IOWA CITY, Iowa — James Vandenberg's first appearance as Iowa's next starting quarterback was at times about as sloppy as the weather.
On a miserably cold and windy afternoon at Kinnick Stadium that began with workers removing snow from the turf, Vandenberg sprinkled in bad throws with good ones and saw a few of his passes dropped by their intended targets.
It wasn't exactly the performance Vandenberg was hoping for during Saturday's final spring practice. But Vandenberg put the afternoon in perspective by remembering the lessons he learned playing behind Ricky Stanzi, the quarterback he's set to replace next fall.
Stanzi "never really got flustered — and it's like (Saturday). Sometimes the ball just doesn't bounce your way. People are going to drop the ball. The ball is going to get tipped. It's football. You can only control what you can control. I think drawing off that from (Stanzi) will only help me," said Vandenberg, a redshirt junior from Keokuk, Iowa.
It's that kind of levelheaded approach to the game that helped Vandenberg become the heir apparent to Stanzi — whose occasionally rocky but ultimately memorable three-year stint Vandenberg hopes to emulate.
Stanzi shook off the interception problems that plagued him earlier in his career and blossomed into one of the nation's finest quarterbacks in 2010, throwing for 25 touchdowns with just six interceptions. Stanzi finished his career with a 26-9 record and should also be the first Iowa quarterback taken in the NFL Draft in nearly 20 years later this month.
But unlike Stanzi, who worked his way up from an afterthought to the starting job by beating out incumbent Jake Christensen in 2008, Vandenberg has been groomed to take over for the past two seasons.
Vandenberg said he used his time behind Stanzi to soak up everything he could from him.
"He does things the right way, which is what I learned over my time here," Vandenberg said of Stanzi. "I got to watch him grow from that first year when he was battling (Christensen) to when he had that up-and-down second season — it was like a roller coaster. And then this last year, just the changes he made and how he went about himself. I mean, talk about a cool-headed guy."
The Hawkeyes are hoping Vandenberg can build off the limited but vital exposure he's already had.
Vandenberg, who left Keokuk High as the most prolific passer in Iowa prep history, was asked to keep Iowa's then-unbeaten season afloat when Stanzi went down with an ankle injury against Northwestern two years ago. He failed to do so, completing just 9 of 27 passes in a 17-10 loss, and he followed up his debut with three picks in an overtime loss at Ohio State with the Big Ten title on the line.
But Vandenberg's poise was evident in that loss in Columbus. He responded to his first full week of practice with the starting unit by throwing for 233 yards and the game-tying touchdown with 2:42 left in regulation.
"The experience I gained two years ago, I can't put a price on it," Vandenberg said.
Vandenberg, who at 6-foot-3 and 212 pounds is built a lot like Stanzi, rarely saw the field in 2010. But according to offensive coordinator Ken O'Keefe, Vandenberg has earned credibility behind the scenes with his work ethic and approach — much like Stanzi did.
"The No. 1 way for a leader to get respect is to provide a great example for everybody else around them, and I think James does that in every aspect of his life," O'Keefe said. "He works hard, studies hard, and he never leaves the field without correcting a mistake that he may have made in practice."
According to O'Keefe, Vandenberg also has a strong grasp of the Hawkeyes pro-style system and has proven to be "extremely" accurate in practice.
Vandenberg had long distanced himself from John Wienke, a senior, and athletic but untested redshirt freshman A.J. Derby, who Ferentz said Saturday were neck-and-neck for the backup job.
Whether Vandenberg can handle the pressure that comes with being the starter won't be known until next fall, but he's been preparing for that chance for years now.
It's an opportunity Vandenberg earned by what he's proven to his teammates and coaches behind the scenes.
"He's a guy that's respected...he's got good leadership qualities and everybody on the team respects him, offense and defensive guys," Ferentz said. "He's worked extremely hard. The thing he has to do now is go out and have some success in game conditions, and I think he will. But he'll have some ups and downs too, like all young players. But we're eager to see him play."