Iowa football: Nate Stanley now 3rd in passing TDs, whats next from here

Nate Stanley is working his way up the Iowa football team’s career passing TDs list. Vs Rutgers, he passed Ricky Stanzi. If/When will he pass Tate and Long?

We had a feeling this was going to happen, and within two games, Nate Stanley passed revered Ricky Stanzi on the Iowa football team’s career passing TD list yesterday against Rutgers with a 3-touchdown performance.

I’m here to tell you, that won’t be the only person he passes either. Drew Tate is up next, and if all goes well, we’ll be calling Stanley the Iowa football team’s all-time career passing touchdown leader by the end of the season.

That’s right, gone could be Chuck Long’s long-standing career passing TD record as Stanley needs just 13 more to break the record, which is an average of 1.3  a game (if we are just counting the regular season). Currently, Stanley sits at 58 career passing touchdowns while Long has 70.

For as much as people like to complain about the third-year signal caller, that record is significant, and it’s a testament to the hard work and talent level of Stanley.

Each of the three guys who were in front of him, were either on our top-30 Hawkeye of all-time list  (Chuck Long and Ricky Stanzi) or were strongly considered (Drew Tate).

Again, I know folks like to complain about Stanley’s accuracy and touch issues or even the 1 or 2 plays a game that leaves you scratching your head, but let’s not see the forest for the trees here, Stanley is making history right now.

And we should appreciate it.

Since joining the Iowa football program, Stanley has been a fantastic leader who has embodied everything it means to be an Iowa Hawkeye. He’s in line to break the career passing TDs record, and if the Hawks win their bowl game this postseason, he will be just the second Iowa Hawkeye quarterback to ever win three bowl games (tied with Ricky Stanzi) and one of the few in all of CFB history to do so as well.

Looking at the schedule and based on his current pace, I project Nate Stanley will surpass Drew Tate’s 61 touchdown passes against Middle Tennessee State and I think he will surpass Chuck Long later in the season versus Purdue or Northwestern.