By Pat Harty

IOWA CITY, Iowa – When spring practice starts in late March, the Iowa football team is expected to have Brendan Sullivan, Hank Brown, Jackson Stratton and incoming freshman Jimmy Sullivan representing the quarterback position.

Probably in that order, too.

Nothing is certain in this age of the transfer portal and NIL, but the situation at quarterback for does appear to be working itself out.

Iowa was among the top contenders to add Penn State backup quarterback Beau Pribula from the portal until he committed to Missouri on Sunday.

Though, a team can never have enough quarterbacks, you have to wonder if Brendan Sullivan would have stuck with Iowa if Pribula had committed to the Hawkeyes.

Probably not.

It’s also reasonable to believe that Brendan Sullivan’s presence on the Iowa roster might have been what ultimately steered Pribula away from Iowa.

Brendan Sullivan and Pribula having similar playing styles in that both are running threats more than passing threats.

There is a risk with that playing style, however, as Iowa fans saw this season when Brendan Sullivan injured his ankle against UCLA and then missed the final two regular-season games against Maryland and Nebraska.

Brendan Sullivan was more experienced when he came to Iowa last summer after having started eight games for Northwestern over the previous two season, whereas Penn State used Pribula mostly in brief backup appearances as a change-of-pace option this season and last season.

Brendan Sullivan is expected to start against Missouri in the Music City Bowl on Dec. 30 in Nashville, Tennessee, and he will almost certainly take snaps with the No. 1 offense throughout spring practice.

In other words, the position will be his to lose, and maybe Pribula didn’t want to deal with that circumstance.

Pribula’s pick of Missouri also was impacted by NIL without question.

Brad Heinrichs, who is the CEO of the Iowa Swarm Collective, posted on X Sunday asking for fans to support Iowa’s NIL collective.

“To all those who are capable and willing we are trying to land some guys in the transfer portal right now,” Heinrichs posted. “these guys are difference-makers. Any support you are willing to provide would be amazing.”   

Heinrichs was obviously taking about Pribula and more than likely Tennessee-Chattanooga receiver Sam Phillips, who is reportedly down to Iowa, Virginia Tech and Memphis according to On3sports.

A lot can happen from now until the start of the 2025 season, especially in regard to the quarterbacks.

Iowa offensive coordinator Tim Lester has been aggressive in the portal since the end of the regular season, and he will likely stay aggressive because the search for quarterbacks is never-ending.

Just because it now seems apparent which quarterbacks Iowa will have on the roster this spring doesn’t mean it’ll stay that way over the summer.

The current portal window remains open until Dec. 28, while the spring portal window will last from April 16-25.

That’s why Lester has to stay on the hunt for quarterbacks because you never know who might suddenly become available.

Iowa also has to be smart with its NIL money because there is only so much to go around, and remember, the veteran players, such as All-Big Ten center Logan Jones and defensive end Ethan Hurkett, deserve a slice of the NIL pie.

There is always the risk of messing with a team’s culture when a bunch of money is paid to one player in the portal.

Pribula reportedly signed a $1.5 million deal with Missouri according to On3, and that just shows how much leverage the student-athletes have in the portal right now since Pribula isn’t even a starter.

Iowa would have taken a huge risk by spending that much money on one player, especially coming off the Cade McNamara experience at quarterback.

Iowa also needs help at multiple positions, including defensive line, and there is now help coming as Central Michigan defensive lineman Jonah Pace announced his commitment to Iowa Monday afternoon.

The 6-foot-5, 285-pound Pace had 34 tackles this past season and four sacks.

He has one season of eligibility remaining.

Iowa is also reportedly a contender to land Rice offensive tackle Ethan Onianwa, and in both cases, NIL money will have to be spent.

Hank Brown and Jimmy Sullivan will both enroll for the spring semester and will travel with the team to Nashville for the bowl game.

“They can travel with us to the bowl game, but they can’t play,” said Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz.

For both quarterbacks, just having the chance to travel with the team and to participate in spring practice should be beneficial as they adjust to being Iowa quarterbacks.

But remember, the situation at quarterback is always fluid.