Ben Kueter decided that Iowa wrestling needed his full attention in order to achieve the championship aspirations that he and the program are both seeking.
In a message on X, Kueter revealed his decision to temporarily step away from Iowa football and focus on Hawkeye wrestling for the next 10 months.
“First off, I would like to thank Coach Wallace and Coach Ferentz for letting me live out a dream of mine. Coach Wallace is the reason I chose to play football at Iowa. Secondly, I would like to thank my football brothers for making this last year so enjoyable. I’ve made bonds with those guys that will last a lifetime.
“With that being said, I would like to announce that I will be transitioning to just wrestling for the next 10 months in order to win a World title, NCAA title and a NCAA team title. To meet these goals will require my full attention for the next 10 months, but this is not the end of my football career. I will start back up in spring ball. Thank you to the best fans in the world and GO HAWKS!” Kueter wrote on X.
Surrounded by the best! My family And I are excited for the future. GOD IS GOOD✝️ @Hawks_Wrestling @HawkeyeFootball pic.twitter.com/fWl8B6lzPV
— Ben kueter (@Benkueter1) June 3, 2024
Kueter, a blue-chip football signee in Iowa’s 2023 signing class, is also one of the state’s most decorated wrestlers of all time.
A product of Iowa City High, Kueter was a four-time undefeated state champion, posting a 111-0 high school mark with 74 career pins and 105 career bonus-point wins. Kueter was the seventh in the history of Iowa high school wrestling to accomplish that feat.
Kueter was the 2023 Iowa Class 3A Dan Gable Mr. Wrestler of the Year and the 2023 Bob Steenlage Iowa High School Wrestler of the Year. He was the firth Iowa high-schooler to win a Junior world wrestling title and the fourth from Iowa City High to do so.
Kueter was a Freestyle Junior World Champion at 97 kg and a Freestyle Under-20 Pan American Champion at 97 kg.
Kueter finished with a 3-1 record, including a 2-1 record against ranked opponents during his first season in Iowa City. Kueter’s lone defeat came against No. 1 Greg Kervliet of Penn State.
The 6-foot-3, 285 pounder topped then-No. 29 Bennet Tabor of Minnesota and then-No. 11 Konner Doucet of Oklahoma State by decisions. Kueter pinned Northwestern’s Jack Jensen in 45 seconds.
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