Iowa's Stross looks for stress-free season

Trey Stross wanted more than a few meager statistics from his Iowa football career.

The senior wide receiver from Avon Lake, Ohio, enters this season with 42 catches for 570 yards and six touchdowns. Good numbers, but not anywhere near his expectations.

Stross chose Iowa after playing in the U.S. Army All-American Game in San Antonio in 2005. He caught 13 passes as a red-shirt freshman and was penciled in as a starter for 2007. Then he missed four games with a partially torn hamstring. He had another hamstring injury early in 2008, missed two games and never got on track.

“I'd be lying if I said it wasn't tough,” Stross said. “To come in here with high accolades and high hopes and your career here is not really going the way you thought it would, being hurt - you had nothing to do about it - it had nothing to do with skill or talent. ... You're running and you're doing awesome then boom, you're out for eight weeks. You just have a good support group with teammates and family, coaches. They kind of keep you motivated.”

The injuries have changed Stross' perspective a tad as well as his off-season work regimen. Stross quit competing in track to deal with his hamstring problems. He's bulked up past 200 pounds and sports toned-up muscular arms.

“I'm insanely optimistic about staying healthy,” Stross said. “I just keep telling myself that those injuries the past three years were just kind of getting them out of the way for this year. I feel like I'm going to have a good year. I don't really see an injury coming any time soon. Muscle-wise, I feel that I'm a lot stronger.”

Stross' health remains a concern for the coaching staff. Coach Kirk Ferentz said Stross has matured, and Ferentz hopes the hamstring issues have evaporated.

“He's been as consistent and productive as anybody we've had throughout the course of spring,” Ferentz said. “We have high expectations for him. Most of the last year he was in pretty good shape. It's kind of like (oft-injured tight end Tony Moeaki), you just hope all of that stuff kind of goes in cycles and you pass through it.”

Stross, who stands 6-foot-4, is listed as a first-team wide receiver. He's the veteran of the group and wants to pass along his knowledge to younger receivers the way Ed Hinkel did for him.

Stross needs only six hours to graduate with a double major in English and health and sports studies. He said that gives him more time for film study - and for xBox, he joked.

As for his future, Stross is more consumed with the present.

“I had the big dream - I won't say what it is - but right now I just have to focus on this year and staying healthy and just competing,” he said. “And win a Big Ten title, hopefully.”

Iowa's receivers at a glance

Iowa's receivers at a glance

Starters: Trey Stross, sr., 6-4, 200 (13 catches, 109 yards, 1 TD); Marvin McNutt, so., 6-4, 215 (1 catch, 11 yards)

In the mix: Derrell Johnson-Koulianos, jr. 6-1, 200 (44 catches, 639 yards, 3 TDs); Colin Sandeman, jr., 6-1, 200 (6 catches, 76 yards, 2 TDs; Paul Chaney Jr., jr., 5-9, 167 (2 catches, 19 yards); Keenan Davis, fr., 6-3, 200 (no statistics); Jordan Cotton, fr., 6-1, 170 (no statistics); Don Nordmann, jr., 6-6, 211 (no statistics)

In the know: Off-season speculation has centered on McNutt - a former quarterback -overtaking Johnson-Koulianos (DJK) as the starter opposite Stross. Johnson-Koulianos led receivers in catches and yards last year. Wide receivers coach Erik Campbell said DJK will compete for a spot like every other player. “He fits right there,” Campbell said. “He's going to compete in this training camp. He's going to be on the field.” Iowa Coach Kirk Ferentz alluded that DJK (who has been injured) might not have lived up to the team's standards off the field. “Everything goes into account,” Ferentz said. “Consistency on the field and off the field. Just the way you do things. We expect more from our older guys.” Davis, a Cedar Rapids Washington product, saw considerable action with the second team during an open scrimmage and has impressed Campbell. “(Keenan) has a lot of talent,” Campbell said. “He's a great athlete.”

Bowling if ... The receivers develop some consistency. Injuries and defections have plagued this position. DJK is Iowa's first leading wide receiver to return for a season since Ed Hinkel in 2005, and he's in the doghouse. McNutt has a lot of physical skills but little experience. Stross has had hamstring problems the last two seasons. Chaney is a track burner but his football career has yet to get on the right foot. Davis has skills and a lot of upside but is a freshman.

- Scott Dochterman