March 29, 2024

Local linemen adjust to new times

Downing, Brown and Maitlen forced to find new ways to prepare

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For three local standouts that average 6-feet-5-inches and 286 pounds, returning home due to COVID-19 had its own challenges.

Unlike the typical, brutal workouts and practices Trevor Downing, Spencer Brown and Seth Maitlen face during the spring, the trio’s new issues revolve around remaining in shape, keeping up with playbooks and for some at home, working on the farm, just like in high school.

The Cyclone back on the farm

Downing, an offensive lineman for Iowa State, isn’t spending his time between workouts in his apartment playing video games or watching Netflix. He’s working on his family’s farm in Creston.

With so much time away from Ames, Downing is finding his days are just as intense back at home rather than in the weight room or on the practice field. The second-team freshman All-American is spending 14 hours each day on a tractor.

“We’re right in the heart of planting season, so I’ve been helping my parents plant and everything like that,” Downing said.

Each morning, Downing creates a schedule, finding a two-hour window blocked off to find time for a workout. Running two miles each day and using the home gym in the family’s shop, it’s a small reminder of high school.

“It does seem like I’m back in high school a little, just lifting here, but at the same time we’ve still got meetings and stuff we’ve got to stay on top of,” Downing said.

Between the hours on the tractor and time in the home gym, Downing is enjoying the home-cooked meals he doesn’t always receive at school.

Trying to stay between 315 and 320 pounds – currently sitting at 317 – the feeling of Downing’s diet constantly being watched over is gone, but the ability to be smart about what he eats is still there.

“They’re monitoring you all the time up there at Iowa State,” Downing said. “They have a nutritionist that tells you what you can and can’t eat and how much or how little. I’m just taking what they’ve kind of taught us up there and bringing it home for portion size and stuff like that. I’m not having too much trouble with my weight right now, but I could see how it could get pretty bad.”

Staying at the correct weight, working out and planting season isn’t what Downing is typically doing this time of the year. He’s normally working out five days a week on campus after spring football season, but things have been different this year.

Missing spring ball is tough for the team as a whole, but the experience Downing gained starting the final 12 games of the 2019-20 season puts him in a good position for the upcoming season.

Team meetings through Google Hangout are a regular occurence for the linemen. Meeting Monday through Friday for at least one hour is helping to get the new group adjusted to the offensive scheme and techniques.

Downing said most of the meetings are review of game film or plans the group will use this season.

Even with all of the work happening at home, Downing is still experiencing a tremendous time away from the day-to-day grind in Ames. With the few months off, he is taking a step back to look at the positives of the situation.

After the long days on the tractor finish, the time back in Downing’s hometown is what he focuses on during this extended and unexpected break.

“The main thing I’ve been focused on is spending time with my family,” Downing said. “Working out, spending time with my family and school work on top of that. That’s the three main things I’ve been focused on and staying on top of during this break.”

Brown stays sharp in Cedar Falls

For the University of Northern Iowa’s 6-feet-9-inch offensive lineman from Lenox, Brown spent most of his time in Cedar Falls instead of his hometown.

Spending around one month at home, Brown used a home gym at his mother’s house. During that time, Brown said his mother cooked for him, but it wasn’t always easy keeping up with a 320-pound athlete.

“Back home it was tough because my mom is a saint and said, ‘I want to cook for you,’” Brown said. “I said, ‘I know you want to, but I kind of have to do my own thing here.’”

After making the trip back to Cedar Falls, Brown returned to the diet and nutrition plan he has had for the past year and returned to a weight rack his roommate’s parents bought.

With that rack, teammates bought dumbells and Brown bought resistnace bands to have a complete workout at home.

Brown said with the inability to spend time at any campus facilities, finding any “open spot of grass” is how he and his teammates are training.

Instead of the typical workouts UNI football does in their facilities, Brown is finding ways to keep up with their strength and conditioning coaches’ plan, working out Monday through Saturday, lifting twice Monday, Wednesday and Friday and yoga or pilates Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

“(Pilates) isn’t really made for 6’9” 320 pound guys,” Brown said with a laugh. “We have it pulled up on my computer, and there is this girl just putting us through it. We’re like, ‘oh my God,’ and she’s making it look easy. I can’t even put my hip up in the air. If you do pilates ... , you’re a savage.”

Finding the time to lift isn’t difficult for Brown and his teammates, but not having coaches with them to know if they’re doing as much as they can and holding themselves to as strict a timeline are the tough part of the workouts.

“It’s kind of crazy because we’ll set a start time for 7 a.m.,” Brown said. “We’ll get in there for about 7:15 a.m., so we’re kind of on our own. It’s not like it was, because if we’re one minute late we have to do a big punishment. The challenge is just sticking through it.”

The workouts, however, haven’t been the most difficult process for the former Lenox Tiger. Brown said being away from the guys he’s “built a bond” with has been the worst part about losing football.

Luckily for Brown, his roommates are also a few of his teammates who have spent numerous hours quarantined together, going to the pool or finding other ways to entertain themselves while not preparing for the season.

With the hours away from the gym, Brown speaks to his coaches four days each week for one hour each through Zoom meetings – speaking to his position coach daily – and going through what spring ball typically covers.

“Even the freshmen that graduated high school are in there, so it’s nice to see those guys face-to-face and interact with them,” Brown said. “Four days a week for an hour and we usually break down film, watch film, technique, teach how to run plays for the freshmen guys.”

Able to return with the team in the summer, Brown is ready to get back in the weight room and on the field with his teammates and feels he has kept himself in the best shape possible for his senior season.

“I’m pretty pumped up, I’m not going to lie,” Brown said. “The hard part is going to be who’s in shape and who’s not. Everybody likes to lift, everybody likes to look good for the summer, get all tanned up and beefed up, but the running is really what’s going to shock people. It’s a self-discipline thing that comes into play. ... I think going back in mid-June is going to be good for us.”

Maitlen and Morningside look for three-peat

For the two-time NAIA national champion at Morningside and Creston native Seth Maitlen, the struggles of missing spring football and time in his final season have given him time to reflect rather than be angry.

Maitlen said he loves football and he has since he began playing in fourth grade. But, it’s just a game, and his overall life came down to two aspects he thought were more important than the game he loves.

“For me, it boiled down to faith and family,” Maitlen said. “During this time, although football was taken away, I’ve really been able to grow in those other two areas between faith and family. That’s another benefit that came out of all of this. Although I miss football, and I really, really hope it is able to pick up here soon, I just kind of realized that life is bigger than football. Being able to realize that is really going to help down the road.”

Despite the revelations of how important “faith and family” are for the national champion, Maitlen continued to keep up with football by doing as many home and body-weight workouts as possible since he hasn’t been able to use Morningside’s facilities.

As an upperclassman, Maitlen is communicating with the underclassmen about staying in shape once the season does come around, so the team is prepared.

“Working out as a team, it’s easy to see your teammate or brother working his butt off over there and that encourages you too,” Maitlen said. “When you’re on your own, there’s really no one making sure you do all of your reps or are actually working out to the best of your ability everyday.”

The facilities aren’t the only thing Maitlen and the rest of the country missed. Spring football was going to be a major aspect for the Mustangs after losing talent from last season, but that was also lost.

Going into the spring, Maitlen had goals set for his senior season: work on a diverse pass-rush plan, recognize different offensive linemen sets and how to attack those fronts and step up as a team leader.

Without spring football and the ability to spend time in the weight room, Maitlen said the time off has been a small mental break, but the time off will affect him physically more than anything entering his fifth season with the program.

“About a week off or so was kind of nice, just giving your body time to heal,” Maitlen said. “At that point, I was just trying to get mentally ready. ... It’s been kind of nice being able to rest, but I miss it now, not being able to work out with my teammates and just not being able to do what I’ve been able to do the last three of four years during the spring and summer months.”

After losing integral parts of the second championship team in as many years, Maitlen will have to step up and fulfill the leadership goal he set if Morningside is in another 21-16 semifinal game or 40-38 championship game.

When the Mustangs return to campus and are back in pads, the goal remains the same as the first meeting in January, do it again.

“Talking to some of the other guys, ever since that very first January meeting everyone had the same mindset, ‘let’s do it again,’” Maitlen said. “Going for that three-peat, that’s been our goal ever since we started this offseason training. Obviously, with all of this, it’s kind of changed everything. But, really, everyone still has that goal in mind.”