Drew Foster: A resilient champ who's still in search of the big bracket - Go Earn It Ep. 41 - The GO EARN IT Podcast

Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to the Go Earn It Podcast, where we bring
you stories each week of people who have battled through adversity,
overcame the obstacles, and earned their dream. You were born
for greatness and our mission is to bring you the
stories that will inspire you to dream big and go
earn it.

Speaker 2 (00:27):
And welcome to the Go Earn It Podcast. It is
episode forty one. Looking forward to hearing the story of
our next guest, Drew Foster, two time All American at
Northern Iowa when the national title in twenty nineteen. He's
from Burlington High School, Burlington, Iowa, Minneapolis High School. Drew,

(00:47):
I'm excited to dive into your story. Thanks for joining us.
How are you.

Speaker 3 (00:51):
I'm good, I'm good, doing well well.

Speaker 2 (00:54):
The first things Drew that stood out to me and
doing a little bit of research on you, and I
love this. It's my worst question and I want you
to rant on it and give me the reasons why
it was so helpful. You were a four sport athlete, football, wrestling, track, soccer.
Tell us about how I poored it was to be

(01:15):
a for sport athlete.

Speaker 4 (01:18):
That's like, I think that's an argument that that comes
up a lot in today's world.

Speaker 3 (01:23):
I just think that it made me very well versed.

Speaker 4 (01:27):
Right, so I was able to do a lot more
things as far as just athletic ability.

Speaker 3 (01:32):
Right, I'm getting put in different situations. And then I learned.

Speaker 4 (01:37):
I learned to get better and you know, like I
have to work to get better with other sports that
I wasn't as good at, and uh, I learned how
to lose. And I think I think that was a
big thing along the way. So right now we were
actually you and I was at a at a different facility.
We're not on campus right now. We're at a place
called USA Mac Club. And so I go in and

(02:00):
help with this this kid's club, that's what it's called.
And one of the things I preached to some of
the parents and the kids, I'm like, go do as
much as you want. Like when it's wrestling season, it's
wrestling season. But outside of it, I obviously come in.
I love to have you in here and like helping out.
But if you're gonna be playing baseball, football. You got
a couple kids that do like track and some of
them do like jiu jitsu and stuff like that, like,

(02:21):
go do it. You know. I just think that the
overall development of the kids is. I just think it's
it's very rewarding in the end. And I know for
me that was one of the separators. When it came
to colleges. I wasn't I didn't have as much let's say,
wrestling experience as some of my peers and like competitors,

(02:43):
but I was able to get to kind of their level.
And then like there's more to the ceiling, uh the
ceiling so to speak, And not that there was a
light ceiling or anything like that, but I just feel
like there's like I wanted to learn more, I guess
because I wasn't around wrestling all the time, you know,

(03:04):
so that's just the hunger so to speak. And like
switching to wrestling full time. I didn't do wrestling full
time until I got to college. And the growth it
took a while, Don't get me wrong, it took a while,
but it the jump made from my first couple of
years to my last year my last couple of years
was tremendous.

Speaker 3 (03:24):
I mean, I actually, this is kind of funny.

Speaker 4 (03:28):
My my second my second year, so my red shirt freshman,
so not my freshman year, but I'm a true My second.

Speaker 3 (03:35):
Year, I was starting and I was losing all the time,
all the duels and duel meets.

Speaker 4 (03:42):
Yeah, it was terrible. It was terrible. I should have
been too, I should have been two and eight, but
I thought I had a match one and then the
kid had riding time or something, and or I thought
I had writing time, but he he erased it with
the takedown at the end. Then I shot a shot
in overtime and like got taken down to two seconds.
It was embarrassing, but it was not very good product.

(04:02):
The fight was there, don't get me wrong. The fight
was there, but the product wasn't very wasn't very good.
And the next year it was like like a one
to eighty, like dang, and to the point where after
a duel in West Gym, some fan came up to me,
he goes, Drew, you know, I'm not trying to be rude,
but what happened, man?

Speaker 3 (04:22):
Like you sucked last year? Like what's gonna?

Speaker 4 (04:26):
I was just like what.

Speaker 3 (04:28):
And I was like I don't know. I just kept working,
That's all, you know, really.

Speaker 2 (04:33):
But one of the questions I have, Drew is you
talk about that red shirt season. You were under five
hundred one and nine of duels, and then the next
year you are an All American. You were a twelve seed.
I believe that was in twenty seventeen. Like, what what
did happen? I mean, that's a that's a pretty substantial shift.

Speaker 3 (04:57):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (04:59):
I think one of the big things was just mad
experience at at the college level and then just consistent work.

Speaker 3 (05:09):
I mean, in what's that that.

Speaker 4 (05:12):
End of when I went to the conference because I
went to the conference tournament that that freshman year, that
that retrot freshman year, and my first round matchup was
actually Jack Decao, the old Dominion guy he was, and
he was returning All American and don't I mean he
got a lot of close matches, but I mean we
went it was a three to two match. He beat me,
and then I got sick to the backside and all

(05:34):
the guys that beat me in those duels I was beating.

Speaker 3 (05:38):
And then, uh what was it would have been the
conci semis.

Speaker 4 (05:41):
I'm wrestling Willie Michels, who's a good friend, and I'm up,
I'm up late, Like there's like a minute left in
the third and I think I'm going to like Matt
return him. I dropped to like a double a trying
to Matt return him out of bounds. Chin whippen me
to send me into the fifth place match, which I won,
and then I had an opportunity to make its Nationals
with below five hundred record against the Guy's Buffalo guy

(06:05):
Joe Joe Ariola I think was his name, and I
lost him like the triple overtime or something like that
to go to Nationals that year, which would have meant
I mean, it was a shot in the darkt you know,
no one probably saw that coming, but it was that
that whole year was it was such a trial and

(06:26):
error and learning and like just getting the experience and
then the confidence I think was always there.

Speaker 3 (06:33):
This is another this is kind of funny.

Speaker 4 (06:35):
This is I had a delusional confidence, I would say,
and this is what I try to tell people. It
was just like it's delusional to a point where I'm
not gonna like say some unrealistic things.

Speaker 3 (06:46):
But I thought a certain way. I thought it a certain.

Speaker 4 (06:47):
Way of myself and maybe some of that was just expectations.
But I was wrestling Hayden Ziehmer right, he was he
was It was a eighty four and he was number
four ranked at the time, and We're at NDSU and
at this time, so I was in a position battle
at one seventy four. So I was wrestling like once

(07:10):
I was waiting in at seventy four and wrestling eighty
four against these guys, and uh so I think, I
I I think at that point, I'm still waiting in
at seventy four.

Speaker 3 (07:19):
Eventually I just waited in at eighty four.

Speaker 4 (07:21):
But we had I went out, got the first take down, okay,
and then I think that woke him up probably, and
then he ended up taking me by the third period,
all right. But then afterwards I'm down in the tunnel
cooling down or wherever they're at. Uh, and I'm talking
to one of my coaches. I'm my god, he's so lucky,
you know, He's so lucky. I'm a freshman that I'm undersize,

(07:43):
you know. And that's that was kind of my thought process,
like a little delusional. I mean, you could say, maybe
make an excuses for yourself, but it wasn't like like
it was like in my in my head, I'm like,
I'm right there because I can take him down. If
I can take him down, that means I can beat him.
But it was like I just needed like, you know,
I'm like, I need to get stronger, I need to
get bigger, and I need this experience, and that's eventually

(08:06):
what started to happen.

Speaker 2 (08:09):
You never won a high school state title. How would
you describe your high school wrestling career?

Speaker 3 (08:16):
I was it was still good. I know, I never
got you never got the title.

Speaker 2 (08:20):
Uh.

Speaker 3 (08:21):
I actually lost to one of my.

Speaker 4 (08:22):
UH college teammates in the finals, Jacob Polschlag, who ended
up becoming an All American for US as well. I
lost in the finals to him. But I didn't qualify
for state my freshman year and then got third, seventh
and then second in out of order. But it wasn't
like I I joke around with the guys whole the

(08:43):
time on the team. Now like this our athletes, I'm like, man,
I should have been a four time state champ, you know,
teasing them and stuff like that. Uh.

Speaker 3 (08:50):
But then you know that's it's just it didn't go
my way in high school.

Speaker 4 (08:53):
And maybe you can attribute that to you know, I
wasn't full time, but it's I was still right there
with the guys. I mean, I remember wrestling camal Bay
at the clash and where. I mean, it's a cool
match into the third period before I got lat dropped
of course and penned. But just like little things like that,

(09:14):
like I felt like I could wrestle, and I had
no idea who these kids were at the time, because
I did I really did not followed wrestling like that.
I knew we'd watched the finals and like the Midlands.
That's kind of all the college wrestling I had watched
besides like like high school or high school when I
was young. I just it wasn't that I wasn't interested

(09:36):
in it, but just like watching it wasn't something I
really watched. So I don't know, like in my head,
I'm like I was right there with these guys. I
just wasn't beating them yet, but as like I was
competing with them, like and not like I'm going out
and just get my butt kicked. It's like and it's
it's a scrap of some of these guys that are
like nationally ranked.

Speaker 2 (09:58):
What is your first recollect should up meeting dut Schwab.

Speaker 4 (10:03):
Well, we got some old pictures where I went to
a wrestling camp that he was at, but I don't
remember that, to be honest, But I remember coming up
to a duel, meet a couple we came up. Our
high school team was pretty good. We had a couple
of a couple guys went to Iowa. A couple of
guys come to you and I and we came on
like an unofficial to watch a duel, and he came up.

(10:25):
He'd come up and talk to us afterwards. I remember
him just coming up and like it's very awkward. At
the time he came up, He's like sort of like
grabbing my my biceps. All right, all right, you know,
and he kind of he talks like that a little bit.
But one of the things he said, because I think
one of the things he liked is that because Randy

(10:46):
Pugh was from right around where I'm from, and he
had talked to some people from from uh from the
area and asked about me. And one of the things
like some of the people I would say maybe I
I had like trusted or like looked up a little bit.
They had said, like he's good, but you know, he's
not a Division one wrestler.

Speaker 3 (11:05):
Kind of that that was the description of me.

Speaker 4 (11:09):
And then you know that's they toltally, you know, when
Randy asked, that's what that's what their explanation wasn't me
and uh, you know he related to Doug obviously, and
Doug Doug kind of like when the first interaction we had,
I remember him saying, like, you know, like giggling at
that and like kind of saying that.

Speaker 3 (11:28):
But yeah, that that was like our first interaction.

Speaker 4 (11:30):
And then I was I went on a visit in
like April, I think it is, right before PROM I
went on my official visit to you and I and
then signed shortly thereafter as a walk on or referred
walk on or preferred walk on.

Speaker 3 (11:46):
That's why the term.

Speaker 2 (11:47):
But so, yeah, what other places you did you go
on visits anyplace else?

Speaker 4 (11:53):
Uh? Northern Illinois. I went on a visit there. That
that was as far as Division one, that was it.
Otherwise it was like Simpson College co College, and I
went to like Northwest Missouri State to look at like football.
So that yeah, as far as division ie, uh, you

(12:13):
and I and IU. That's that's commonly messed up on
some of the stuff that people mess it up. But yeah,
two different schools, so they were roughly the same, like
two and a half hours from from Burlington.

Speaker 2 (12:24):
So I say it every podcast drew the stories just
fascinate me. I mean your story fascinates me. I mean
you're getting hammered. I mean you're getting hammered as a
red shirt freshman. We talked about it. You're one and nine,
you're under five hundred. You find a way to become

(12:46):
an All American And what fascinates me And I wish
I could just like get inside your head during that time.
What do you recall about your lowest days and like
the perseverance, like how did you do?

Speaker 4 (13:00):
What I would just I would say, there's like a
just a chip on my shoulder and and that's like
part of it was too is like man coming to
school like I was. I was a walk on and
so like and there it wasn't and it's not like
it was held the gets here or anything, but like that,

(13:20):
but it's almost like you got to earn your stripes.
That was That was That was my kind of like mindset.
You got to earn your earn your stripes, improve that
you belong, you know, And in the back of my
head that that's what it constantly was, like I like,
I feel that I should be here and I want
to keep put proving it and you know, put my
head down and just work right, earn the respect. Not

(13:41):
that there wasn't you know, a lack of respect or
anything like that, but that was like my in my head,
that's what That's what it was. Just do that, do
that just chip away kind of thing. Because you know,
as far as like there's no I was never on
any like big board or anything like that. Uh I
dropped think but uh so that I mean just kind

(14:05):
of like the underdog mentality. I guess you could you could,
you could say, but that's that's where I said. I
wore a big chip on my shoulders. And you know,
there was one of the things that I would say
aggravated me is and I wasn't the only walk on
the team, and I had it easier. We had we
actually had a guy that was He's a true walk on.

(14:26):
And this is this is a really cool story that
doesn't get told. You know, I actually got I was
able to. We've been doing history lessons with ever since
Wes him got taken down or you know, we had
a hall full of history. And so now what we're
doing as a staff is like once a week where
you bring someone up.

Speaker 2 (14:43):
And those are awesome. Those are awesome. I love watching those.

Speaker 4 (14:47):
So when I one of the ones I talked about
was Darren Eads, who is a guy like most people
never hear about, but his story is awesome because he
was a true walk on. He he wanted to be
on the team so badly that he would wait around
till our practices got over, MAT's her sweaty and everything

(15:07):
in West GM and he would just come in for
like an hour afterwards and just do like stance in
motion by himself every single day for a year, right
and eventually, you know, and you just walk in and
you're like, what the heck's this guy doing? You know,
but you know, and it it shows how badly he
wants to be there, and he and he it's he's

(15:30):
not even for sure that he's gonna make the team
or like beyond given it be given a chance, it
didn't matter. He still showed up and he was willing
to do all that sacrifice his own time with no
one there, and here he earned his way on this
on the team and you know, earned the respect of everybody.
So like that, I mean, I would call that that's

(15:51):
like a true walk on, and as a walk on myself.
Like one of the things that you said like bug
me so much. Was you know, you get guys sometimes
you recruit guys and there they there's kind of you
saw you, they want to they want to just wear
the jersey. We don't really it's not doesn't really happen
as much anymore. I think our cultures it's just been
evolving the whole time. But you get guys that just

(16:11):
want like the jersey, or they want to wear the shirt,
they want to single it. They want you know, like
I'm a you and I wrestler okay, and that that
never like that that never sat well with me, right.
They still they didn't do the work, and that was
something I was traded to bring up to guys, like
every year was man like and it's not a slam
on on, a walk on or anything like that. So

(16:33):
this guy earned his way on the team, and you
guys just don't. You guys are getting scholarship at times.
Some of these guys were and it's like you're not
even like working hard or you're not doing the right things,
and it's like, I don't know. It was one of
those things that you said, you know, bug me so
much because there's a lot of pride. I think there's
there's a ton of pride in that. And then just

(16:53):
you know, it's not that it's not earned for a
guy that's on scholarship, it's still earned. But man, you
read for a guy like Daron needs man, he was
nothing was guaranteed as far as the spot on the roster,
and he stuck to it and earned his strikes.

Speaker 2 (17:09):
Your red shirt sophomore year, you are an All American
place seventh. You were at twelve seed. That was twenty seventeen.
What do you remember from that run in ultimately thoughts
on being on the podium being an All American, it's
a really big deal.

Speaker 4 (17:29):
Yeah, well, I actually that was when they had like
the random pigtails, if you remember that, And I didn't
have the pigtail, but I had the winner of the pigtail.

Speaker 3 (17:37):
Coming into me and it ended up being Bobby Steveson.

Speaker 4 (17:42):
So I wrestled him first, and then I had Zach
Zabotsky out of Virginia Tech after that, and Zavati. I
wrestled him that first year when the same age and
we were at Virginia Tech. He'd be the absolute crap
out of me, like major and me beat me out.

Speaker 3 (18:00):
Yeah, and that so that was like one of those
matches like I just.

Speaker 4 (18:05):
You know, it's like I know I'm getting better, and
like this is one of the matches I want to
get back, you know what I'm saying, where it's like
these guys beat the crap out of me, and now
like I'm I'm right, Like I know, my skills are
caught up. You know, the confidence is always there. And
I ended up being like the upset Keys of five Seed.
That was the upset win, and that sent me into
the quarters. And then I wrestled Nolan Boyd and I was, Oh,

(18:29):
if we're in the center of Matt probably would appened him.

Speaker 3 (18:31):
I hit a high flyer on him.

Speaker 4 (18:32):
Yeah, he went up, he went up four oh on
the ear that he took me down and put me
to my back and then he shot in again.

Speaker 3 (18:37):
I think I never hit a high flire in my life.

Speaker 4 (18:40):
It's like this, you know, like the National Tournament, like
the Sparkle that it's crazy there and hit a high
flyer and they kept showing it on the big board afterwards,
and we ended up kind of going out of bounce,
but uh no, I got so he was up, he
was up six, he was up six to oh and
then I hit that and at six four he ended
up beat me. But I'm telling if if we're in
the center and I was choked the crap out him

(19:00):
trying to stay in bounced and he's such a nice
guy too. Uh But then so Wressell lost that match,
get sent in to the Blood Rounds and I wrestled
Mike Machiavello was a good friend now too, who've become friends,
and so that was like our blood and round mat.
He mean, he's a national champion the next year, and
that was like a one point match. I'll tell you

(19:22):
what this is crazy. There was like a and he'll
he'll say the same thing. There was like an inverted
uh whistle that happened in this match, and we both
stop and then like nothing happens in the match, and
so we, you know, go back to wrestle. But I
started a little bit sooner and back to wrestling, and
I finished it, ended up finishing the takedown because I
was like ann of the legs and uh that ended

(19:43):
up being the difference. So it's kind of messed up,
I guess, but uh, so I had that and then
I wrestled who wrestled Miles Martin the next match, and
he he took me down with like thirty seconds left
to win that. And then I wrestled Nate Jackson for
seventh and beat him. So, I mean, it's pretty stout
out bracket. But man, that was that was such a

(20:09):
a cool moment. I would say in my career, it
was like I was, I was, I don't know, I
just felt so good about it. It was once you
once you win, that blood around you just so like,
obviously you want to make you want to make the semi,
get it guaranteed, or you want to make the finals.
You want to win. But when you've never been on
an All American and you you get accomplished that it's

(20:31):
such a cool feeling because really, on any given day,
think of how many guys don't become All Americans, that
are teammates that were capable and should have been All
Americans and they just didn't.

Speaker 3 (20:41):
Just in March or that tournament, it just wasn't their tournament.

Speaker 4 (20:45):
And it has nothing to do with lack of ability
or anything like that. It's just it just wasn't their
weekend at times, right, or that you maybe got injured
or whatever.

Speaker 3 (20:55):
It was so like it's.

Speaker 4 (20:58):
Pretty hard to get that that uh, that title beside
your name, and that was that was such a cool thing.
And then and there's pictures of like my mom and
dad like up in the stands crying, you know, and
they're there that we're in the note and now we
get the like the lower bowl. Now we're pretty consistent,
but that was when we were in the nose leads.
So that I mean they got binoculars and you know,
flogging them up with tears watching. Uh.

Speaker 3 (21:20):
So that that was really cool in that moment.

Speaker 4 (21:24):
And then Max Thompson he was an All American that
year too, so uh, it was cool to share that
with him. But I know, like one of the harder
things that I think, like the last couple of years,
Parker's probably been feeling this a little bit where it's
like it's you feel great, but when your teammates aren't
what they're with you, like becoming All Americans in the finals,

(21:44):
winning it's just like it it doesn't feel as good
as as it could, you know, And that's I think
part of that's just the culture we've created too. For
that Ducks I should say Ducks created is that you
I mean, you're it's such a family, and when it's
just like you or just one other teammate, like you're
happy for each other.

Speaker 3 (22:03):
But then it's like, then, these are the guys you
know I go.

Speaker 4 (22:05):
Go to war with every day in the room, and
you know they're down, and it it weighs on you
a little bit because you want them to feel the
same thing.

Speaker 2 (22:13):
It's funny you bring that up, Drew, because I was
thinking about this about a week ago, and I just
wrestled in high school. I didn't wrestle in college, but
even those but I've been out of high school thirty
some years and I took second my senior year, was
cutting a little bit of weight. And there's a guy
that used to run with me all the time. I mean,
I would this guy. I'll do anything for him. It's

(22:33):
thirty some years ago. Yes, what I've really come to
realize in this sport is one of the positives about
the sport, and this is a situation where both things
can be right. Hey, wrestling's an individual sport. It's you.
There's nobody to blame. Like, That's all true. The older
I get, the more I think to myself, you know what,
this is the biggest team sport there is.

Speaker 3 (22:55):
Oh yeah, it takes a freaking village to get through
some of the stuff.

Speaker 4 (23:01):
Just think of like how many like down nights or
like down times you have, and you know you can
lean on lean on some guys to just pick you
up and like just be there for you. And sometimes
it's just like not even no words, you know, it's
just like you got a guy that's running with you. Yeah,
it's just like an act you did. Like he could
say nothing the whole time and maybe an encouraging word.
But to have, like, you know, someone just helping hold

(23:24):
you accountable or just help them pick you up is
pretty cool.

Speaker 2 (23:28):
You want a national title. You'll be in the history
books forever. People will always remember Drew Foster. It'll never
be taken away from you. Let me ask you this, Drew,
your name's on the wall.

Speaker 3 (23:42):
Was was was on the wall?

Speaker 2 (23:45):
Who are some people that should be on that wall
with you? Who are some of the most impactful teammates
you've had that nobody will probably ever really know, but
you'll never forget.

Speaker 4 (23:56):
Oh man, I had a string of them. I mean
I when I first got to school, was it was
Cooper Moore. I think of a guy like Blaze Cavill
who he got his he got his senior year taken
away because he got moumps right before the national tournament.
And that's a guy. If he doesn't win a national title,
he's for sure all American in my books, especially that year,

(24:18):
and that got that got ganged from him. There is
I mean, you don't go back to high school even
but I mean as far as college, I mean, you
got Taylor Luhan who is a training partner all the time,
Jacob Polschlog, Bryce Steyert. I think of a guy like
Josh Albert, who I mean, really, he's one of my
favorite wrestlers all time to watch, all right, Just yeah.

(24:38):
I remember being at a tournament in high school in Illinois,
all right, which it was right across therbver for for
More Burlington is and and uh they paused a tournament
to talk about him, and uh Jared Cortez wrestling at
a tournament and I'm like who. At the time, I'm like,
who are these guys? You know, like why did I
let's go? And then I end up being teammates with him.
He's such a good guy and he was so fun

(25:00):
to watch. But a guy like him Max Toss and
Jacob Swarm, I mean, Randy Pugh as a coach, Dugs Schois,
guys of other guys you know, Cruise, Roper b Ra
and there there was there's so many pieces. I mean,
I was just talking to the guys today about I
had a warm up partner named Tyler Hoffin. He's two
times Juco Champ. You didn't end up finishing at you

(25:21):
and I, but my my sophomore year, he was the
guy that we warmed up like every he was he
was my warm up guy. I was telling these guys
like some days I was hurting so bad, trying to
get down to wait before duels or tournament, and he
could tell I was hurting and he would just start
taking reps and just where I could just be like
a noodle and just be like just keep me moving
kind of thing. And there's a ton of guys that

(25:43):
you know aren't mentioned that that are part of that.
I think like Austin Yant was a young guy that
was that was coming around when while I was in
my senior year. Is like a warm up guy and
like just a good partner to have. And really it's
just there's guys before I was even in school that
helped pave the way. And I think a guy like
Dylan Peters, who he was a guy. I mean, he's

(26:04):
he would never say, like a curse word kind of guy.
But when you first come in, you're like, you know,
how do you cut weight the right way? How do
you do things? You know, like what do I he
do for a workout to get down to wait and
you just kind of like look at it like an
older guy and try to like follow along. And I remember,
just like what's he doing. I'm gonna kind of like
try to do what he's doing real quick. So that

(26:27):
was I mean, then for one of some of my
best friends, Steven, like JJ, he's a heavyweight SA.

Speaker 3 (26:33):
There was so many guys. There's so many stories, so much.

Speaker 4 (26:38):
And I think, you know, one of one of my
quotes that I had after the national tournament, and this
is cool because someone made a poster of it, and
I remember our trainer at the time, he just plastered
it on his uh on one of his drawers, and
you go, it says, this is bigger than me, this
is the panther train. And you know, one of the
things our group, we had a really good team. I

(27:00):
would say, which never all clicked at the same time.
When I was going through at you and I as
an athlete, and one of the things we always talked
about is like one of us is going to win
and be Doug's first national champion. We didn't know who
it was gonna be, but we we probably had probably
like six or seven guys that were we would not
be surprised would have done it, and uh, it happened

(27:22):
to be me, And uh one of the coolest pictures
taken afterwards is I'm huddled up with every all the
all the qualifiers, you know, everyone that was there was
just huddle up around me. Shoot, I remember Josh Albert.
He stuck onto like ran onto the floor, and there's
a picture of him with you know how your family
member get the they get the first four seats. He's

(27:42):
he's right there with all my family right there, like
my mom, dad, brother, uncle, and there's Josh like he's
part of the family, you know, jumping up and down
and so that that's pretty cool when I think, you know,
I'm starting to ramble a little bit, but that that
was I remember the plane riding back from Pittsburgh, and uh,
I don't remember the match for shit, really, I don't,

(28:05):
I don't. I don't really remember the moment a time
is like I blacked out. I have to like watch
it if I if I wanted to remember it. You know,
I remember a little bits and pieces of it, but
I remember it is like the feeling that I felt.
Like I get on on Facebook, I get on Twitter,
I get all these text messages and people like some
of these videos are people crying that I've known since

(28:25):
I was little crying at their TV side one, and
like they were feeling like a certain pride and joy
and that, you know, just I think the way that
people felt from that, I think was one of the
most rewarding things. And it made me feel pretty good
about myself and like made me feel like I've had
like an impact in some way. Even though these people

(28:46):
all had an impact in my life, you know, there's
a little piece of me that's stuck with them. And
it's genuine, you know, it's not like the person I've
never talked to, you know, and since kindergarten there, you know,
and they're like, oh, it's my boy.

Speaker 3 (28:59):
It's not that you know, like that's that happened too.

Speaker 4 (29:02):
But it was a genuine stuff and that I think
that was the coolest thing, even like my old teammates,
you know, alumni like Tony Davis reaching out to me
go ahead and met until I think I met him
probably officially like three years ago.

Speaker 3 (29:15):
He's a hilarious guy. He's good energy, he's hilarious.

Speaker 4 (29:19):
But that just the pride and the way that uh
just people felt made me feel really good about that.
I think that that was a bigger thing, honestly than
the you know, the arm getting raised and.

Speaker 3 (29:33):
It was Yeah, do.

Speaker 2 (29:35):
You remember Drew being in the tunnel. I mean, I
always think it's to be in the tunnel. You got
twenty guys they can arrested for a Division one national title.
I basically call it being a unicorn because it's that
to get to that stage, it's it's unicorn stuff. Do
you remember like what you were like, do you remember

(29:56):
before you ran out there, like final conversations with Doug
the coaching staff, and and maybe just sucking in a
couple you know, taking in the moment a little bit.
What do you remember from from that time?

Speaker 4 (30:07):
I don't remember a ton I just know that I
tried to keep it as as on Q as possible.
I kept it in routine, you know, I had my
prematch routine, and I think Big twelve does a really
good job at kind of creating that the atmosphere actually,
and we had I was able to have two Big
twelve tournaments where it's like it's at the b Okay
and Nationals was held there a couple of years ago,

(30:28):
but they kind of present it in that way, so
you're on the tunnel, you get the you get the
smoke or you you know. So like I felt that
a little bit not as big of a scale, I mean,
and not as many Okie State fans, but I would
say like one of the things in just the self

(30:48):
talk beforematch is like every match, because I think people
say they don't get nervous. I think everyone gets, like
you get anxiety, you get a little bit anxious, you
get the nerves come in and like how do you
manage them? And a lot of it was just like
self talk, meaning like I look back and like, look
at who my training partners are, look at all the
work I've put in, and it's like every big moment

(31:10):
every match, staying near that's they try to creep in
and it's just like put the blockers on and just
the way I talked to myself was like, I'm training
with the best guys in the in the country, right
from from Hostag to lu Han to Stirre, and I
got some of the best coaches in the country, and
the work I put in, I've been working so hard,
and that was that was like it just constant reinforcement

(31:33):
of that.

Speaker 3 (31:34):
And then I would always try to keep it light
and joke around.

Speaker 4 (31:38):
This is the other thing.

Speaker 3 (31:39):
So if you ever saw me pre match, you're gonna
see me probably.

Speaker 4 (31:43):
Like like I'm locked in, but I'm like joking around
and laughing. I might Papa Joe, I remember, actually this
is this is kind of mess up a little bit.
That was that was the year that Siriano pulled fixed
his head gear. Yes okay, and were sitting back and
we got like this is when like you had to
fight for your spots at nationals, for your camps, right,

(32:06):
so like you'd send someone in early and down in
the tunnels and it was scab scavenger or scavenged as
much seats as you can get, find your area, set
it up. You got one guy for it, and so
there's like a I don't know five in the morning.

Speaker 3 (32:21):
As soon as you can get down in there.

Speaker 4 (32:22):
You got like each team kind of has one guy
that they designate to go do that that's on staff, right,
And for for whatever reason, we had like a sofa
where we were sitting, but we're like right on a corner.
So it's like you come in, here's a corner, and
then there's another big space. And I remember right after
that as Mosito comes up, he's at Okay State it
at the time, well what does pep and rafts screw

(32:43):
you over? And so I was like, I didn't watch
the match, so I'm like, what the hell is this
guy talking about? You know? And then he's like you know,
and then uh, we were I was able to watch
them with the reactions and some of that got on
like Twitter and sell some of this stuff. But yeah,
keep it pretty light and then just like a whole

(33:03):
bunch of positive reinforcement in my head. I know one
thing that I'd always do is after I was done
warming up, I'd try to lay down a nap because
my heart would really start racing, right because you think
of every single outcome that could ever, you know, possibly happen,
and I would just try to slow everything down, put
on some just like feel good music, whatever that was

(33:27):
that was it was. It was anything from like a
Meek Mill to a Taylor Swift. Uh, Joe Diffy, I
mean just just like John yor Green was like one
of our team, like funny songs that you know.

Speaker 3 (33:42):
We had a guy that karaoke did you know?

Speaker 4 (33:44):
And it brings like just like those kind of memories
just like calms you down and like brings you back
to a different place and makes it makes it not
seem so big where you're at. So those are like
little things that I would do to just like slow
my breathing down and uh. And we used to do
a lot of practice with that with Duke. Duke used
to Mark Schwab it was like one of his big

(34:04):
things like lay down, like focused and like breathe focus
on your breathing. That was like a big thing and
Duck still has the guys do it now. But like
those like man, just taking pieces from everything you learned
along the way and just making it your own and
your preparation is does that That's what I do. I'd
kept it try to be as calm as possible and

(34:26):
then keep it stay as light.

Speaker 3 (34:29):
So Yeah, that was That's just kind of how I did.

Speaker 4 (34:31):
And there's a lot of positive reinforcement in my head
talking over and over because I mean I think everyone
faces like a little bit like something creeps in and
and how do you how do you deal with it?
And I know some people look to like their faith
at times, and that's that's just how I. I just
looked to my like the way the work that was

(34:52):
put in, and that a lot of trust in it.

Speaker 2 (34:56):
Did you choose your walkout song in twenty nineteen, Yes, because.

Speaker 4 (35:00):
We're in Pittsburgh, so I had whis Khalifa, who's from Pittsburgh,
and medicated was a song.

Speaker 3 (35:06):
I give them two options though to be fair, but
that so that song was one of my walkout songs.

Speaker 4 (35:12):
Uh. It's actually my sophomore year. I didn't lose a duel,
or at least at home. Okay I didn't. I didn't
lose a duel, so uh, and that was like that
that's one of those feel good songs to me, Like
sometimes I turn it on and I walk the class
and I'm like amped up to good class, you know,
and it's like this is weird. But that was, Yeah,

(35:33):
that's just like even and even now so when I
hear it, now I do, I get like chills, I
get you know, my my hair start sticking up on
the back of my neck and I'm like I should
get amped up. And so yeah, and I'm always like
I try to give these guys good options too, like,
you know, we got guys, hopefully multiple making the finals

(35:55):
this year. Like, man, you guys are in are in Philly,
So that's like meek Mill, you know, they got to
come in. There's a meek No song that the team
likes that's not really well known. I would say, So
hopefully one of these guys, you know, they they make it,
they can they can use that as a walkout. We'll see.
But I always I don't know, I think maybe I

(36:18):
thought into that too much. But that was Yeah. I
remember I did call one of my buddies right after
the Semis and like, dude, these are my options.

Speaker 3 (36:26):
I got, Like what do you think he used a
music head too?

Speaker 2 (36:29):
So speaking of music, Drew, what what's the last like
good concert you've been to?

Speaker 4 (36:38):
Oh?

Speaker 3 (36:38):
Shoot, uh what was it?

Speaker 4 (36:43):
Uh? Pitbull pitfull? He came to that, he came to
the Quad Cities. My my wife from the Quad cities
and they have like a really big the Mississippi Valley Fair.
It's like a big thing. They get some big talents,
and uh he came there and that I mean that
was a fun time. Uh So, yeah, pit Bull was
the last and we're like we're in like a pit

(37:05):
you know, gamming out to some pit bull.

Speaker 2 (37:08):
How did you meet your wife?

Speaker 4 (37:10):
We met in college. She's she was a soccer player,
so we'd met in college. And yeah, we got married
and twenty three in August and twenty three and then
we just we just had our first child this November,
so November twenty fifth, so she's about two and a
half months now, and man, she's her next almost all

(37:33):
the you know, standing up by itself.

Speaker 3 (37:35):
She's Mamber. Our world's changed.

Speaker 4 (37:37):
We'll say that.

Speaker 3 (37:38):
It's in a good way. It's it's pretty cool parenting.
It's pretty cool.

Speaker 4 (37:42):
It's everyone tries to give you advice, and it's just
like you just kind of like you take the advice,
but you got to figure it out yourself. And this
I think I kind of like that a little bit.
It's i know, our first night we were in the hospital,
we got twenty minutes of sleep. Just get just so worrisome,
and now it's just like we're like dying to be
able to just be like, come on, come on, get

(38:04):
to bed, all right, And they're like, you know, or
we're both laying in bed and she's she still lays
next to like in next to our bed right now,
and uh, you know you hear the the little sounds
you're like hoping me. You know, I'm hoping she gets
up and you know, fixes the problem. She's helping.

Speaker 3 (38:23):
But no, it's it's good. She's my wife's awesome.

Speaker 2 (38:26):
And she's what's your what's her daughter's name?

Speaker 3 (38:29):
Colby, Colby, Jane Foster.

Speaker 2 (38:31):
How would you describe Drew the first moments you held
on to her?

Speaker 4 (38:37):
Oh, it's wild. I mean, uh yeah, I'm surprised that.

Speaker 3 (38:43):
You know, I'm not gonna fumble. You know, I'm not
gonna fumble a baby.

Speaker 4 (38:46):
But they so she had to get a sea section
and maybe this TM I she had to get a
sea section, and so you know, I'm sitting by her
face and they got this. She said, I was going
to pass out if I saw what was happening, all right.
I ended up peeking over eventually, and I did not
pass out. But so they got the curtain up and

(39:07):
you just hear the doctors go, oh, she's she's delivering
herself like you know, like she's jumping out of the
womb and they're like all right, dad.

Speaker 3 (39:16):
I'm like, all right, okay, here we go.

Speaker 4 (39:18):
And then it was like me doing doing everything and
what's crazy is uh from that point on, I held
her the whole time until we got back into the room,
so I like walked her through the hospital back to
our room, and uh, it was it was pretty cool.
I gotta I cut, like you know, they already cut
the umbilical cord and then I get it. I cut

(39:38):
like a different part of it.

Speaker 3 (39:41):
That was.

Speaker 4 (39:41):
That was That was probably the most nerve wracking part
of it, because I'm like, I'm I'm hurting her as
like the first.

Speaker 3 (39:46):
And she's crying, you know.

Speaker 4 (39:47):
And then uh but uh, man, I'm not saying I
feel like a professional parent by any means now, but
I feel so much better as a parent than what
I felt about too ago. Oh my god. That was. Yeah.
So it's it's good and man, she's she comes into
the room and it's cool to see how the guys

(40:10):
interact with her and you know, other coaches and stuff,
and I'll tell you what pew pew is a soft
Before he'll go up to her, you'd be lying to
her every time he sees her. So like right now,
it's you know, someone ends up holding her. I tried
to get as many pictures. I was never like someone
that took a lot of pictures, But now I'm like
finding myself, like how many pictures can I get? Just

(40:30):
to share some memories? Really, So it's it's a It's awesome.
It's Jamie, Jamie.

Speaker 2 (40:40):
So I'll just ask you this because Valentine's Day is
coming up. You know. I was like, you know, you
rough and tough wrestlers, Like, what's the what's the most
romantic thing you've ever done for your wife?

Speaker 3 (40:51):
The most romantic thing? She's over in this other room
looking at you, laughing.

Speaker 4 (40:56):
As far as like a Valentine's Day thing, We're pretty simple,
but the most romantic thing, gosh.

Speaker 3 (41:08):
I used to do like a game you got here?

Speaker 4 (41:10):
Huh.

Speaker 2 (41:11):
I want to see what kind of game you got here?

Speaker 4 (41:13):
But I mean we've gone on a couple of nice
little like date nights is nice, uh, little cute letters,
I guess, and some gifts like some handwritten notes. I
don't know.

Speaker 2 (41:28):
Let's know, those handwritten notes are I mean those wrong
ways they really do?

Speaker 4 (41:34):
Yeah, I know she she gets a lot of massages,
like basically professional massues. But yeah, I get I don't know.
I don't know what she would deem the best thing.
But I mean I can.

Speaker 3 (41:50):
Always one up it.

Speaker 4 (41:50):
I guess there you go, I can one up it whatever,
whatever it is.

Speaker 2 (41:56):
What is the most impactful? Sure A tough question. I'll
even give you a you know, one or two because
I told you before we went on, I could listen
to Doug Schwab talk for days. It's just something about
I love listening to him. What is Is there a
conversation you've had that's been the most impactful? You know,
maybe one or two that you'll never forget that just

(42:18):
for whatever reason at that particular time was huge for you.

Speaker 4 (42:24):
M man. I had to really think on this. I'm
trying to think about like everyone, everyone from each point
in my life. I know, gosh, dang, I think as
far as like and a wrestling point of view. One

(42:48):
of the things, like after I'd become an All American
that Doug came up and talked to me about was
like basically like and it wasn't in a negative light.
It was just like, there's more than just being being
an All Americ. He's like, he's like, man, you got
seventh place? You know how many? How many more? What

(43:10):
I want to spot the or to climb like one
of those like there's more to it. Don't be satisfied
with that. I think that was huge as far as
just like pop in the mindset. I know, uh I
had like a my junior year wasn't like I had
a good year, but it wasn't you know, you don't

(43:32):
I didn't finish as an All American, right, So it's
like that That's what's crazy, is you like demon on like, oh,
you didn't get the finish he wanted, but it was
still a good year. But after that, we uh Jim Miller,
he's around the program kind a bit Noll boys. What
he goes by, he's a oh yeah, yes, and uh
we used to have like go go meet with and

(43:54):
have coffee with him and a pew like a handful
of us and uh, you know. One of the things
he would would talk about it just like controlling your
effort and then like just making it real, making it
real make practice real, you know his day at the time,
it is like bringing Pittsburgh, bring Pittsburgh into the practice room.
I think that was a good thing. I would say,

(44:16):
we said we had this slogan and this is I
think this is something that really live by and it
used to be you know, posted right outside of our
locker room and said, how do you do any things?

Speaker 3 (44:25):
How you do everything?

Speaker 4 (44:28):
And man, when I go to campus and stuff, that's
something I try to tell these kids no matter what,
like your relationships, your school, Okay, you're wrestling, how you
do any of it right? How you how you how
you are with your relationships, like your parents, how you
talk to them right? How do you interact with them right?
Are you giving them your full attention to your effort
or are you on your phone? Your school? Like are

(44:49):
you locked into that? And it all translates so if
you take away like the way you act right. So
I think I think of like maybe you got like
growing up, you got the kid that he's there. They're
a world class wrestler, crazy good, But what they're doing
outside of that isn't lining up. Like how you do
everything anything is how you do everything right, So it's
not lining up. It's not lining up, but what catches

(45:11):
up to you? All right, So I think just the
way you live should be pretty well rounded, right, whether
you're you know, you're growing in your faith, your social life,
you know, you're in the classroom and then obviously I'm
the Matt or whatever you know, it could be in
the workplace, and I don't know. I just think no
matter what you're doing, you want to give your full,
full focus effort. And it's hard talk at times. Right,

(45:34):
there's days where it's like gosh, damn it, you know,
and maybe you question yourself and like maybe I didn't,
but I think your awareness in that is is huge.
But I think that's like a little motto and I
don't I don't know who came up with it, but
I think that was something to it's something to live by,

(45:54):
really is. And then I mean, obviously how how do
you interpret it? But that that my interpretation of that.

Speaker 2 (46:03):
What's something drew within wrestling that you're most passionate about? Like,
what's something if if people are talking wrestling, what's something
that will get you going a particular topic that you're
really interested in?

Speaker 4 (46:17):
And I well, right now, it's like just the top wrestling,
and I know people are trying to go like freestyle.
Freestyle is the you know the answer, I'm not. I
love folk style, and the thing is I love I
love wrestling on my feet. You know, I love takedowns.
I like, you know, most of my matches I got
the first takedown, even when it came to freestyle and stuff.

(46:38):
I like to think of myself as like an explosive, fast,
like quick uh wrestler. But uh, just the top wrestling,
especially now with the sometimes with a three point takedown
is like some guys and they're like even on our
team now, like some guys that just the urgency to
ride isn't there. And I think that's one of my
biggest like pet peeves, I'm like, goshang, what happens when

(46:59):
you're the national tournament you just need to ride someone
or you get to the rideouts or something like, you
need to ride someone. Uh, And I think it's a skill,
like not everyone can ride, and they're obviously there's stall rides,
but I don't know. I think that that's one of
those things where I think it's an important thing, like
Matt returns right being able to ride and working for

(47:22):
turns and I know, like in the new rules, like
the emphasis is right, if you're not working on top,
they're going to call you for stalling, like we'll just
keep working, you know. And I think I think that's
one of the the pet peeves.

Speaker 1 (47:36):
Uh.

Speaker 4 (47:37):
I think a little bit of the the rules, some
of the some of the situations is uh, it changes,
it varies by perspective of of the rule or like
of the situation. Like the stall call on the edge
in some instances is so inconsistent at times. And I don't.

Speaker 3 (47:58):
And it's I don't think it's anything.

Speaker 4 (47:59):
It's nothing do with the refs really, it's just like
just the interpretation of the rule. And it's so there's
a fine line like like in Freestout now they're talking
about like you get to the edge, you can't just
like drop now they're gonna they're gonna cost one year,
right and now like and folks out, So when you
take someone all the way to the edge and then
you try to drop down and like act like it's action.

(48:22):
So there there's I don't know, there's there's tons of
things that can face it.

Speaker 3 (48:27):
I think, I don't know.

Speaker 4 (48:28):
I think folks I' wrestling is pretty awesome. I don't know,
it's hard to be could you fine tune it? Yeah,
But I mean it's a product that's been around for
a long time and it you know, people get behind it.
There's so much and I think a lot of it too,
is like there's college teams with it, and that's probably
why there's not as big a crowds at international right,

(48:50):
especially like in the US. It's like it's hard. It's
it's harder to get behind an individual than it is
like a program and uh and it's like the level
of wrestling is like so much higher these something. And
I think the in Croatia this week and it's like
someone like showed a picture of like the the crowd
in it. I mean there's zero people, it looks like,

(49:10):
which is unfortunate. But I just think it's easier to
get behind a program, right, Like people put a lot
of pride in like in Iowa here like broad from
it's it's an hour from Iowa City and so back home,
everyone's like and this is like one of my things.
Like I wasn't a big fan of Iowa eventually, I
mean I was growing up and then it like turned
into like I don't know, about this, but like so

(49:32):
many people like my all my like some of my buddies,
they're like die hard, hot eyed, I'm my gosh, dang
you guys, and you know, like watching you one I
wrestling and like it's you know, but they're so it's
like you're so tied. You're so tied to university and
in this state for the most part, it's it's Iowa
State and Iowa. And I think what's awesome is we
are we're growing a brand and a culture that people

(49:53):
are like get attached to. They love it. And I
think it starts with Doug and what he started. Shoot,
I don't know how many years ago it was. I
don't know, maybe he got here in nine or ten
or something like that. Yeah, so what he's created is
something people love and enjoy. And I think it's just

(50:16):
because he's just he's himself, right, and and he's he's
growing some like some great young men, right, some like
parents can hand off and like feel good that even
if something happened to them. Because there's so many guys
I've seen that whether they don't deserve to still get
a second chance or a third chance. Doug has such

(50:38):
a big heart that he gives them that because he
wants he wants them to succeed. I think Nick Saban
he has this quote he's talking about I don't know
who he's talking about.

Speaker 3 (50:47):
He's like, get a receiver. Maybe it was.

Speaker 4 (50:52):
The old one of the Falcons receivers likes a new
or something. I don't know who it was. He's like
he got in trouble for like a dui or something
like that, and everyone was mad because they let it.
Like he's like he made him like work back on
the team and like he didn't like take a scholarship
and like, you know, just throw them to the curve.
He's like, what would you want me to just like

(51:13):
throw him out? And then now he's like spiral them
out of controller you want me to like try to
set him up for his future.

Speaker 3 (51:17):
So like that's part of his job. And I think
that's what Doug.

Speaker 4 (51:19):
Doug is like where it's like even if guys make mistakes,
he's like he's trying to correct them and help them
and like guide them to become better men. And it's
coming to the point where it's like the guys are
holding each other accountable. They're not even letting those kind
of things come up, and it's it's really cool to
see just and I mean and even guys that like
get injured and you know, in other programs, maybe they

(51:41):
get forgotten about. Okay, now now with the you know,
the opt in opt out, you know they're dropping rosters spots.
Maybe those are the guys that you know, they don't
even try to figure out a way for him and I,
which I think is going to happen. Unfortunately, they're not
even you know, try to use like an RTC or
something and try to help them to keep them around
and figure out an option. There's all right, Sorry, your

(52:01):
bottom of our depth chart. You're injured last year. See yeah,
and you know that's one of the things we talk
about is if that were to happen it at you
and I, we would we'd figure it out. Like there's
there's too much loyalty and love to to take care
of these kids there that their parents and trusted in us,
that we would you know, you couldn't. Man, dog Doug

(52:23):
would give up his home and I've seen him give
up his home to make sure someone's taken care of,
you know, to make sure they're all right. And man,
it bleeds through and I think the the men that
leave the program. Yeah, it's just it's really cool, and
it's it's really it's really a culture. It's a brotherhood,
you know, a family. People. People talk about it, but

(52:47):
until you've been somewhere else and then you come, it's
just it's hard to explain, right, and so you've been
around something else and then then you see it. And
I'm not saying other programs don't have that. I don't
know what other programs have or don't have, but I
know what we have and I don't you know, I've
seen some instances where that that kind of stuff doesn't
happen what happens here, and I think people actually take

(53:08):
notice of that. So and that's that's kudos to Doug
and what he's created. And I'm just thankful to be
part of it. You know. It's it's really awesome.

Speaker 2 (53:18):
I stole this or I'm going to steal this sex
outs on another podcast. I think yesterday, I wish I
didn't even pay attention to what it was. I'm like,
I'm gonna steal that it was. I think it was
called two word or I think it was called like
two word advice. So I'll let you think about this
a little bit. If you want to give advice to

(53:39):
somebody in life, in rustling, it could be anything two words.
What two words would you What would be your two
word advice to somebody?

Speaker 4 (53:51):
Gosh, dangiot, not that thosen't two words, guys, dang oh man,
two words?

Speaker 3 (54:04):
I mean trust. I think trust would be one of them.

Speaker 4 (54:07):
Trust. And you know what what you put your trust into,
right yourself, into your faith, into the people around you,
into your work um.

Speaker 2 (54:22):
Or even back to backwards drew because mine like and
you're the first guy that I've talked this question for it,
because I just saw this and it got me thinking
what mine is like. And I'm a little bit I'm
getting older, maybe getting a little getting crabby. But my
kind of two word advice is somebody might be nobody
cares that. That was the first thing that came to

(54:43):
mind with me, was nobody cares.

Speaker 4 (54:45):
That's yeah, that's good, that's yeah. I would say, yeah,
trust and gosh danging, that's a good. Trust an effort maybe, okay, yeah,
trust an effort. I don't know. I think I just
I just look back to like you can you can
put effort in so many ways, and I don't know.

Speaker 3 (55:04):
I just think it's some people like.

Speaker 4 (55:07):
I just and probably it's a generation thing too, like
some of the younger generations the effort isn't always there.
And what's that, you know stem from? I don't know,
but like and I don't know if it's interest or
whatever it is, but I think effort can go a
long ways, and like or show up, show up could
be a good one.

Speaker 2 (55:29):
That one. If I could go three, if I could
go three words, do the hard, that'd be the other one,
Like do the hard?

Speaker 3 (55:39):
Yeah, gosh, that's it. That's good one.

Speaker 4 (55:40):
I'll be interested to see what what people come up with, because.

Speaker 2 (55:44):
Right, it's gonna be like the first guy that got
that question. But every podcast I do now it's gonna
be asked because I just I just like it's just
a good you know, puts you on the spot a
little bit. But you know, text me if you think
think of anything else?

Speaker 4 (55:57):
Yeah I will. I will leave you.

Speaker 2 (55:59):
With this one. A final question for you. If you
were traveling from you know, Cedar Falls in a vehicle
out to Los Angeles, it's you. You get to pick
three people get or alive that you've never met. Got
to be three people you've never met? Who are you

(56:23):
taking on that trip?

Speaker 4 (56:25):
Gosh, this is tough.

Speaker 3 (56:30):
Three people or two people?

Speaker 4 (56:32):
Two people you get, three get or alive.

Speaker 2 (56:36):
That you've never met.

Speaker 4 (56:43):
Jeez, man, because they're like it. I think like JFK
or something like that, like you want to know some.

Speaker 2 (56:50):
Answers that whoever you want anybody, Yeah, you.

Speaker 4 (56:52):
Want to know some answers. But then you think of
a guy like mm, like a Tom Brady. Although on
the on the he's growing on the broadcast, I don't
know how. He was a little dry at first on
his his broadcasting or commentating, so I don't know. Hopefully
he wouldn't be like that in a car ride. It's

(57:13):
the gosh, dang, I want to ask a lot of questions.
And I want someone older too, because I'm going out.
We got a guy that he does the Flow, the
Flow broadcast with no boy's name is Jeff Bradley. He
goes by Juice, and a lot of times me and
him go like, well we'll road trip together, and man,
just I enjoy I enjoy talking to him and like

(57:36):
hearing like stories and stuff like that. But uh.

Speaker 2 (57:40):
Mmmm, I don't know.

Speaker 4 (57:47):
Dead or alive.

Speaker 3 (57:55):
Or I could you go like Kobe Kobe, I would
go maybe Kobe Kobe for one?

Speaker 5 (58:02):
Mm, Kobe for one? This is two dang hard.

Speaker 4 (58:16):
I feel like there's so many people that I could choose,
Like what do I want to talk about? Who? I
feel like? I mean, unless he would be he listened
like maybe like I think you listened to good music too,
at least like good background music. Kobe. Mm oh, maybe

(58:37):
I go, Maybe I do go JFK. I want to
know some stuff. I want to find some stuff out.
I think he knew some stuff. And one more person.
I don't know that that both those people are dead.
I don't I don't want gos.

Speaker 5 (58:53):
Na mm hm, I would not.

Speaker 4 (59:01):
Paul says, tupact saw who is it? You saw the
person that did it? Didn't you? H m hmm. I'm thinking, well,
Kanye West, that'd be the other person there you go.
That'd be interesting that, would you know that? Yeah? Despite

(59:22):
the Kanye we see today, he's actually be my favorite
artist as far as Okay.

Speaker 2 (59:28):
What's your what's your favorite Kanye song? You got one?

Speaker 4 (59:31):
Uh? Growing up?

Speaker 3 (59:34):
I mean gold Digger was like, what was my favorite one?

Speaker 4 (59:38):
Now?

Speaker 1 (59:42):
Mmm?

Speaker 3 (59:44):
I don't know.

Speaker 4 (59:45):
I think after watch if you watch his Netflix doc,
which is the first two episodes are good. The third
ones he's Scots to go crazy. But uh, that Through
the Wire is a is a very likable song because
his mouth his actually wired shut as he's like singing
rapping it because he got in a car accident. So

(01:00:05):
he's like and if you listen to it, you can
kind of tell it's like and he's like, listen, like, yes.

Speaker 2 (01:00:12):
I mean, people can say what they want about Kanye.
The guy is as talented as it gets.

Speaker 4 (01:00:16):
Yeah, he's very, very talented.

Speaker 3 (01:00:18):
He's just yeah, he's man, very interesting.

Speaker 4 (01:00:23):
I can't say I agree with some of the antics
and stuff that goes on. But he's not. Like his
music too, I like, especially his older music is. But yeah,
so maybe maybe those three I probably I probably end
up changing. But yeah, JFK, Kobe and Kanye, that'd be interesting.

Speaker 2 (01:00:46):
I got one more for you. I just thought about this.
I'll let you go after this. What was the coolest
thing you got to experience by being a national champ.

Speaker 4 (01:00:58):
Going to the White House, going to DC? So that
was that was just a really cool experience. So we
got me and me and Randy p went out there,
and he's a Trump was in office at the time,
and uh, Randy's like, he's a big Trump guy.

Speaker 3 (01:01:19):
So he was like super pumped and we got it.

Speaker 4 (01:01:24):
Like the wrestlers got a very unique, like exclusive experience
compared to the other sports teams.

Speaker 2 (01:01:31):
That were there because he loves wrestling.

Speaker 4 (01:01:33):
Yes, and uh and uh. Jim Jordan was like, is
like his right hand man, so he was there. And
then one of the governor I can't think of his name.
He's one of the Oklahoma I think he's maybe he's
a senate guy, the rep. I don't know, but he's
he's like one of the guys I actually, I mean
Randy saw a clip of him earlier this year.

Speaker 3 (01:01:52):
He's threaten like he was gonna fight somebody.

Speaker 4 (01:01:54):
He was. He was on the tour and like giving
us a tour and stuff. But we got to see
the Capitol Building, which really I thought was and because
probably because we didn't get to go in and out
of a ton of spots in the White House, but
the Capitol Building was was really cool. You know, they
took us all around. You got to see it, see
a ton of things, and so we did that. Like

(01:02:17):
the night before a couple of us came early, so
it was like, was it me mackay Yanni? Maybe it's
just I think it was just us and like our
coaches that came with. And then like the next day
and we had to go through like five different security
checkpoints too to get into the White House, which means

(01:02:39):
which makes the the January sixth thing. It's crazy to the.

Speaker 3 (01:02:43):
Amount of checkpoints we had to go through.

Speaker 4 (01:02:45):
Like I'm like, did you guys just checked all of
our satellary We're going again, like okay, whatever, And then
that I think that was less interesting because we kind
of like had to sit there and wait, and then
Trump came around, and then we got to go to
the Oval office and he's like all the rest the
wrestlers come early and stay after kind of thing, and
everyone else kind of like cycled through, and then we

(01:03:06):
like we got to go to like the cabinet room,
and like the whole time, I'm like, right, is this
like a replica place or is like or like which
one of these like hidden statues things like polls, the
door down, and like we go to the real stuff,
you know, and they're like secret services, They're like, you know,
shut up. But that that was that was really cool.
And uh, I remember like I was doing like like

(01:03:29):
to graduate, I had to finish with like student teaching.
So at the time I was doing like student teaching
and like training because that was in like the the
fall of after I had won, when we went and
I was in the school in middle school in Waterloo,
and like a lot of the kids like they didn't
like Trump, and I'm like, I'm not gonna like whoever
the president, Like there's they're the president right like that

(01:03:52):
they're they're running the country or whatever. I'm like, so
they're like, why would you go like the And I'm like,
because when will I ever be able to do this again?
You know that that was like that was my reasoning
and uh, you know, whether you're making a stand or whatnot.
But like that's like one of my things, Like if
I wanted to make a stand on someone I didn't
agree with, why would I not go talk to them?

(01:04:13):
If that? You know, like that goes to like that's
a whole different matter, Like I don't like you, so
I'm just not going to talk to you.

Speaker 3 (01:04:19):
We're not going to confront and try to like work
out our differences.

Speaker 4 (01:04:21):
No, screw you, f you. We're not going to solve
any problems. You know, it's like my way's right, your
ways wrong. It's like, that's one of my conflict arguments
is like, well, why would you not, like where's the
common ground? There's got to be a common ground somewhere,
and then if there's not, at least you got the
respect towards each other because you had a conversation and

(01:04:42):
you can at least respect each other and not like
agree with each other. But I remember, like that was
like my lesson for the class at time. I'm like, like,
it doesn't and that was That's what I just said,
Like a little rent right here. I'm like, like, it
doesn't matter at least if you can, like whether you
agree with it or disagree. And I'm like, and this
is a once my life time. When would I ever

(01:05:02):
be able to go into the oval office in the
cabinet room.

Speaker 3 (01:05:06):
Yet in my life?

Speaker 4 (01:05:08):
Never?

Speaker 2 (01:05:09):
Never.

Speaker 4 (01:05:09):
I mean I can go to Washington, D C. And
maybe tour the Capitol and maybe get on a White
House tour. But in the exclusive man then he gave us.
He gave us like a whole bunch of stuff too.
It's like fangear or whatever. It's kind of funny but but
that that was probably that was the cool thing. I
gotta go to like our state capitol too, and they
took me all the way. It's like hold me, you know,

(01:05:31):
like all the coaches for the most part in our ad.
We got into like the top part of the.

Speaker 3 (01:05:36):
The capitol building and got to check out ot.

Speaker 4 (01:05:38):
That was cool, and they'd like in Iowa when you
like you win, they like sign they call it like
uh not like the day that it's like you don't
get your own personal day, but they write it. I
don't know, they write it into parliament or so. I
don't know what it's called. Terminology ain't my fami when
it comes to that, but they they made a whole
big show and they like so I did like to
sit up and like be honored and of like everyone

(01:06:01):
that's like and like that works in the capitol and
they're like in the courtroom there and it's like, I
mean it's like five minutes. Maybe they like talk about
it and congratulate, shake everybody, same walk out. But yeah,
it's pretty neat. Yeah, those were those are probably the
coolest things.

Speaker 3 (01:06:17):
And then just.

Speaker 4 (01:06:20):
Now I don't know what else. Man's just a lot
of opportunities or like even like you said, like you
got a cool story, like so like my story gets shared,
and like with my story being shared, I can share
other people's stories. I think that's kind of cool. Just
people along the way that have been packed in me
or you know like that have like a a cool
story that that gets light and because I mean everyone

(01:06:42):
has a story. And I just tell the guys now,
like you write your story, right, You're gonna write the
rest of your story. You know how's it gonna look.
You can't control everything, but you can control a lot
within your story.

Speaker 2 (01:06:58):
I forgot to ask you one of the most import
and questions of the podcast. It's the go earn It Podcast. Yeah,
when you look at your wrestling career, how would you
describe your go earn it moment when you had to
go get it backs against the wall you had to
figure it out.

Speaker 3 (01:07:15):
As far like in a match or like it could.

Speaker 2 (01:07:18):
Be in a match, it could be in your career
of a point in your career, you know, any anything
you remember from just having a go earn it?

Speaker 3 (01:07:26):
Yeah, I mean it could be, man, it could be
a lot of things.

Speaker 4 (01:07:31):
It could be like my my first year going in
like earning my spot on the team, I think was
like a big thing.

Speaker 3 (01:07:36):
Earning my first scholarship was a huge thing for me.

Speaker 4 (01:07:42):
Where it was like Doug it said, like in the
recruiting process, like hey, like you put work in, I'm
going to reward you my So my first year was
a walk on. In the second year, I had four
hundred dollars, you know, third year three hundred dollars, right,
and then at All Marites, you know, I don't American
with that, and then you know, then I was able

(01:08:04):
to get my tuition. But that was I think that
was like what a lot of pride in that graduating college,
the first of my immediate family to graduate to graduate college.
That was good. And then the other thing would be

(01:08:24):
like rest wise, just like you said, but that first year,
I mean I was below five hundred and my first
year starting and like not shutting the door on myself,
right and still betting on myself, still going to work
and still chasing after something and not put my head
down and succumbing to the results.

Speaker 3 (01:08:45):
That were happening, right, I didn't. I didn't cave to that, And.

Speaker 4 (01:08:52):
I'm very proud of that, I would say, because I
think a lot of people would turn the other way. Yeah,
so I think those would be the and then if
it was a moment that go earn it moment would
probably be the NCLA Finals. In the the last thirty seconds,
it was a pretty big Like you know, like we

(01:09:12):
talked about it, you get to a point in a
match where you're kind of spiraling a little bit, you're
feeling it, legs are heavy, trying to breathe, and you
know what's crazy about that that last takedown sequence, if
you watch it back, this is whole bunch of people
pointed out Randy Hughes like he caught off the shot
almost like a coach Collina Flay. He goes like, you know,

(01:09:34):
fake left all the time, go right into the misdirection
and you'll see it like certain name as you see.
And that's what happened. I'm not saying I saw him
do that or anything, but he did that, you know,
and that's him knowing me a lot too. But going
back to what mil Boy had said of, you know,
bring Pittsburgh to to practice, I swear to you the

(01:09:55):
moment I had in the National finals with winning, I
got the takedown to and I got a cross wrist
and I probably could have got some back points out
of it because I had that thing.

Speaker 3 (01:10:04):
For like tight and a good cross roads till.

Speaker 4 (01:10:08):
I was in that I had that same exact moment
in practice and it was like you need a score.
It's like it was probably like fifteen second stuff. You
got it, and that's the situation that you know we'd
create in practice, and I went and got I remember
like kind of like looking up in the middle of
practice like an idiot. You're not probably look like an idiot, right,
but like, for whatever reason, I was like and it
was so it's so hard to do it. How do

(01:10:28):
you make it real in practice? But then I tell
you I had that moment and for whatever reason, it's crazy,
it's beyond me, but I just remember like it happened,
and like I'm sitting there and I'm like, oh my gosh.
And you can like and not this that I think
Max is a great guy, but you know, like when

(01:10:50):
someone feels defeated, you can like like feel them just
kind of like deflate, and you know you feel that.
It's like and I'm still squeezing, you know, sweetening the
shit album.

Speaker 3 (01:10:58):
You know, no, you know this is this is you're
not getting this risk back until this thing is over.

Speaker 4 (01:11:07):
And uh yeah, so I was actually I was glad
he actually he won down the road so he won.

Speaker 2 (01:11:13):
Two mm hmm right. Twenty nineteen national champion Drew Foster.
Where is your wall chart?

Speaker 3 (01:11:21):
It's down, It's actually down in a basement right now.

Speaker 4 (01:11:23):
Uh so, uh well, as I'm actually kind of this
is like one of the things I'm a little like
pot about. So, you know, like growing up, so I
never had a state title, so I never had the
like the bracket like yeah, and the like the wood
like frame. Then you know, I never had that. So
I'm like I win Nationalists. I'm like, oh yes, I'm
getting it. I'm getting my bracket. Like it's going to

(01:11:44):
be sweet. The coach called me to the office one day.
They're like, hey, we got you know these guys, because
I got like the big twelve wrestler things. So I
got that, and some someone made me this like weightlifting belt.
Says like it's like a championship belt, but it's a
weightlifting belt. Kind of sweet. It's purple, has like chrome
like Champ one four. It's pretty sweet. We've got a

(01:12:06):
couple of things. And then they got this like package
and it's like pretty small, and I'm like, I'm like,
the hell is this you know, opening it up and
it's it's it's cool idea. It's a cool idea. I'm
not knocking it.

Speaker 3 (01:12:17):
I just have this.

Speaker 4 (01:12:18):
I had this like because I wanted a bracket, a
big bracket, framed and and would like all my life
basically because from high school. I've seen so many high
schools have it. And it's a it's like a resulte
like the or dollar like roll up Matt with the
bracket like printed on it.

Speaker 2 (01:12:35):
Okay, so it's like I would think.

Speaker 4 (01:12:39):
Yeah, it's a result, I think. And so it's rolled
up or it's like and it's like full. So it's
like and I just remember like being like what is this?
Like this is not what I envisioned. This is not
what do you mean?

Speaker 2 (01:12:49):
Don't you have the big bracket?

Speaker 4 (01:12:51):
No, it's they do this. They make it. It's like
a piece of matt.

Speaker 2 (01:12:55):
You're you're kidding. It's like thrown off right now, Drew.
So you're telling me you don't have the big wall.

Speaker 4 (01:13:02):
Chart, Now I do. I hear.

Speaker 6 (01:13:05):
I'll take you out, Okay, I'll take you show you
it's a and it's I don't want it like it's
it's still cool, it's and it's it's a wall chart,
its has a bracket on it.

Speaker 2 (01:13:17):
Well, got don't you take the wall chart that you
have and just go get it framed?

Speaker 3 (01:13:21):
I could, but it's a it's a matt, it's a thing.

Speaker 2 (01:13:25):
I'm learning something new here.

Speaker 4 (01:13:28):
I'm so it's it looks from here, it's like, yes, okay,
so that's true, but it is a can you see that?

Speaker 2 (01:13:37):
Okay, I can. Okay, So it's cool.

Speaker 3 (01:13:41):
It is not knocking it.

Speaker 4 (01:13:43):
But I wanted I wanted like the I wanted the
big bracket.

Speaker 2 (01:13:49):
Yeah, Horizonal, I'm completely thrown off right now. I mean
I thought, I thought, if you want a national title,
because let me ask you this, Well, I guess when
you stand the top the podium, I know they give
you the little trophy, don't they give you a big
bracket to hold up? No, I'm not. I don't know
if they did. I don't.

Speaker 4 (01:14:08):
I think they used to. But yeah, it was just
the trophy.

Speaker 2 (01:14:13):
Well the big I mean, Drew, we gotta you and
I gotta fix this. I gonna fix this. I guess
I never paid that close attention I assumed. I mean,
you win the national title, you're up there with the
big bracket.

Speaker 4 (01:14:25):
Yeah, that's what for the big twelve. I think Big
ten probably does it too. You get we like big
twelves is huge. Yeah, and there's like in Brad brackets
aren't that big. But so I got a couple of those,
and that's what that's what I'm expecting. And I was like, oh,
your job members just being so disappointed because like I
just envision. I'm like, all right, I am, I like

(01:14:47):
my basement some day, I'm gonna have this thing framed up.
It's gonna be awesome. And it's still it's not that
it's not awesome.

Speaker 2 (01:14:54):
Yeah, it's very cool. That be a It's one of
those things where it's like that's cool if it's the
second thing, right, yeah, like yes, like that's a great
little add on. That's cool. But Drew, you and I
are onto something here. I'm not. I mean, I I
I just assumed everybody had this big wall shart. You know,

(01:15:15):
you won the tournament. There you are with the big shart.
I guess I didn't pay that close attention. I just
assumed that was the case. But I guess I'm I'm wrong.

Speaker 4 (01:15:24):
Yeah, And then I know they're still doing this because
Parker just got one of got the same thing last
year because he was kinda he's a little thrown off too.
He's like, oh, this is cool, but I know this
is what they do.

Speaker 2 (01:15:35):
Listen, listen, we're gonna we're gonna try to fix this. Yeah,
we're gonna try to fix this. I'm with you. I mean,
if you win a national title, it's kind of like
not to get off on too many rants here picking anybody.
But like, I love the four trophies. Four trophies. It's
always so now they cut it to three. It's not

(01:15:56):
about the trophy. It could be a piece of paper, Like,
it's not about the trophy, right, it's about the piece
of paper. If you want to cut it, if you
want to cut budgets, you know, make it you the trophy.

Speaker 3 (01:16:07):
Yeah, just get a first place trophy or something.

Speaker 4 (01:16:09):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:16:10):
But the wall chart, I mean, that's a big deal.
You gotta have the big you gotta have the big
bracket chart.

Speaker 4 (01:16:16):
Yeah, I feel and honestly, I feel like that's a
little bit cheaper than like doing the rest of light.

Speaker 2 (01:16:20):
For sure, because well, let me tell you this, here
here's my guess, and maybe maybe I'm wrong on this,
but if I won a national title, the trophy's cool.

Speaker 4 (01:16:29):
I want the big bracket, yep. Yeah, because that tells
the story. That tells the story.

Speaker 2 (01:16:33):
It only tells the story.

Speaker 4 (01:16:35):
I get the bracket, I get the bracket here the
trophies that it still my parents house.

Speaker 3 (01:16:39):
Actually you need to get it up here eventually.

Speaker 2 (01:16:42):
But okay, yeah, this is something I'm going to investigate.
But uh, Drew, this has been awesome. This is why
I love doing this podcast. I learned a ton of
stuff about you, some great stuff. You got a great story,
and I'll never forget it. Twenty nineteen. It feels like
it was twenty minutes ago, but all were coming up on,

(01:17:02):
you know, six years ago. But when you're champ, you're
a national champ forever. So really appreciate the time, Drew,
Thank you so much.

Speaker 4 (01:17:11):
Yeah, thanks for having me.

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Drew Foster: A resilient champ who's still in search of the big bracket - Go Earn It Ep. 41

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.css-14f5ked{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:2;overflow:hidden;}Drew Foster: A resilient champ who's still in search of the big bracket - Go Earn It Ep. 41