Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz promises he’s not being evasive when he expresses that he has no idea who will be his team’s starting quarterback in the season opener.
The competition between Jeremy Hecklinski and Hank Brown continues as the No. 22 Hawkeyes ramp up preparations for Saturday’s opening game against Northern Illinois at Iowa City.
Hecklinski and Brown are vying to replace the departed Mark Gronowski and their summer battle has left little room for separation.
“Quarterback’s a position that certainly draws the most attention, and, again, we weren’t trying to be coy or cute on that,” Ferentz said Tuesday. “I think that’s really where it’s at right now. The bottom line is, we don’t know who will start the game.
“Somebody’s going to do that, but I think it’s safe to say that both guys will play during the course of the game and then we’ll just play it out from there.”
Brown joined the Hawkeyes last season after two campaigns at Auburn. He was 11-of-21 passing for 107 yards, one touchdown and one interception in three appearances last season.
Hecklinski was at Wake Forest in 2024 before joining the Hawkeyes last season. He threw two passes — completing both — in two appearances with the Hawkeyes.
Ferentz said a rotation plan will be in place by kickoff.
“We really haven’t put a pen to it yet, but it’s probably I think fair to say something like that,” said Ferentz, whose team finished 9-4 last season. “Pitch count if you will. So, if we’ve got a three-and-out, try to give the guy an opportunity to get his feet on the ground and play a little bit. Yeah, I can envision something like that where we script something out and keep everything flexible.”
Running backs Kamari Moulton and L.J. Phillips should receive plenty of work. Moulton had a team-best 878 rushing yards last season while Phillips starred at FCS South Dakota and led that division with 1,921 rushing yards to go with 19 touchdowns.
Defensively, free safety Zach Lutmer leads the way after having 71 tackles and three interceptions (one for a TD) last season.
Northern Illinois (3-9 in 2025) also has an unsettled quarterback situation heading into the opener.
Western Carolina transfer Taron Dickens could be in line to get the call. But holdovers Brady Davidson and Jalen Macon were still part of the competition as of Tuesday, according to interim first-year coach Rob Harley.
“Right now, we want to see them have a good week of practice,” Harley said. “We’re going to finish this whole process. We’re not going to make any rash decisions.”
The optimism surrounding Dickens stems from his banner 2025 season when he completed an FCS-best 74.2% of his passes for 3,508 yards, 38 touchdowns and just two interceptions in his third season with the Catamounts.
Following the season, he entered the transfer portal, choosing Bill Belichick-led North Carolina. He later changed his mind and joined the Huskies.
Davidson threw 87 passes for Northern Illinois in 2025. He completed just 46% for 384 yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions. Macon is 13-of-28 passing for 155 yards and one touchdown over the past two seasons. He did run for 216 yards on 45 carries with five touchdowns last season.
Receiver DeAree Rogers had 46 catches for 506 yards and three touchdowns last season. Nobody else on the squad even reached 150 receiving yards.
Northern Illinois joined the Mountain West for football in 2026 after previously competing in the Mid-American Conference.
“We have a new team in a lot of ways,” Harley said. “There’s a lot of new faces and they are preparing for Week 1 for the first time.”
Iowa leads the series 9-1. Northern Illinois’ win came in 2013 when it prevailed 30-27 at Iowa City.