Iowa State wrestling will have a different leadership structure for the 2026-27 season.
Iowa State athletics director Jamie Pollard announced on Thursday, April 16 that head coach Kevin Dresser will transition into a new role as director of wrestling for Iowa State. He’ll oversee both the men’s program and the newly created women’s program.
Cyclones assistant coach Brent Metcalf has been elevated to head coach of the men’s team.
Alli St. John will be the Iowa State women’s coach. She is married to Derek St. John, who has been promoted from assistant coach to associate head coach for the Cyclone men’s team.
“Iowa State University has been so good to me and my family, and I look forward to my new role and the fact that I’m not really going anywhere,” Dresser said in a news release. “I am honored for the opportunity Jamie Pollard gave me to coach the Cyclones nine years ago and believe we are handing off the program in great shape to one of the sport’s top young coaches in Brent Metcalf.”
Dresser took over the Cyclones in February 2017 and steadily brought the program along during his time as head coach. After the program finished in a tie for 57th in 2017 prior to his arrival, the Cyclones went from 45th place at NCAAs in 2018 to fourth in 2023. The Cyclones have finished in a tie for 27th in 2025 and eighth in 2026, with injuries playing a key role in the team’s struggles.
As the Cyclones’ head coach, Dresser produced 13 Big 12 champions, 17 NCAA All-Americans and a two-time national champion in David Carr. He had a dual record of 105-35, including snapping the 21-year drought against Iowa with a 20-14 win over the Hawkeyes in November 2025.
Dresser had a 20-year-long head coaching tenure in college, including an 11-year stop at Virginia Tech. The 63-year-old held a career dual record of 265-86. He was a two-time Big 12 Coach of the Year (2019 and 2024), a four-time ACC coach of the year (2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017) and a 2019 NWCA National Coach of the Year.
Dresser, a Humboldt native, also had an extensive high school coaching career and was a two-time NCAA All-American wrestler for the Iowa Hawkeyes.
“Kevin has enjoyed a very successful run as a Cyclone and Iowa State will forever be indebted to him for restoring the proud tradition of ISU wrestling,” Pollard said. “He and his staff have worked incredibly hard to return our program to national prominence, and we are grateful for his leadership and vision in making that a reality.
Now Iowa State will turn to another former Hawkeye wrestler as its head coach. Metcalf was an integral part of Dresser’s staff as an assistant coach. The 39-year-old spent nine years on Iowa State’s staff and eight years as a full-time assistant coach.
Before coaching, Metcalf was one of the Hawkeyes’ most dominant wrestlers. He was a two-time NCAA champion, a three-time finalist with a 108-3 all-time record. Metcalf won the Dan Hodge Trophy in 2008 and was one of the main figures in Iowa’s NCAA team titles from 2008-2010. He was a four-time Michigan high school state champion with an unbeaten 228-0 record at Davison High School.
“I am excited and honored to be the next head wrestling coach at Iowa State University and would like to thank Jamie Pollard and president (David) Cook for entrusting me with the legacy of such a storied program,” Metcalf said. “None of this would be possible without the vision and mentorship of Kevin Dresser, who for the previous nine seasons has continued to raise the standard of what it means to be a Cyclone wrestler.
“As we move to the next chapter we must continue to raise that bar,” he added. “We will challenge our team to pursue national, World and Olympic titles, compete fearlessly, and to be outstanding representatives of Iowa State University — in the classroom, on the mat and in life.”
The Cyclones are coming off an eighth-place finish at the NCAA Championships, where Anthony Echemendia, MJ Gaitan and Yonger Bastida were NCAA All-Americans.
There had been speculation in recent weeks that Iowa State would add a women’s wrestling program, and that came to fruition on Thursday. The school announced on March 3 that it was dropping women’s gymnastics and would add another women’s sport to take its place.
Eli McKown covers high school sports and wrestling for the Des Moines Register. Contact him at Emckown@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @EMcKown23.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Kevin Dresser takes new role with Iowa State wrestling, Brent Metcalf promoted
Reporting by Eli McKown, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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