Iowa's Meyer makes Brands smile

IOWA CITY — With a straight face, University of Iowa Coach Tom Brands said Alex Meyer's name made him smile.

It's a line and delivery only Brands can pull off, but you can understand why he likes the junior 174-pounder.

'He is everything from a work ethic point of view in everything that he does,' Brands said. 'He's grown up tremendously since his first couple months here, and the other thing is that he's a leader in that room from a just put your head down and go to work example.'

Meyer will likely get his chance as a full-time starter this season, but he turned some heads last year with an 18-3 record that included wins over two top-10 ranked foes. He approaches the new challenge the same as he did previous seasons.

'This is the next step,' Meyer said. 'You're getting ready to go every time.

'I'm another year older. I have another year in the room (and) another summer of training under my belt, so I feel ready and confident and excited to get out there.'

The chance seemed to take a long time to materialize, serving as a backup to three-time All-American Mike Evans. He has prepared for this moment.

'I've been anxious and ready, but it's not like overdue,' Meyer said. 'It's the right timing. I'm ready to go now. Not that I wasn't in the past but I couldn't do anything about it then.'

Meyer filled in occasionally the last two seasons, wrestling anywhere from 174 to 197. he placed third at the Midlands Championships last year and seventh as a red-shirt freshman. He pinned Illinois' Zac Brunson, who was ranked sixth at the time. Meyer also beat Virginia's Blaise Butler, who was ranked fifth then, at the National Duals. He has proved capable of stepping right into the lineup.

'He's got the motor on him,' Brands said. 'He's got the type of attitude where it's kind of like anyone, any time, anywhere, and those big wins aren't by accident or aren't because he ambushed guys because they weren't ready for him. He's been relevant for the last couple of years sitting behind Evans, and those wins were earned. They weren't ambushes, like I said, and that's what I like about him.'

Brands also likes his toughness and workmanlike attitude. Meyer doesn't get sidetracked by bumps or bruises in the room.

'I like his durability,' Brands said. 'I like his lack of complaining. I like his tough-guy mentality, and he's always been a tough guy. He's a good example for some freshmen that maybe have some owees that think it's the end of the world where you have a guy like Alex Meyer who deals with that stuff every day and just puts his head down and goes forward one step at a time. Love him, absolutely love him.'

Meyer said he has worked on his neutral offense, adding to his attacks. He will look to score more. As much as he has earned the spot, he isn't taking anything for granted when it comes to competition.

'It's my spot, but there's nothing guaranteed,' Meyer said. 'I still have to come in here every day and battle with those guys we have at 174 and guys around my weight. I feel confident that I secured my spot but I can't get complacent.

'I'm not looking to just beat the guys in this room, but I'm looking at my opponents all across the country,' Meyer said

Grapple on the Gridiron

The University of Iowa announced that it has sold 31,689 tickets for the Grapple on the Gridiron. The event will be hosted at Kinnick Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 14, featuring the fourth-ranked Hawkeyes and No. 1 Oklahoma State.

Iowa Coach Tom Brands said the coaching staff came up with the idea and worked with the administration. He said they were the originators.

'I mean, people have been wrestling outside since the beginning of time, and it just so happens it's the first time it's been done in (NCAA) Division I,' Brands said. 'It's a big deal because it's about two storied programs and a rivalry that continues, and these rivalries are getting tougher to schedule just because of the Big Ten getting bigger, and so that's how it came about."

Aggressiveness and offense have been emphasized a lot over the last year. The Hawkeyes want to put on a show for the record-setting crowd.

'We want to turn up the pace a little bit,' 174-pounder Alex Meyer said. 'We want to make it even more exciting, because there are 30-some thousand people that are coming and they're going to be excited.'

The extended forecast doesn't predict any precipitation — the lone deal breaker — with a high temperature near 50 degrees.

'My mind-set is good,' red-shirt heavyweight Sam Stoll said. 'I'm really confident.

'I'm ready to get out there and get after it.'

Burak sets good example

Nathan Burak has carved his niche into the Iowa wrestling lineup, producing quality wins at 197 pounds. He is a two-time All-American and a three-time national qualifier. The senior placed seventh last season, which was one spot better than his sophomore campaign.

Iowa Coach Tom Brands mentioned him first when asked about leaders of this year's team.

'He's a senior; he's a 3.8 (grade-point average) student,' Brands said. 'He's everything you want your program to be looked upon as. A lot of times he's not maybe given enough attention, not that he's seeking the attention anyway, but when you talk about leadership, you talk about an example of what to look for in a student athlete, he's a wrestler that embodies that and represents our program very well.'

Burak will attempt to add to his 63 career wins, opening the season ranked fourth nationally. To do that, he will build on the positives from the NCAA tournament.

'I scored a lot more points and takedowns, which is good,' said Burak, noting he wanted to finish better. 'Use that for motivation to fuel your practice and really figuring out what worked (and) what didn't work, I know a lot of stuff, it's just applying what I know to the season.'

Burak received a boost in the off-season, winning the 213-pound division at University Nationals and outscoring his opponents 64-1. The taste of a championship is addictive.

'You want more of that,' Burak said. 'It will help strive you to stay on top and be on top for the next event.'

Grothus sidelined to start

Iowa Coach Tom Brands said that senior Brody Grothus will like miss the first part of this season. He said he expects his return to be late December or early January.

Brands said Grothus continues to balance his eagerness to return to full throttle with the patience needed to fully heal. They are all concerned with what's best for long-term health, the team and the weight class.

'Right now he's still coming back from a repair he had done, and he's doing a good job,' Brands said. 'He's getting more and more on the mat. He's been on the mat for a couple weeks now. Every day it's more and more. He wants to push the envelope.'

The question remains where Grothus would fit in the lineup. The 2014 NCAA qualifier was a part-time starter last year but injury sidelined him and Brandon Sorensen never lost hold of the 149 spot.

'He's good enough to go 141, 149 (or) 157,' Brands said. 'So we have a lot of options there, and we'll see how things shake out as we go forward and he gets closer to when he's going to step on the mat.'

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