Iowa’s Joel Northrup takes longer road to college wrestling goal

IOWA CITY — The distance from Linn-Mar's wrestling room to Carver-Hawkeye Arena is about 37 miles, taking about 50 minutes.

Joel Northrup experienced a longer and less-traveled road, but his trek eventually ended at the Dan Gable Wrestling Complex, achieving his goal to wrestle collegiately.

More than three years after finishing his high school career with the Lions and more than two years after his last competition, Northrup officially joined the University of Iowa program as a freshman this season.

'Coming out of high school, I really wanted to wrestle here at Iowa, but I wasn't ready,' said Northrup, a three-time state medalist for Linn-Mar. 'I just wasn't physically mature. I didn't know what I wanted to get my degree in at that point, so I wasn't ready.'

Northrup developed a strong relationship with Iowa associate head coach Terry Brands, working together on Wrestlers in Faith wrestling camps over the years. He reached out to the staff when he believed he was prepared to take this step. Northrup said once he made it clear he was motivated and focused to wrestle in college, the staff welcomed him.

'This is unique, because I don't know if he knew he was in or out of it, meaning he could have went either way maybe,' Iowa Coach Tom Brands said. 'He missed it enough he was like, 'Let's do this.''

Northrup preserved his eligibility by becoming a part-time student at Iowa before he made that decision. While others were managing their weight, Northrup was managing a business. Northrup and his younger brother, Toby, own Lawn-Tek Mowing and Landscaping.

The business began when the older Northrup was a high school freshman, mowing lawns in the neighborhood. Once Northrup earned his driver's license, they added landscaping services and became certified to spray chemicals for fertilizer and weed control.

'That's pretty much what we do now,' Northrup said. 'During the summer, I still work there at my company. Toby's running it.'

Northrup remained connected to the sport, training on his own and serving as a volunteer assistant for Linn-Mar Coach Doug Streicher, who was a 1990 All-American for Iowa. Streicher said he is not surprised Northrup followed through on his quest to wrestle in college.

'He's a pretty driven individual,' Streicher said. 'He's always worked hard.'

The toughest task was finding a way to remain in competitive shape and honing his skills. Northrup worked with Linn-Mar wrestlers, including his brother who graduated after last season, and former Lion and college wrestlers like Shea Hartzler and Ross Lembeck.

'That was his biggest roadblock, finding places to train,' Streicher said. 'If you're not committed to someone or a college program, where do you get your constant training? I know he was moving around town like a nomad, trying to find good training partners and good practices here or there.'

The journey included 113- and 234-mile trips to wrestle in open tournaments at Oskaloosa and Eau Claire, Wis. He went 1-2 with a loss to Illinois NCAA champion Isaiah Martinez at the William Penn Open in January 2014. About a month later, he placed second at the Blugold Open at UW-Eau Claire, falling to UW-Oshkosh three-time NCAA champion and current Titan Mercury Wrestling Club member Nazar Kulchytskyy.

While other wrestlers may have their travel, lodging and tournament fees covered, Northrup had to cover the costs to compete unattached. He was willing to do whatever was necessary,

'I kept that door open,' said Northrup, who received national attention forfeiting to a female opponent at the 2011 Class 3A state meet. 'I kept training.

'Worked with (former Linn-Mar four-time state champion and Iowa NCAA champion) Jay Borschel. He had a club in Marion, so I worked out with him a lot and he thought I was ready.'

Some wrestlers have missed seasons due to religious obligations, injury or ineligibility. Wrestlers have been able to return and achieve success, even if it is difficult.

'The instances I think of are more guys that didn't want to be out of the sport,' said Brands, mentioning former Iowa wrestler Luke Lofthouse. 'He came here and then took two years off. He came back and did quite well. He was an All-American his senior year. He never thought about leaving the sport, so it was part of the plan.'

Brands said Northrup faces a different set of challenges than what he would have experienced entering the program immediately from high school. Brands said it takes longer to get into peak condition at this stage and he may not be as durable. Northrup likely will have to battle through added aches and pains.

'The thing you learn in this deal is it's not as easy as it looks, but if you work hard you can handle a lot of this,' Brands said. 'It hasn't been easy for him, but he's a hard worker.'

Northrup joined the Iowa program this fall. The 21-year-old is considerably bigger than when he was a 145-pounder for Linn-Mar. He placed fifth at 165 at the Grand View Open in November. He wrestled at 174 in the Joe Parisi Open a week later.

'It went pretty good,' Northrup said about his performance at Grand View. 'I still have a lot to work on, being it was my first matches in quite a few years.'

Despite being longer in the tooth, he has a good rapport with other freshmen, including highly touted Kaleb Young of Pennsylvania. His classmates haven't given him too much grief for his age.

'I'm friends with a lot of the other freshmen, even though I'm a few years older,' Northrup said. 'Some of the guys think I'm 30.'

Northrup, a home-school student through high school, said an important part to his transition is getting a good schedule where he didn't have classes all day with multiple workouts, easing the demands on time.

'There's a little more stress but it took a few months, and I'm getting the hang of it,' Northrup said. 'Slowly but surely.'

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