Iowa DE Drew Ott on Jake Rudock: 'I thought he had a little more fight in him'

Jake Rudock, a senior quarterback, started 25 at Iowa over the past two seasons but decided to leave the school after falling behind C.J. Beathard on the Hawkeyes’ January depth chart. After visiting earlier this spring, Rudock was officially added to Michigan’s roster last week.

Rudock’s decision to leave Iowa City came as a surprise to Drew Ott, a senior defensive end for the Hawkeyes.

“Yeah (I was surprised),” Ott said Wednesday on a Big Ten teleconference, per Mlive.com. “I thought he had a little more fight in him. But, I guess maybe an opportunity (appeared) over there at Michigan. I don’t know too much about it.”

Rudock threw for 2,436 yards and 16 touchdowns last season for the Hawkeyes and will enter a crowded quarterback competition at Michigan in the summer. As a graduate transfer, Rudock is eligible to play immediately for the Wolverines.

Though Ott said that Rudock is “smart” and will “know what do” as a quarterback, he didn’t have much to say about Rudock’s leadership skills.

“I don’t know,” he said. “You’d have to ask someone else.”

Rudock is considered by some to be the favorite to lead the offense in year one under Jim Harbaugh at Michigan. He’ll go up against junior Shane Morris, redshirt freshman Wilton Speight and true freshmen Alex Malzone and Zach Gentry when preseason camp begins in August. 

For more Iowa news, visit HawkeyeReport.com.

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