Iowa Wrestling: Tom and Terry Brands and Ryan Morningstar receive extensions

The three top Iowa Hawkeye wrestling coaches, head coach Tom Brands, associate head coach Terry Brands, and assistant coach Ryan Morningstar have all agreed on contract extensions that will keep them in Iowa City through the 2026 season. Athletic Director Gary Barta stated in the press release:

“We have great confidence in Tom, Terry and Ryan. They are committed to building on the current momentum and operating within our ‘Win. Graduate. Do it Right.’ philosophy.”

This marks the second contract extension in three years for our coaching staff and locks the trio up for the foreseeable future for the black and gold. This also comes on the heels of the announcement on the new training facility that’s been in the works for a couple years now, but recently picked up steam and was officially approved by the Iowa Board of Regents. The new complex will be located on the southside of Carver-Hawkeye Arena and will be privately funded. For anyone that’s interested in learning more, please check out what they’ve labeled as the Carver Circle Campaign. If you have a few million laying around that you don’t know what to do with, please click that link and donate it all.

Tom Brands has been the head coach for 13 years now, all of which Iowa has led the nation in attendance. This marks the 22^nd year that Terry has been with the program. He was previously an assistant coach from 1992-2000 and then returned to the Iowa staff in 2009.

Ryan Morningstar joined the Hawks in 2012. Tom and Terry receive a vast majority of the praise, but it’s Morningstar that is the unsung hero. Though he often takes a back seat to the Brands Brothers, he’s one of the main gears in the recruitment machine that’s been branching out and hauling in top prospects. I foolishly stated a few years ago that I hoped Iowa would reach out to elite level wrestlers on the senior circuit in an attempt to bring them in as assistant coaches… I was wrong. What Morningstar has done is truly unbelievable. We’re lucky to have him in our corner.

The Hawks are ranked No. 1 with an 11-0 record and sit atop the Big Ten Conference. A win this coming weekend against Minnesota will give us an outright conference championship. With all thinks clicking in the right direction and the recent announcement of the new facility, it’s clear that Barta is 100% committed to Tom, Terry, and Ryan. These guys have been busting their butts over the past few seasons, hauling in high level recruits and changing the entire culture and philosophy of this program. It’s safe to say, that Barta and the University of Iowa want to see them finish what they’ve started.