COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Anybody who knows Tom Brands is fully aware he is not one of the most patient men on the planet.

When you've reached the pinnacle of your sport as a three-time NCAA champion, World champion and Olympic gold medalist, your expectations as a coach are just as lofty as they were when you were still competing.

That's why his first season as the head coach of the Iowa Hawkeyes was so difficult at times. And that's why seeing his team finish in eighth place at the 2007 NCAA Championships in Auburn Hills, Mich., was such a huge source of frustration for the intense, driven Brands.

"It was one of the lowest points in my life," Brands says matter-of-factly. "We started out the season so well, winning eight matches (in a dual) against Iowa State. We tried to win a national title last season - that's what I was trying to do. My biggest mistake was thinking there was going to be a quick, quick turnaround in attitude with this program."

Even though Brands was disappointed with the end of the 2006-07 college season, there was one noticeable bright spot that gave everyone in the Carver-Hawkeye Arena wrestling room a much-needed boost.

It came when junior Mark Perry broke through and knocked off two-time NCAA champion Johny Hendricks of Oklahoma State in the 165-pound finals last March at the NCAA Championships.

Perry's win seemed to be the spark that has ignited a strong offseason for the University of Iowa program. Brands encouraged his wrestlers to take advantage of the opportunities to wrestle in freestyle competitions during the offseason and it has paid off in a big way.

Hawkeye teammates Ryan Morningstar and Matt Fields won titles this past spring at the University Nationals. Iowa freshman Jake Kerr followed by landing a spot on the U.S. Junior World Team.

Fields, Perry, Morningstar and Alex Tsirtsis traveled overseas and each enjoyed success while competing in Turkey and Bulgaria.

And to top the whole summer off, Hawkeye assistant coaches Mike Zadick and Doug Schwab landed spots on the U.S. World Team and will compete at next month's World Championships in Baku, Azerbaijan. Another past Hawkeye standout, three-time NCAA champion Joe Williams, also made the World Team in freestyle.

Zadick is a returning World silver medalist, Schwab made his first U.S. World Team and Williams is a two-time World bronze medalist. Past Hawkeye NCAA champion Bill Zadick, who is coached by Tom Brands' twin brother Terry, won a World title in freestyle in 2006.

The Iowa team has started to develop a strong chemistry under Tom Brands. That was evident when Mike Zadick swept Nate Gallick at 60 kg/132 lbs. in a Special Wrestle-Off for the final World Team spot on Aug. 16 in Colorado Springs.

A large group of around 15 Iowa wrestlers piled into a van and made the long drive across I-80 from Iowa City to Colorado Springs for the Zadick-Gallick series. After running the Cog Trail in the Springs on the morning of Aug. 16, the Iowa wrestlers cheered Zadick on from the bleachers during the afternoon matches at the U.S. Olympic Training Center.

"A lot of guys really look up to Mike Zadick," Perry said. "He's a great guy and a lot of us have a good bond with him and respect him a lot. We felt we owed it to him to go out there and support him. One of Mike's life goals is to be a World and Olympic champion, and we knew those matches with Gallick were a big step toward him getting there.

"A lot of our guys want to go on to the next level after college, so it was good to be exposed to something like that. It was a very cool event and exciting to be a part of it."

Perry said Brands has "really created a bond" with the Iowa team.

"We've really connected as a team for the first time since I've been here," Perry said. "We've been around each other a lot more as a team and Brands has talked to us about doing more things together off the mat. That's important because you need the advice and support of your teammates. If your teammates are your best friends and your brothers, you fight harder for them because you know they are counting on you to do well."

Wrestling legend Dan Gable, who returned to coaching as an assistant to Brands this past season, said the Iowa program is definitely back on the upswing. Gable coached the Hawkeyes to 15 NCAA titles before stepping down as head coach in 1997.

"Coach Brands really pushed the freestyle wrestling hard and all of a sudden a bunch of our guys are having success," Gable said. "Brands did a great job working with Zadick and Schwab, and getting some of the younger guys to develop. Wrestling in the offseason makes a big difference. You can really see the guys in the Iowa program buying into what we're trying to do. All of that hopefully is conducive to future success for our program."

While defending NCAA champion Minnesota looks like the clear favorite to win the team title again in 2008, the Hawkeyes certainly look like one of the top contenders.

Iowa returns All-Americans in Perry, Charlie Falck (125) and Tsirtsis (141) along with NCAA qualifiers in Morningstar (157), Phil Keddy (184), Dan Erekson (197) and Fields (heavyweight).

Past starters Daniel Dennis (133) and Luke Lofthouse (184) also are still in the Iowa room, along with top young prospects in Kerr (165) and Chad Beatty (174).

Brands also is excited about the five transfers from Virginia Tech finally becoming eligible. Most noteworthy is stud prospect Brent Metcalf (149), who has excelled internationally while waiting to gain his college eligibility.

Three other transfers from Virginia Tech - Joe Slaton (133), Dan LeClere (141) and Jay Borschel (174) - also are expected to contend for starting spots. T.H. Leet (165) also followed Brands from Virginia Tech to Iowa.

The five transfers lost a year of eligibility this past season. After redshirting their first year at Virginia Tech, they followed Brands to Iowa. But the five wrestlers were not released from their scholarships by the athletic administration at the Blacksburg, Va., school. That meant they were ineligible to compete for Iowa last season. The five wrestlers now each have three years of college eligibility remaining.

"Those kids all had to pay their way to go to school at Iowa last year because we couldn't put them on scholarship," Brands said. "That's a tribute to those kids and their families, how well they've held it together. That loyalty and commitment and sacrifice they've shown is pretty impressive. It's a tribute to those kids wanting to get to the next level."

The multi-talented Metcalf is expected to contribute right away at the college level.

"Metcalf is a warrior - he loves to compete," Brands said. "He's all about competition and being the best."

Gable also has been impressed.

"Metcalf's right out of the mold of what we're looking for," Gable said. "We need to get him in the uniform so he can prove it. He's very committed to the sport and he's very coachable."

Recruiting also is going well and Brands has secured verbal commitments from three of the nation's top high school wrestlers in Iowa City's Nate Moore and Grant Gambrall, along with Illinois standout Jordan Blanton.

Perry may not be a guy you think of when talking about the prototypical Hawkeye wrestler, but he has bought into what Brands and his staff are preaching. Perry has finished second, third and first at the NCAA Championships.

"There have been so many changes and so many different coaches at Iowa in the past four or five years," Perry said. "That's tough on anybody. It took us a while to all get on the same page with Brands and his staff. The intensity level has jumped significantly in the room. We didn't understand what it meant to wrestle year-round until he got here. Now everybody understands."

Perry said he's amazed by the level of commitment he's seen in the Iowa room this summer.

"Everything is optional in the summer, but we've had 20 to 30 guys coming in on their own to train and wrestle live and do conditioning," Perry said. "Our younger guys have made huge strides. Look at a guy like Jake Kerr. He never even won state in high school and was getting whooped up on pretty good as a true freshman. Instead of putting his head down, he kept working and he's made tremendous improvement. Now he's beating really solid kids and he's on his way to China to wrestle in the Junior World Championships."

When Perry came to Iowa, he wanted to win an individual NCAA title for the Hawkeye squad that won the team championship. That goal hasn't changed.

"The team success is the most important thing to me by far," Perry said. "I accomplished something very big by winning a title. Now we have 10 to 15 guys in our room thinking the same thing, that they can win a national title this year. In the past, it's only been one or two guys with that mindset. Brands has really instilled setting high goals with our guys and instilled a winning mindset."

Perry has credited Schwab for much of his success, and vice versa.

"Schwab has helped me tremendously," Perry said. "He trains extremely hard and I work out quite a bit with him. He goes real hard and you have to be ready every second when you wrestle him."

Said Brands: "Schwab had the most impact on Perry of anybody in our room."

Schwab, a past NCAA champion for Iowa, also has developed into a top-notch coach. He even offered input that helped Zadick in his win over Gallick. Now Schwab and Zadick, who were college teammates at Iowa, are teammates on the U.S. World Team.

"Schwab's sitting up there in the stands, and he's animated and rooting for Mike like the rest of our guys," Brands said. "But then he comes down after the first match of the Wrestle-Off and gave me some coaching advice that really helped Mike. We're aspiring to the highest level and Schwab is a guy who is totally committed to that."

Having two assistant coaches on the World Team in Zadick and Schwab has provided a boost for the college athletes in Iowa's room.

"It's great - those guys are at the top of their games right now and they are among the best wrestlers in the World," Perry said. "You can't help but be motivated and inspired when you are around guys like Schwab and Zadick. We see how hard they work and how dedicated they are to the sport. They've had a huge impact on us."

Perry, whose funky, unorthodox style poses a tough matchup for his opponents, is among a number of current Hawkeyes who plan to wrestle freestyle full-time when they are done with college.

"It's definitely something I want to pursue," Perry said.

Gable said it has been difficult, at times, trying to be patient with the program he built into a dynasty back in the 1980s and 1990s.

"Realistically, something like this takes a little more time than you would like," he said. "You have to have a little patience - not that I'm willing to wait or Coach Brands is willing to wait. We want success right away and there have been some good signs this summer that we are headed back in that direction."

As hard as Brands is on his athletes, he's an even tougher critic when evaluating his own performance as Iowa's head coach.

"I gave myself a D-minus for my first season," he said. "We need more consistency from our guys. We need to do a better job of not being so up and down, and I need to do a better job of coaching. Our fans have great expectations for this program. They're impatient, just like I am. They don't want to wait to get back on top, and neither do I."