By Hawk Fanatic

IOWA CITY, Iowa – Iowa graduate guard Drew Thelwell and Iowa Swarm CEO Brad Heinrichs both made guest appearances on the Hawk Fanatic radio show and podcast on Wednesday.

Thelwell talked about Iowa’s come-from-behind win over Nebraska in overtime on Tuesday, and said he would be ready to face Indiana on Saturday after having missed the Nebraska game reportedly due to a lower leg injury that occurred in warmups.

“I will be ready,” Thelwell said confidently.

The Orlando, Florida native also praised his teammates for battling back against Nebraska and for picking up the intensity on defense during overtime.

Thelwell said the Iowa players were highly motivated after having been called out by Wisconsin guard Kamari McGee for not wanting to play defense. McGee made his remarks following Wisconsin’s 116-85 victory over Iowa last Friday in Madison, and what McGee said struck a nerve.

Thelwell transferred to Iowa from Morehead State where he played the previous four seasons and left as the program’s all-time winningest player.

His adjustment to being a Hawkeye has mostly gone smoothly on and off the court. The 6-foot-3 Thelwell started the season as a top reserve but he has since moved into the starting lineup.

Thelwell also hinted that he might look into the possibility of gaining another season of eligibility.

Thelwell’s interview starts at the beginning of the podcast and lasts for about 20 minutes.

The interview with Brad Heinrichs starts just a few minutes after the Thelwell interview and lasts for about 30 minutes.

The Iowa football team has been busy in the transfer portal since the end of the 2024 season, and much to the delight of Heinrichs, it’s starting to pay dividends.

Former South Dakota State quarterback Mark Gronowski signed with Iowa on Monday, and it reasonable to believe that NIL money was a big factor in his decision.

Heinrichs talked about the the process in landing Gronowski from the portal and about the current status of the Iowa Swarm Collective, which he says now has about 3,000 members.

He also talked about the challenge in retaining players and he said that an SEC school is actively trying to entice a current member of the Iowa football team to transfer to their school. He didn’t say which school was tampering nor did he identify the Iowa player.

We appreciate both Drew Thelwell and Brad Heinrichs taking time from their busy schedules to join our podcast.

Enjoy.