Iowa honors five Hawkeye seniors after big tilt with Nebraska

Alex Meyer opened with a calm discussion about wrestling at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Thomas Gilman budged in front of Iowa Coach Tom Brands without hesitation, interrupting his answers, not once but twice, and started taking questions from local media.

A couple minutes later, Sam Brooks maneuvered into the media huddle and slipped through the group, firing an unexpected double-leg that took Gilman down right in front of cameras. Then, he replaced Gilman.

Topher Carton waited patiently in the background until it was his turn to talk about the upcoming competitions. Cory Clark, who has never seemed receptive to the extra attention that accompanies Hawkeye wrestling, wasn't there.

All five instances were indicative of the seniors in third-ranked Iowa's starting lineup. Their unique personalities and styles will be on display in front of home fans for the final time as Iowa hosts Nebraska on Sunday at 2 p.m.

Brands said those seniors have matured the last five years, becoming the pillars of the program.

'Gilman is a natural leader with his vocalness and the way he competes,' Brands said. 'You're looking at Meyer who is an academic All-American. You're looking at Cory Clark who is the credential leader.

'Sam Brooks is a guy that everybody likes. Then, you're talking about Topher Carton, who had to wait five years to get in the lineup. He's still making progress.'

The Hawkeyes (10-2, 6-1 Big Ten) open the weekend Friday at Indiana (9-7, 2-5) in Bloomington at 8 p.m. The seniors will be honored in a ceremony after the dual against the sixth-ranked Huskers (12-1, 6-1). All but Meyer will face a ranked foe Sunday.

'It's bittersweet,' said Brooks, who will face third-ranked T.J. Dudley in a rematch of the 2016 174-pound conference championship match. 'How cliche is that but wrestling in Carver is something not many people get to do. It's fricking awesome.'

Brooks said he will cherish the last time stepping on the mat in CHA, wearing the Hawkeye colors. The seniors have produced many memorable moments. Meyer recalled his first time wrestling in front of a CHA crowd, replacing Mike Evans and recording a late pin against Illinois' ranked Zach Brunson.

'There are a lot of them,' Meyer said. 'I love wrestling in Carver. I love wrestling, but here is special. Our fans make it so loud, so much fun. They get behind us. I think every time gets a little bit better.'

They forged a strong bond that Carton said began when they first stepped on campus and can't be duplicated elsewhere. Meyer said they have spent a lot of time together on and off the mat. He described Gilman as a warrior, said Clark marches to his own beat, Carton is serious and Brooks is a jokester. Meyer said they are all tough.

'We're really close,' Meyer said. 'We have a wide variety of personalities and stuff, but we love each other.'

All the time together training and competing has resulted in a lot of winning. The quintet has combined for 421 victories, Gilman and Brooks have the best chances to join 40 others in Hawkeye history to reach 100 career victories. Gilman is 96-11 all-time and Brooks is 93-22.

'We all have different approaches to life, you could say, but our approach to wrestling is very similar,' Carton said. 'We like to win and win in dominant fashion.'

Clark is a three-time All-American and two-time NCAA finalist. Clark and Brooks captured individual titles at the Big Ten Championships in Iowa City last year. Gilman, the top-ranked 125-pounder, was a national runner-up a year ago and a two-time All-American who wrestled behind Clark as a freshman. Brooks and Meyer were All-Americans a year. The only thing missing is a national title, but their legacy doesn't necessarily hinge on a national title — individual or team.

'You always want to win championships, so the answer to that is however you want to answer it,' Brands said. 'From where I'm at, what they've given the program, even though they haven't won a national championship, is a jolt in the attitude, commitment and character department.'

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