Going into the offseason, it was clear that Iowa wrestling would need to be active in the transfer portal to address potential holes at several weights in the lineup in order to be competitive in the 2025-26 season. So far, so good.

The Hawkeyes added commitments from a pair of Little Rock wrestlers last week in Nasir Bailey and Jordan Williams. Today, Iowa also picked up another lower weight commitment, this time from Dean Peterson of Rutgers.

READ MORE: Iowa Wrestling Adds Nasir Bailey and Jordan Williams From Transfer Portal

Peterson wrestled the previous four seasons at Rutgers, first redshirting in 2022 before entering the starting lineup in the last three years. As a redshirt freshman in 2023, Peterson went 24-11 overall, finished seventh at the Big Ten Tournament, and then went 3-2 in the NCAA Tournament, losing in the Round of 12/blood round.

A year later, as a sophomore, Peterson went 15-9 overall, finished fifth at the Big Ten Tournament, and then went 1-2 at the NCAA tournament. This year, as a junior, Peterson went 22-8 overall, finished sixth at the Big Ten Tournament, and then went 2-2 in the NCAA Tournament, again losing in the Round of 12/blood round.

While Peterson has yet to earn a top-4 finish at the Big Ten Tournament or win a spot on the podium at the NCAA Tournament, he has recorded some notable wins in his career to date. At the 2024 Big Ten Tournament, Peterson upset top-seed Matt Ramos and picked up a 7-1 victory.

Peterson also recorded some big wins this season. In January, he earned a 4-1 win over Penn State's Luke Lilledahl at the dual meet earlier in the season; Lilledahl went on to win the Big Ten Tournament and finished third at the NCAA Tournament. Then, at the NCAA Tournament, Peterson pinned defending NCAA champion Richard Figueroa of Arizona State.

While Peterson has not yet broken through to be an All-American or title contender at 125 lbs, he possesses plenty of raw talent at the weight. Going to Iowa also sets him up to be coached by two of the best lower weight coaches in recent history (Tom and Terry Brands), and provides him with some elite practice partners (including Spencer Lee, Austin DeSanto, and Drake Ayala). There's no way better way to unlock Peterson's untapped potential than to put him in the Iowa wrestling room.

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Peterson also fills another significant need weight for Iowa, 125 lbs. In 2024-25, Joey Cruz manned that weight for Iowa, but was unable to produce elite results. Cruz went 14-14 overall and while he qualified for the NCAA Tournament, he went 0-2 in Philadelphia. Peterson appears to offer a significant upgrade on Cruz.

He also can serve as a solid stopgap for Iowa while Leo DeLuca, an incoming freshman and top recruit in the Class of 2025, rounds into shape. DeLuca missed time with an injury and between recovery from that and being a true freshman, it may take him some time to acclimate to college wrestling. The addition of Peterson gives Iowa a strong option at 125 lbs for the 2025-26 season and gives DeLuca time to get settled before entering the lineup in 2026-27.

We'll continue to provide updates on Iowa's transfer portal activity here at Hawkeye Beacon.