“He’ll be a national champion collegiately next year. If he isn’t, I’ll eat my hat.”

Those were the words of Iowa State Boxing Coach Terry Dowd about his prized boxer Brett Weiland.

Weiland, a sophomore in liberal arts and sciences, won the 156-pound weight division at the Iowa Golden Gloves Boxing Tournament on April 10-11.

Even more impressively, Weiland was voted the most outstanding boxer in the contest’s novice division. His coach is quick to point out that the competition level is still fierce despite its title.

“The novice division is really not novice,” Dowd said. “It’s a misnomer. Those guys are all good.”

Weiland, whose best punch is a left hook, won both of his matches by overwhelming decisions in the three-round bouts.

Weiland said his opponent in the finals had won by an early first-round knockout on Friday night and was looking to turn the Saturday match into a brawl. But Weiland, with a better boxing style, promptly came out and knocked him down twice in the opening round en route to victory.

Dowd said, “It was no contest. He had ’em both easy.”

Dowd was pleased at the performance of his boxer who he considers to be “like a son.”

“It’s cool he was voted outstanding boxer,” he said. “And I didn’t even get to vote for it, either.”

Dowd was confident that Weiland would win the division and had been reinforcing that point to his star prior to the matches.

“If you tell them that over and over again, they’re going to do well,” he said.

“You keep telling him ‘You’re gonna do well, you’re gonna win,’ and [he] will.”

Weiland’s accomplishments are even more impressive considering he has only boxed competitively for two years. And those two years have been injury-plagued.

After missing competition last year with a broken leg, he opened his sophomore campaign with a broken hand.

But with his injuries now healed and a pair of trophies in hand, Weiland is happy with his choice of sports.

Weiland said he called Dowd the first day of his college career to take up a new sport after swimming in high school.

“I wanted to try something different,” he said. “I was ready for a new sport.”

“It keeps me out of trouble,” he continued. “It’s taught me a lot of discipline.”

His coach has been especially important to his college life and boxing career, Weiland said.

“That’s the reason I stayed with it,” he said. “I got frustrated after I broke my leg last year. He helped a lot. He kept me motivated.”

He also said working out with his sparring partners on the ISU team has been key to his development.

Weiland was the only Cyclone boxer who competed in the Golden Gloves because Dowd said the other team members were not ready to enter the ring. But that wasn’t the case when Dowd watched Weiland during practices.

“Some guys just are [ready]. I just know,” Dowd said.

Weiland said he will benefit from the tournament experience next year when the team returns to collegiate competition.

He also will return to Des Moines to defend his Golden Gloves titles.

Weiland’s main goal is earning the national title: A feat that his coach strongly feels is within the reach of his left hook.