Iowa men's wrestler Zach Glazier falls in Big Ten title match, Hawkeyes finish fourth in team race

COLLEGE PARK, Md.— On his knees looking down at the mat in disappointment, Zach Glazier heard the pro-Penn State crowd roar for their four-time Big Ten champion.

Top-ranked Aaron Brooks, just the third four-time Big Ten champion in Penn State history, didn’t need all seven minutes to claim the 197-pound crown on Sunday night. He dominated from the initial whistle, cruising to a 19-3 tech fall in 6:07.

“You got to match [Brooks’] pace,” Iowa head coach Tom Brands said after Sunday’s finals. “You got to take back the fight. That guy is a very explosive wrestler. So to beat him, you’re going to have to really have something coming out of you pace-wise. I liked the reaction that I saw from Glazier after that match.”

The fourth-year, his first time competing in the postseason, was the only Hawkeye to make the finals. Glazier finished the regular season 21-1, his lone loss coming to Brooks on Feb. 9. That match was closer, though, as Glazier fell, 5-1.

Glazier has patiently waited for his spot in the starting lineup, taking notes from five-time All-American Jacob Warner, who started at 197 pounds from 2019-23.

“He’s been a pillar. He’s been consistent. He’s been silent — there are no complaints coming from him,” Brands said of Glazier.

Finishing fourth in the team race with 110.5 points, the Hawkeyes left the Big Ten Tournament with zero conference champions for the first time since 2018. Brooks was one of five individual champions for the Nittany Lions, who won their second straight Big Ten team title with 170.5 points, far exceeding second-place Michigan’s 123.5. Nebraska finished in third with 118 points.

“Our guys want to be champions. This program wants to be champions,” Brands said. “So I mean, you’re talking to guys that are disappointed. But you don’t stop pursuing, you don’t stop doing the right thing. You’re relentless for the things that you want still because you know what, they’re still in play. That’s what I like. We’re still in play.”

One Iowa wrestler who was slated to compete on Sunday evening but medically forfeited was 157-pounder Jared Franek. In Franek’s first match of the tournament against Wisconsin’s No. 13 Luke Mechler, the Hawkeye suffered a large cut above his eyebrow. He took blood time so trainers could wrap a bandage around his head, and he wore it while competing for the rest of the weekend. During Glazier’s championship bout, Franek was seen sitting in the crowd, his eyes swollen and purple. Brands didn’t disclose much about Franek’s health status.

“We’re good there. We’re just going to make sure that we get better,” Brands said.

Walking down the hallway after media availability, Brands reiterated that Franek was “fine.”

Nine Hawkeyes outside of 184-pounder Aiden Riggins automatically qualified for the NCAA Tournament in Kansas City on March 21-23. The remaining 47 at-large bids will be announced on March 12.

“We didn’t wrestle the way we wanted to. Our results weren’t what we wanted them to be,” Brands said. “You compartmentalize it to ‘Where am I going? I’m going to Kansas City.’ That’s what’s next. So are we going to cry about the results and continue to look in the rearview mirror or are we going to look ahead and position ourselves as best we can? That’s number one. And number two is we got to be ready for Kansas City.”

IOWA PLACE-FINISHERS

125 POUNDS: Drake Ayala, 3rd, national qualifier

133 POUNDS: Brody Teske, 5th, national qualifier

141 POUNDS: Real Woods, 3rd, national qualifier

149 POUNDS: Caleb Rathjen, 5th, national qualifier

157 POUNDS: Jared Franek, 4th, national qualifier

165 POUNDS: Michael Caliendo, 3rd, national qualifier

174 POUNDS: Patrick Kennedy, 5th, national qualifier

197 POUNDS: Zach Glazier, 2nd, national qualifier

HEAVYWEIGHT: Bradley Hill, 5th, national qualifier

FINAL TEAM SCORES

Penn State: 170.5