As you might expect, when Tom Brands had to deliver the unfortunate news that there would be no NCAA championships for his wrestling team, he did it in a very direct manner.

“We kind of knew it was coming,” Brands said. “You’re honest and you’re sympathetic or empathetic or whatever the word is. The message has to be about going forward. It sucks. This team was robbed of history. Spencer Lee was robbed of history. Pat Lugo, a senior, was robbed of history. We had three No. 1 seeds, nine guys in the top eight. They were robbed of history. They were robbed of opportunity.”

While there was a level of frustration, there’s also the hard truth that the Iowa head coach knows there’s another battle that all of us have to fight right now. As you might expect, Brands it taking it head on.

“It is bigger than sports right now. We’re not out of the woods with COVID-19,” he said. “Let’s just get this thing beat. Let’s beat it. Let’s beat COVID-19.”

The COVID-19 pandemic has hit close to home for the Iowa head coach. He said on Tuesday that he had contact with someone who has tested positive and has been in isolation.

“I don’t take this lightly. You don’t say this can’t happen to me. You don’t say I am feeling OK, so I can ignore what the CDC says to do,” Brands said. “I came in contact with someone who had it. They called me, and I was in self-quarantine. I have one day to go. I am very serious about this.”

While he has been in quarantine, Brands has stayed in close contact with his team via text messages, phone calls, or individual conversations. As you might expect, Brands isn’t one to sit still and neither are his wrestlers, but they are trying to make the best of the situation and focus on finishing strong academically this spring.

“It’s not ideal, because it’s not familiar. It’s not ideal, because it’s not what they necessarily want. They want to be in their domain, in their sanctuary, in their comfort zone, what they’re used to,” he said. “The way they have handled this with maturity is a compliment to them. They are patient. They are open-minded. They are thinking outside the box. And because of that, I can speak for them and say they’re going to be ready for the next mission, the next challenge.”

One thing on Brands mind is the decision earlier this week by the NCAA. They decided to grant extra eligibility for spring sport athletes, but decided to not do the same for winter sport athletes who did not get to complete their season. He hasn’t closed the door for the opportunity for wrestlers like Spencer Lee appealing for another year of eligibility.

“I’m smart enough to know not to fight battles when you don’t know, necessarily, what you’re talking about. I think the timing of appeals, and those things, are down the road. I think the one thing that you have to realize in this job is that you don’t get anywhere by taking on the establishment.”

An idea that Brands and other coaches have thought about doing is finding a way to honor wrestlers this season. While Brands and his wrestlers would honestly prefer to earn All American status on the mat, he feels that perhaps the top eight seeds should simply be given that distinction this year without having a tournament.

“At the very least, there has to be official recognition, in some way, shape or form, of how the NCAA is going to name its All-Americans. In this case, they have to name it, and it has to be official,” he said. “You wrestled 16 regular-season dates. You wrestled a postseason qualifier — everybody did. The brackets were set, the matchups were laid out. The 33 seeds were laid into the brackets. You have to honor the top eight or top 12 seeds in an official way from the mouth of the NCAA. Or, you know what? You got bested by something, and you rolled over and let it best you. And I don’t see how there’s any value in that at all.”