Iowa football: Nate Stanley is our quarterback, and that’s a good thing

No matter what he does, Iowa football fans don’t seem to appreciate what senior quarterback Nate Stanley does, but they should, and here’s why.

Often times, if you have a three-time team captain and two-year starter at quarterback, you’ve got a good thing going. This is the exact position the Iowa football team is in, but you wouldn’t know it by how much fans complain about him.

Before I begin expressing why Iowa football fans should be appreciative of Stanley, I want to first address some of his perceived faults.

So, here they are:

• He’s inaccurate
• Historically has a knack for 1 or 2 real bad throws a game
• Doesn’t put up big passing numbers
• Falls silent in big games

Now let me address those:

• Inaccuracy: This is 100% an accurate statement (see what I did there), but the guy is improving. He has improved his accuracy numbers every single year, and this year he is completing 63.4% of his passes while taking more shots deep. Yes, there are a few throws a game that sail over receivers or are off target, but his accuracy is no longer in the territory of terrible.
• A few bad throws a game: Yeah, this one I can’t really argue against depending on your idea of a few bad throws. Last season, it seemed like there was at least one ball a game where it just goes right into the opposing team’s hands. We’ve haven’t seen that yet this year, but we have seen a few throws go real off-target.
• Doesn’t put big passing numbers: No quarterback really does in the Iowa football team’s passing attack. It just doesn’t happen. And if you want numbers, consider the fact that he has already passed former three-year starter Ricky Stanzi for career touchdown passes and is on pace to break Chuck Long’s career record.
• Falls silent in big games: Maybe statistically speaking the big games aren’t his best, but the guy is undefeated in 3 of our 4 rivalry games (Iowa State 3-0, Minnesota 2-0, Nebraska 2-0) and he is 2-0 in bowl games including last year’s Outback Bowl win over ranked Mississippi State.

Now that we have that covered, let’s get into more nuances of Nate Stanley’s game.

First and foremost, the dude is a leader who works tirelessly at his craft. The biggest compliment a guy can get is getting any sort of recognition from arguably the hardest-working quarterback in the history of the game, Peyton Manning. After attending the Manning Passing Academy, Stanley was highly praised for his attention to detail and work effort.

Heading into 2019, Stanley had basically shown nothing from a mobility standpoint and for good reason: he isn’t that fast. But like other good quarterbacks with limited mobility, he finds a way to win with his legs when needed. Just take the Iowa State game for example where he rushed for two key Iowa football first downs on third down plays.

Second, outside of being a leader, the guy is a winner. As I said above, in rivalry games and bowl games, he is 9-2 with the two losses coming to Wisconsin. Moreover, as of right now, Stanley has 20 career wins. For comparison’s sake, Stanzi had 28 and Drew Tate had 27 in three years of starting. Chuck Long had 35, albeit in four years, but if the Iowa football team can put together a great season, there is no reason to think Stanley couldn’t finish second all-time in career wins.

Third and finally, if you still don’t like him after the above, to be honest, you might as well just suck it up. He’s not going anywhere. Kirk Ferentz even said after the Iowa football team’s win over Iowa State that he’s sure glad Stanley is his quarterback.