We live in Virginia, and it would take 16 hours to drive to Florida. I decided against it because that would be time better spent at the park.
There is no way to get a cheap flight out of the Quad Cities. But it will take 2, perhaps 3 days to drive down there

plus hotel charges and gas. Plus you need to look at your route and see how long it would take. There would be alot of north/south to connect with other routes. My DH describes it as "wiggedty-wiggedty" until you get to Nashville. And then you hit the mountains.
I would honestly choose to go to Chicago. You can get decent priced flights out of Midway or O'Hare. It is about a three hour drive (avoid Chicago during rush hour), and then you can probably get a direct flight - you could spend 1 day traveling, and have extra time in the parks.
We travel every year back and forth to Iowa (my DH is from Council Bluffs). It takes us 1 1/2 days of hard travel (we stop overnight). We choose to drive because we would have to rent a car when we got to his mom's otherwise. But since we are staying onsite, with Disney transportation it made more sense to fly. The day we leave we will arrive mid-afternoon, time for dinner and an evening in MK.
I would map out what you want to do at WDW, and how long it will take to drive, flying options, etc. Lay them all out and make your final decision.