for one more season. For Iowa fans, the wait continues on the one question that mattered most: whether Banks next stop will still be in Iowa City. [Read more 🡒]