The Hawkeyes may have found a gem in the 2026 recruiting class

The Hawkeye Football program is not what you would call "quarterback U."

Mark Gronowski, the current starting quarterback, has had a dynamic college career at South Dakota State and Iowa, but has underperformed in the passing game.

Before Gronowski, Iowa was in the quarterback doldrums, cycling through bad quarterback after bad quarterback since 2019.

Coupled with poor quarterback development

Nate Stanley was the last good quarterback Iowa recruited and developed, and the Iowa passing attack has been the butt of a lot of jokes since he graduated in 2019.

With Gronowski graduating after this season, the Hawkeyes will need a new quaterback to take the reigns next season.

All three of Iowa's quarterbacks on the roster have little to no experience at the college level, so it remains to be seen who will take the starting job.

After early signing day, the Hawkeyes secured the commitment of a four-star quarterback prospect who has the potential to turn into a gem for the Iowa offense.

Recent Iowa signee Tradon Bessinger was tabbed as Rivals Sports 'biggest sleeper' in the 2026 recruiting class.

Bessinger was dynamic throughout his high school career, compiling 10,908 passing yards and 127 touchdowns, while also adding 397 rushing yards and seven touchdowns on the ground.

His senior year was one of the best of his career as he tallied 4,313 passing yards and 53 touchdowns, while completing 76 percent of his passes.

Bessinger has a big arm and is comfortable as a pure "pocket passer," but he has also shown the ability to get out of the pocket and complete passes on the run.

We will not know what Bessinger will do before he throws a pass in Iowa City, but people are taking notice of his talent before he steps on campus.