IOWA CITY, Iowa — Mark Gronowski was on the losing side of what he jokingly called “the greatest offensive game of all time.”
Gronowski was South Dakota State’s quarterback when the Jackrabbits lost 7-3 at Iowa in the 2022 season opener, with the Hawkeyes’ points coming from two safeties and a field goal.
Now Gronowski’s job is to lead Iowa’s offense, which has been the butt of more than a few jokes for the way it has lumbered through recent seasons.
Iowa ranked 72nd in scoring and 117th in total offense under new coordinator Tim Lester last season, an improvement over the previous two years when the Hawkeyes were at or near the bottom of the FBS rankings in both categories.
But Iowa still ranked 129th in passing, so the need for a quarterback out of the NCAA transfer portal was an offseason necessity.
Gronowski likes having the chance to help the Hawkeyes.
“Talking with Lester and kind of seeing the progression of the offense from the prior year to this last year was really cool to see, and he wants to continue to grow (the passing) offense as well,” Gronowski said.
Gronowski threw for 10,308 yards and won 49 games in his four seasons at South Dakota State, leading the Jackrabbits to FCS national championships in 2022 and 2023. He won the Walter Payton Award in 2023, given to the top FCS offensive player.
The Naperville native and Neuqua Valley alumnus went into the transfer portal after last season and considered entering the NFL draft, but he decided to stay in college because of a shoulder injury that required offseason surgery.
“That whole process, the transfer portal itself, is a crazy deal,” said Gronowski, who estimated at one point early in the process he had 100 missed calls and another 100 missed texts from recruiters. “Definitely talked to a lot of different scouts about my opportunities in the NFL, and we kind of decided — me and my parents and my agent — that it was going to be best to come back for another year.
“And after talking with Iowa and just the culture here, having a Hall of Fame coach like Coach (Kirk) Ferentz, and also being very similar to what I had at South Dakota State teamwise with a winning culture, that’s why I ended up choosing Iowa.”
Ferentz hasn’t had much luck with transfer quarterbacks. Cade McNamara was injured for much of his two seasons with the Hawkeyes after transferring from Michigan, and Brendan Sullivan, who transferred from Northwestern before last season, started the last three games and went back into the portal.
Iowa brought in quarterback Hank Brown from Auburn in addition to Gronowski, who turns 24 in October and has four years of starting experience.
“We got to see him on film, and that speaks for itself, whether it was how he played but more importantly what I think quarterback is all about — it’s a leadership position,” Ferentz said. “There’s no avoiding that. He clearly did that. He delivered his team to victory a lot, and that’s really impressive.”
Gronowski hasn’t done much in spring practice as he rehabilitates the injured shoulder, but he said his recovery is ahead of schedule.
“The training staff here has been awesome throughout the entire process, and the doctors have been great,” Gronowski said. “Right now, as spring ball is progressing, I’m just continuing to get mental reps and trying to learn as much as I can.”
Ferentz likes how Gronowski fits within the program.
“Mark is a proven player,” Ferentz said. “He’s done it on film. Hasn’t done it at the Big Ten level necessarily, but good players are good players in my mind.
“The thing I’m more impressed with is the kind of person he is and his demeanor. I would call him fairly quiet, but he has a humbleness to him and a confidence to him that’s very genuine.”