Former Hawkeye All-American joins wrestling coaching staff

Former Iowa wrestling All-American Luke Lofthouse has joined the Iowa wrestling staff as an interim strength and conditioning coach, according to announcement from Iowa coach Tom Brands on Thursday.

“This is a great opportunity for me and my family,” said Lofthouse. “I committed to this program a long time ago, and I’m thrilled to be able to continue that commitment in this new role. I want to thank the entire coaching staff for the opportunity. Iowa has a great history of wrestlers and coaches, and to say I’ve been on both sides is pretty exciting.”

Lofthouse joined the Iowa wrestling program in 2004 before taking two years off to complete a Mormon mission to Africa from 2005-2007. He later would return to the program and redshirted in 2007-08 before competing on the mat again in 2008-09.

Lofthouse earned his first starting spot in 2011 at 197 pounds and ended up placing fifth at the 2011 NCAA Championships. He was 25-7 that season, second in the Big Ten Conference and was named the team’s most dedicated wrestler.

Ethen Lofthouse is currently on the Iowa roster and is the nephew of Luke Lofthouse. Luke Lofthouse is a native of Avon, Utah, and he currently resides with his wife Allison in Coralville, Iowa. He is a 2011 graduate of the University of Iowa.