C.J. Beathard and changes bring a breath of fresh air to the Hawkeye football team.

By Ryan Rodriguez
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The Hawkeye faithful are probably all too excited for Saturday. 

Excited for more game days in Kinnick Stadium, sure, but also anxious to put a lot of mileage between themselves and the memories of last year’s crushingly mediocre 2014 campaign.

The team is, too.

With the departure of former quarterback Jake Rudock for Michigan, starter C.J. Beathard will now have an uncontested starter’s role for the first time as a Hawkeye. 

At a time when much of the football program was beginning to seem dull and repetitive, a bit of change could be just what the doctor ordered.

“It does feel a little bit different this year,” Beathard said. “For one, I know I’m starting going into the season, so I’m probably more excited about this season than ever. I think all of us are.”

Beathard’s first year as a starter comes after toiling on the Iowa depth chart for three years, including a faux quarterback controversy last season with Rudock that many saw as a sign of a stale, dysfunctional team heading in the wrong direction.

That controversy does not exist in 2015. With Rudock gone, the biggest reminder of last year’s frustrations has been swept away. 

“I’m excited.  I’ve been excited ever since the end of the bowl game last year,” Beathard said. “We just want to get this season underway and get things started on Saturday.”

The commitment to Beathard and the decision to let Rudock transfer signals not just a change in personnel for the Iowa offense but also a noticeable shift in philosophy by head coach Kirk Ferentz and his staff.

The decision to go with a more dynamic, explosive quarterback and the commitment to a more speedy, shifty group of playmakers is a breath of fresh air for the traditionally ground-and-pound Hawkeyes.

For the first time in three seasons, Iowa’s primary running backs are actually running backs and not a fullback. Night games have returned to Kinnick. Blackout jerseys are soon on their way as well.

It just feels different.

“I don’t think it’s just C.J., it’s a lot of things,” center Austin Blythe said. “It’s an understanding that what we did last year wasn’t good. It was average. We don’t want to be average.”

Blythe has probably felt the changes of the past six months more than anyone else. 

The Williamsburg, Iowa, native started all 13 games on the Hawkeye offensive line last season, including six as a center during which he worked with both Beathard and Rudock.

What’s more, Blythe and Rudock had developed a pretty close friendship while at Iowa together, both redshirting during their freshman years in 2011.

Now only Beathard remains.

“I don’t think last year was a distraction, but this year, we’ve got C.J., and he’s our guy,” Blythe said. “He’s the leader of this team, and we’re going to be behind him and let him make some plays for us.”

Beathard has never been “the guy” before, and no one will know for sure if he’s capable until he starts more than one game, even if many suspect that he’ll be up to the task. 

In fact, it’s fair to say that there are question marks all over the field for the Hawkeyes, and a team with this many unknowns going into a season is hardly ideal if the goal is a Big Ten championship.

But there is one thing that is certain: So far, the 2015 Hawkeyes have been anything but stale.

And that in and of itself is a reason for excitement.

“I think part of our motivation back in January was just to bring some clarity to the situation that we felt needed to be addressed, and I think it probably was a good thing for both players,” Ferentz said. “That’s anytime you have that, that’s a win-win situation.”

Follow @ryanarod on Twitter for news, updates, and analysis about the Iowa football team.