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Ross a part of Hawk history

Humboldt grad’s senior class set Iowa record for wins

AP Photo Former Humboldt standout Brady Ross celebrates a touchdown during the regular season inside Kinnick Stadium.

Iowa’s Holiday Bowl rout of USC was vintage Hawkeye football.

The reaction to the lopsided victory was vintage Brady Ross.

The former Humboldt High School standout didn’t have a single carry for a single yard in Iowa’s 49-24 destruction of the Trojans in San Diego last Friday night. Yet the final game for the Hawkeye senior was played with such poetic toughness that the selfless captain called his concluding experience “better than anything I could’ve ever imagined.”

“Let’s just put it this way: not just winning, but the way we won…that was both incredibly satisfying and reassuring,” said Ross, the starting fullback. “USC is USC. You grow up seeing their program as elite, and from a talent point of view, they still are. I read a newspaper article before our game saying their average (recruit) star rating was 4.24 and ours was like 2.5. We even had four or five guys who weren’t rated at all coming out of high school.

“It’s always gratifying when you see our developmental program bear fruit like that. We take pride in doing things a little differently than anyone else; not necessarily like we’re ‘better’ than (the opponent), but we know who we are and why we feel like it separates us from others. When (an outcome) like this happens as tangible proof to support our system, it makes the hard work and sacrifice worth it.”

The culminating moment was fitting for both Ross and his class – not the most touted or talented to ever set foot in Iowa City, but now, the very best. With 47 victories since 2015, these Hawkeye seniors will finish as the winningest group in school history.

“We’re all really proud of that,” Ross said. “To be able to say we’ve done something that no other class has ever accomplished here…what more could you really ask for? I’m just very fortunate to have been a part of this program.

“It’s very similar to 2015 (when Iowa was 12-2 and went to the Rose Bowl). Everyone bought into the culture and sacrificed for the sake of the group. This team and this season had the same feel.”

The no-frills Ross came to Iowa as a preferred walk-on linebacker in the fall of 2015 with no guarantees. He redshirted, switched to fullback, earned playing time by the next season, and was placed on scholarship for his final three years with the program.

“Making it here was always the main goal,” said Ross, who graduated last spring with a degree in business management. “I’d always dreamed of being a Hawkeye and playing for Iowa. I took a chance, passing on some other (scholarship) offers to come here. There were a lot of ‘crossroads’ moments where I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to see it through. I remember going through my first camp and wondering if I belonged at this level.

“Now I can say I did it. No one can take that away from me.”

Like usual, Ross – a hard-nosed, 250-pound road paver – brushed off being frustrated by not getting an offensive touch during his last appearance in a Hawkeye uniform.

“We have guys like (Tyler) Goodson, (Mekhi) Sargent, (Toren) Young and (Ihmir) Smith-Marsette, and we were getting huge chunks of yardage on quarterback sneaks (with Nate Stanley against USC). Why would they ever give me, of all people, the ball?” Ross laughed. “That’s not how you evaluate a fullback in our system, and I’m OK with that. I take plenty of pride in the way we (controlled the line of scrimmage), because that’s how you win games. And that’s all I’ve ever been interested in – doing whatever I could to help us win.”

Ross admitted it was a “surreal feeling” in the locker room afterward, knowing his playing days as a Hawkeye were over.

“It’s your whole life for five years,” Ross said. “That’s a half a decade and a lot of sacrifices. You do everything for the sake of your school and your program, and then it comes to an abrupt end. So it’s hard to wrap your head around a change that happens so quickly. Even though you know it’s coming and try to mentally prepare yourself for it, it’s still hard.

“There’s really no way to recreate the brotherhood and sense of purpose and meaning football brings. The energy that come both with big wins and difficult losses. You can’t have the highs without the lows, and sometimes, your best motivation comes through adversity. I’ll miss all of that.”

Ross is mulling over the decision to train for the NFL’s pro day, which will be in late March.

“(Strength and conditioning) Coach (Chris) Doyle does a great job preparing players from our program for pro day,” said Ross, who has already lined up a position as a financial advisor with Edward Jones at a location to be determined. “I’m still considering it. No matter what happens from here on out, this is everything I ever wanted to get out of football. Failure doesn’t carry the same threat anymore.

“I’m just trying to enjoy myself for a while now, before I either see if someone is willing to give me a shot (in professional football) or I go to work. I’ll know more soon.”

If Ross’ playing days are over, he would walk away from the sport with no regrets.

“I really can’t think of anything I’d have done differently. I feel like I left no stone unturned,” Ross said. “I never really had extrinsic goals, so to speak. I had immense respect for what it would take to be a (Big Ten) football player, and I feel the same way about the next level.

“I’m playing with house money. I was a Hawkeye. That’s always going to be enough for me.”

The Holiday Bowl outcome was the proverbial icing on the cake.

“I don’t get tribal about conferences, and I don’t like to stereotype too much,” Ross said. “But for the most part, Pac-12 football just isn’t very physical. We could see that on film when we were preparing (for USC).

“It makes my heart happy when our style, which I consider the only real way to play football, prevails.”

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