Cade McNamara
Cade McNamara
Operates within the system without forcing anything. Cade McNamara has played for two head coaches across four seasons and two programs. 2021 brought the first one: All-Big Ten. One game to point at: 85 pass yds, 1 pass TD against Tennessee — Week 2, 2025.
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- positional archetype classification
- head-coach lineage
- recognition record
- game log
How it ended
Four seasons at Iowa, 4,278 passing yards — his college career is complete.
Career Arc
Trophy Case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
ALL-CONFERENCE
All-Conf mention (2021)
All-Big Ten
Coaching Lineage · 2021–2024
1 coachPlayed his entire career under Kirk Ferentz.
2025 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
Splits & context
Supporting Cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Kirk Ferentz
Awards
Player Standing · 17 rungs
Tier 3 · RecognizedR09 · All-Conference HM / 2nd team
All-Conference HM / 2nd team. Conference recognition has started.
Trophy Case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
ALL-CONFERENCE
All-Conf mention (2021)
All-Big Ten
Career stats
How he plays
Play style
Balanced passer who operates within the system, without one standout number carrying the profile.
CFB Index positional classification
DNA match
Player DNA
Pocket Passer
Balanced passer who operates within the system, without one standout number carrying the profile.
His 2024 production profile sits closest to Kirk Francis’s 2024 season.
Matches Kirk on
Differs from Kirk on
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a graduate, his production profile tracks closest to Nick Vattiato's graduate season at Middle Tennessee (2025).
Matches Nick on
Differs from Nick on
Heisman trajectory
Final Heisman Position · 2024
#242
Heisman watch (#242) · finalist probability 0%.
Development
Development Trajectory · passing yards
2021–2024-61%
Sharp dropoff (-61%) — career inflection point.