IOWA CITY, Iowa – C.J. Beathard has come to grips with his reality. Iowa’s junior quarterback has sustained an injury that will leave him at less than 100 percent health for the rest of the season.

"It’s tough to get up there to 100 percent because each week it starting to get a little bit better and then I’ve got to play and then it goes back. Each week I bring it back and then it goes back again," he said. "It’s just kind of one of those things. I’m not going to be 100 percent but I’m to the point to where I’m decent enough to where I can go out there and play. With the adrenaline going it takes some pain away. I’m not going to force anything. If I feel like I can play effectively, that’s not good for our team. If it ever gets to that point, I’ll let the coaches know."

Beathard sustained a hip injury against Pittsburgh in Week 3. He added a groin issue three games late versus Illinois. He’s become accustomed to playing hurt and has a handle on his limitations.

"It’s been a few weeks that I’ve had this now and it’s frustrating. It’s real frustrating. I don’t feel like myself running the ball and doing different things. It’s frustrating but I kind of know what it is now. I know what I can and can’t do," Beathard said.

Despite his less than ideal health, Beathard has led the Hawkeyes to a 8-0 start, including a 4-0 mark in the Big Ten. He’s the first signal caller in school history to win the first nine starts of his career.

Beathard’s running ability, which proved to be very important in wins against Iowa State and Pittsburgh, has been curtailed with the injuries. He hasn’t thrown a touchdown pass in the last two games. He finished 12 of 23 for 183 yards in Saturday’s 31-15 win against Maryland.

Iowa Coach Kirk Ferentz said Saturday that one of the team’s pet plays, the naked bootleg, would not be called with Beathard hurt.

"There are other things that we can do in that place," Beathard said. "Maybe I will get to the point where we are able to do that again in some games. We’ll just take it week by week."

Ferentz also said that it seemed like Maryland knew Beathard was not the same player that could hurt them with his legs.

"They were loading the box a lot so we had to check out of some stuff," Beathard said. "I don’t know how much they knew I was limited but it didn’t change much."