IOWA CITY -- With 8:11 left in the first quarter of Saturday's game against Michigan State, Iowa starting quarterback Cade McNamara went down with what looked to be a serious injury to his left leg. The sellout Kinnick Stadium crowd immediately fell silent.
Eventually helped off the field by the Iowa training staff, McNamara wouldn't see any action for the rest of the game, ultimately returning to the field just after halftime and using crutches.
McNamara's absence set the stage for second-string QB and Wisconsin transfer Deacon Hill to get the first meaningful snaps of his college football career. The last came in 2021, when he was a senior in high school.
"It was a very quick turn of events," Hill said postgame. "We prep all week. Coach (Jon) Budmayr and Brian (Ferentz) really state that 'Even though you're not the starter, you have to prepare like the starter.' So, it's all about just doing my job."
"It was kind of strange, because as long as I've been playing in college, Cade has been the one who has been throwing the ball to me," Erick All added. "Deacon throws that thing hard. It's a difference for sure."
And Hill... wasn't terrible.
In a year that has continued the horrid trend of the Hawkeye offense being among the worst in the country, Hill didn't make it any worse. In fact, his first half stats were solid. The former three-star prospect out of Santa Barbara, California went 6-11 for 73 yards and a touchdown before halftime.
Granted, three of those receptions, 62 of those yards and the touchdown all went to All, but the Iowa offense scored nonetheless.
"I was very hyped up [after the touchdown]," Hill said. "That was a great drive we put together, all around. I couldn't have done it without Erick or the offensive line. I think we were all the same amount of hyped."
"Throwing the ball to Erick during the time I was running with the ones at practice, and him just being upbeat all the time, you really start to build that connection," he added. "And when you have a 6'5" 200-something-pound athletic freak, you're probably going to throw the ball to him."
With the score and an exchanging of first half field goals, Hill and the Hawkeyes took a 10-9 lead into the half.
The second half wasn't nearly as pretty -- or lucky -- for the Hawkeye offense. The Michigan State defense returned a Leshon Williams fumble for a score to make it 16-10, and Hill followed it up with an interception on the next possession.
The only points Iowa scored in the third quarter came when the Spartans turned the ball over on downs on their own 30-yard line. The ensuing Iowa drive went three plays for negative five yards and ended in a Drew Stevens 52-yard field goal. Michigan State took a 16-13 lead into the fourth.
Then the football gods showed their favor on Iowa City once again. Though Hill and the Iowa offense weren't able to get in the end zone again in the fourth quarter, the Hawkeye defense held strong, Stevens hit two more field goals, and Cooper DeJean saved the day with a 70-yard punt return touchdown that gave Iowa the 23-16 lead with 3:45 remaining. All of which culminated in Hill's first win as the Hawkeyes' quarterback.
"It was pretty surreal," he said. "Especially in a night game at Kinnick -- that's what dreams are made of. It was a lifetime experience that I'll never forget. The best part was being with my team -- us pulling it through and winning."
Hill finished 11-27 for 115 yards, a touchdown, and an interception. It was far from perfect, but his head coach was pleased for now.
"It's one thing to practice and another thing to step in there when the game is on the line," Kirk Ferentz said. "I thought he showed good poise out there, played with confidence and his teammates rallied around him. He made some good throws and had some other ones we can probably improve on, but I thought he did a good job for the first time in a really critical moment."
