IOWA CITY, Iowa – Iowa quarterback C.J. Beathard had surgery last week in Philadelphia to repair a sports hernia.

Hawkeye Report.com was the first to report the news Monday morning. Allhawkeyes.com also has confirmed through sources that Beathard had surgery to repair the same injury that hindered him during the second half of the 2015 season.

The surgery was performed by Dr. William Meyers, who is considered a leading specialist in the field. Meyers has done procedures on numerous NFL players including J.J. Watt and Marshawn Lynch.

The surgery was described as being successful.

Beathard is expected to need about six to eight weeks to recover. That should make him available for most of spring practice, which starts in late March.

Beathard was part of the sellout crowd that attended the Iowa men’s basketball team’s 83-71 victory over Purdue on Sunday at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said at a press conference earlier this month that he didn’t think Beathard would need surgery.

However, the pain persisted and Beathard chose to have surgery.

Iowa Sports Information Director Steve Roe said Monday morning that he was unaware that Beathard had surgery. Roe also said it was doubtful that Iowa would issue a release even if the surgery had occurred because of privacy rules.

Beathard led Iowa to a 12-2 record this past season, earning second-team all-Big Ten accolades. The senior-to-be from Franklin, Tenn., is one of six starters returning for Iowa on offense next season.