Sullivan in the portal.
- Thread starter Tippett
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guffus
Well-Known Member
Iowa football: Quarterback Brendan Sullivan enters transfer portal
Iowa's starting QB in last year's bowl game is in the transfer portal.
www.kcci.com
Brendan Sullivan
guffus
Well-Known Member
This is a little surprising. Lester seemed to make a good effort to get Sullivan playing time last year. And although Gronowski was going to be the starter at the start of season, who knows what happens after that.
Maybe Sullivan wants to go some place where he is promised the starting job in game 1. Or maybe he has heard there is another QB coming to Iowa. Not sure what he is thinking.
Maybe Sullivan wants to go some place where he is promised the starting job in game 1. Or maybe he has heard there is another QB coming to Iowa. Not sure what he is thinking.
Can't blame Sully, and it makes no sense for him to stay in ICity. He has 1 year left to play college ball, and with Gronowski already named the starter, and the coaches already in love with him despite not seeing him take a FBS snap -- except in the game he lost to the Hawks at Kinnick -- it was clear Sully was not going to get any playing time other than mop-up duty.
He may have been waiting until this spring to see what Gronowski looked like coming out of rehab. That he's leaving probably is actually a good sign for how well Gonowski is looking.
Sully's got some great game film to show other schools, and will likely start at a mid-major in the fall. He will go down as one of my alltime favorite Hawks, due to his gutsy play, willingness to sacrifice his body for the team, and specifically when he ran past the receiver downfield to throw a block. Dude knew what it meant to play ALL OUT!
He may have been waiting until this spring to see what Gronowski looked like coming out of rehab. That he's leaving probably is actually a good sign for how well Gonowski is looking.
Sully's got some great game film to show other schools, and will likely start at a mid-major in the fall. He will go down as one of my alltime favorite Hawks, due to his gutsy play, willingness to sacrifice his body for the team, and specifically when he ran past the receiver downfield to throw a block. Dude knew what it meant to play ALL OUT!
NorthKCHawk
Well-Known Member
I don't blame the kid. Absent injury, he was likely fighting for some goal line reps and maybe relegated to the 3 spot. He could transfer and drop down a couple notches and probably start at a UNI type. If he thinks he has a better shot at starting somewhere else at this level of play, he is delusional.
I would love to see him stay and I thought he was a nice piece for depth and gadgets, but I think we all saw his ceiling and it wasn't that high. This news neither surprises or particularly bothers me.
I would love to see him stay and I thought he was a nice piece for depth and gadgets, but I think we all saw his ceiling and it wasn't that high. This news neither surprises or particularly bothers me.
Fryowa
Administrator
I don't blame him either. I would've probably made it damn attractive for him to stay though if I was in charge of the money distribution. Me personally, if it came down to being a goal line/wildcat/backup for $500,000 or going to play at UNI for $40K or something...I'm traveling the B1G in style for another year.
Iowa is in that spot where they ride on one QB and one injury can shatter the season unfortunately. Hank Brown might be ok, but he has no snaps in front of Big Ten crowds, and Sullivan has experience and has run the offense on the field with some success.
But...I'm not Brendan Sullivan and maybe Iowa didn't have that kind of money left. I know it's nip and tuck going by what Heinrichs says.
Fryowa
Administrator
Only problem is you can have an all-world left tackle, but if you get a single injury at QB and he's now blocking for a Labas/Lainez/Hill type of guy it ain't gonna make a bit of difference. I really think in the P4 sector you have to yolo your NIL at the QB position, and not just one guy.
NorthKCHawk
Well-Known Member
Fry, you might have different sources than I do on the scale of these things, but I would be shocked if Iowa has a half a mill to throw at what could be the potential third string QB. I mean, the general reporting is that OSU had 22 million in NIL last year, and that Iowa was slightly above average in the conference, so what, maybe they are looking at a budget of 10-12 million? Maybe more if you earmark the House settlement dollars. Figure they already have a couple million invested in Hank and Gronowski, I cannot imagine they could invest that much more in just the QB room. But I get your point that its the most important room. Still, you need a competitive team at every position and that takes some money at every position. At some point, this is becoming like the NFL and managing the cap. If you are neck and neck with a guy and he is substantially cheaper, you have to make the smart decision.
And who knows, Sully may not get a better offer financially. His tape is not amazing.
Fryowa
Administrator
I guess I meant I would take money from other positions first to try and do it. I don't think they have that much extra money sitting around but if you could come up with a few hundred from a donor to keep him, and then add up say $10-20,000 per spot from some other areas.
I know you have to keep paying other spots, but I really think you have to shoot for the moon with your QB room. That's the one position where if you don't have a solid guy you're cooked no matter what happens with the rest of the team. The way we stand right now, Iowa is one hamstring or shoulder injury to Gronowski away from disaster.
NorthKCHawk
Well-Known Member
At the risk of angering the injury gods, I frankly thought our QB room was embarassingly deep. Gronowski was, by most objective measures, the #1 or close to it, portal QB available. He is a day 1 starter, if healthy, and Iowa paid accordingly. Brown has the stars and pedigree, but not much tape. Certainly a developmental guy. Stratton showed some raw talent, and again, is a developmental guy. All accounts are that Lester loves the incoming frosh. That is already a stacked room and then you add Sully on to that list who is the returning starter and has been a starter at two Big 10 schools and is a veteran guy. It did not seem likely to me that Iowa could keep that room together going into '25. Sully was the odd man out unless he was willing to fight for the #2 role again. Sometimes its just a numbers games and at most schools there is only one guy taking snaps.
