Iowa wrestling head coach Tom Brands served as a guest speaker at the Grid Club in Davenport, and he brought some news with him.

The Hawkeye head man said heavyweight Sam Stoll is healthy after suffering a gunshot wound to the knee in June, but he will be suspended when Iowa opens the season at Kent State against the Golden Flashes and CSU-Bakerfield on Nov. 9.

“He’s moving forward,” Brands told OurQuadCities.com. “The worst is behind him and the best ahead of him. He will be suspended that first date that we have when we go to Kent State. We will wrestle two duals there, so he will sit for that. We evolve as we go and we know we got to get better every day. Our culture is really good right now and that is because of our recruiting and the people doing the recruiting.”

Stoll finished the 2018 season fifth at the NCAA Championships after finishing fourth at the Big Ten Championships. He won the Gorriarian Trophy at NCAAs, recording the most falls in the least amount of time, sticking three opponents in a total of 8:50. Despite Stoll’s suspension, Iowa will unsurprisingly remain heavy favorites.

Brands also said two-time All-American Michael Kemerer – who finished fourth at NCAAs in 2018 after going 27-3 in the regular season – will move up two weight classes to 174 pounds, leaving room for Kaleb Young or Jeren Glosser at 157, according to Adam Rossow of Hawkeye Headquarters.