By Pat Harty

IOWA CITY, Iowa – Cade McNamara’s journey as a college quarterback has taken him to incredible heights, but also to the lowest of lows.

From leading Michigan to the 2021 Big Ten title, and to the college playoff, to then suffering season-ending knee injuries in each of the past two seasons, McNamara knows how it feels to be a champion, but also how it feels to be lonely and isolated.

He knows how it feels to be the center of attention, and how it feels to sort of be an afterthought.

He knows how it feels to win a quarterback competition at two different Big Ten schools, but also how it feels to lose one.

So, maybe that helps to explain McNamara’s answer when asked on Tuesday if his confidence is maybe at all-time high because of his uplifting performance in last Saturday’s 40-0 victory over Illinois State.

McNamara, who transferred from Michigan to Iowa after the 2022 season, had by far his best game as a Hawkeye as he threw three touchdown passes, and passed for 251 yards in the season opener.

He also didn’t throw an interception, and more importantly, he made it through the game without suffering any physical setbacks.

“Honestly, it feels like a relief,” McNamara said. “It’s been a tough two years for me personally. And for me to finally be out there and feel like I played the way I think I should be able to play, and the impact I can have on our offense, that felt really good.

“And for me to come back Sunday morning and not have to go to the training room was a really good feeling.”

You could almost sense the relief in McNamara’s voice as he answered questions from the media for about 10 minutes on Tuesday.

There was just a different vibe compared to last Tuesday when McNamara met with the media for about five minutes.

He wasn’t rude or dismissive while being interviewed last week.

He just seemed a little guarded and reserved.

And it was easy to understand why because just a few days earlier on Aug. 22, Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz had announced in a release that he would serve a one-game suspension for committing a level two recruiting violation.

Ferentz never mentioned McNamara’s name in the release, or when Ferentz met with the media on Aug. 23 to address his self-imposed suspension.

But it already had been confirmed by multiple media outlets that McNamara was the player involved with the improper communication way back in late 2022.

McNamara declined to comment on the NCAA investigation when he met briefly with the media on Aug. 27.

But what a difference a week can make in the life of a college football player, especially for someone whose college career has been filled with all sorts of emotional peaks and valleys.

Kirk Ferentz already has served his one-game suspension as he watched from home as his team pulled away from Illinois State in the second half, while McNamara finally has shown why Iowa was so eager, and maybe too eager, to land him from the transfer portal.

McNamara was able to walk past the training room on Sunday because his surgically repaired knees made it through the Illinois State game unscathed.

The only pain he felt was the kind that comes from playing in a college football game and taking some hits.

But in a way, it was a good pain, the kind of pain that a football player deals with as part of the daily grind.

“I felt a couple bruises for the first time in a long time and it felt really good,” McNamara said.

Players often say that one of the worst parts about being injured is the loneliness and the isolation that comes from being away from your teammates and coaches on game day.

Your phone turns silent, with exception to the never-ending support from your family, and the season moves on without you.

McNamara dealt with that loneliness in each of the past two seasons, first at Michigan and then as a Hawkeye.

But after playing well against Illinois State, McNamara’s phone was abuzz as well wishers, and even some voices from the past reached out to congratulate him

“I have a lot of text messages and everything, which is really cool,” said McNamara, who is from Reno, Nevada. “Some people that I haven’t heard from in a while and some people that I’ve been relying on a lot through this process. I was just really happy to hear from those people.

“Even from people back home from Reno, Nevada. I haven’t been there in so long, but to hear that they still support me, that means a lot to me.”

McNamara credits his family, especially his grandmother, for helping him to cope with the misery that comes from being injured for so long.

“I love my family,” McNamara said. “I love my grandparents. I’ve been very blessed to have an unbelievable family whose been nothing but supportive throughout my life.”

“The moments that I get to spend with them is special.”

McNamara completed 21-of-31 passes against Illinois State, but perhaps his favorite completion was the one to tight end Zach Ortwerth that gained 31 yards.

McNamara’s surgically repaired knee was put to the test on that play as the original play call broke down, forcing him to scramble from the pocket and to freelance.

He scrambled to his right, then turned back to his left before connecting with Ortwerth, who after seeing that McNamara was in trouble worked to get open downfield.

Ortwerth still had a defender draped all over him when McNamara placed the ball exactly where it needed to be.

After watching Ortwerth make the catch, McNamara turned to the Iowa bench and unleashed nearly two years of pent-up emotion.

“That one got me going,” McNamara said. “Plays like that and when the offense is running, and when you’re able to feel the momentum, especially feel the impact that the crowd has on the game when big plays occur, that’s a part of the game that we love.”

McNamara praised Ortwerth for reacting to the situation on the field.

“That was a lot of freelance,” McNamara said of his pass to Ortwerth. “There was an original play and that play broke down pretty fast. It was just kind of natural play. Ortwerth did an unbelievable job. He knew that I was scrambling, and he was able to adjust his original route. And I then was kind of leading him more inside to stack the defender and that’s exactly what he did. And he ended up making an unbelievable play.”

Kirk Ferentz watched the Illinois State game from home and was pleased with how McNamara responded in the second half, and with how the offense responded under new offensive coordinator Tim Lester.

“To see him keep his attitude positive and keep working through it — he was much cleaner in the second half, and that’s what you hope a guy is going to do,” Kirk Ferentz said of McNamara. “He has game experience. That’s in his pocket. That’s a good thing for him. But that two-year gap is something that he’s had to work through.

“It was good to see him. He looked relaxed, looked confident, and that was in the second half, and those are positive things. You can’t hand that to a player. They have to go out and experience it and earn it.”

There was talk and speculation heading into the season opener that McNamara was in danger of losing his starting position to Northwestern transfer Brendan Sullivan, who outperformed him in the Kids Day practice on Aug. 10.

But that talk has since been silenced, at least for now.

McNamara’s only concern now is preparing for Iowa State.

He will face the Cyclones for the second time when the teams meet on Saturday at Kinnick Stadium.

McNamara was victorious in his first start against the Cyclones as Iowa hung on to win 20-13 in Ames last season.

But his performance left much to be desired as he only completed 12-of-23 passes for 123 yards and one interception.

“We’re going to have to play our best in order to win,” McNamara said.

The Iowa State game was among five that McNamara started last season before suffering the season-ending knee injury.

However, he also was also slowed by a quad injury in all five of his starts last season, whereas now he’s healthy and his phone is ringing again.