Kevin Dresser noticed it immediately.

Taking over as Iowa State’s wrestling head coach in the middle of the 2016-17 season, Dresser was observing his new team.

One wrestler stood out among the rest. His name?

Ian Parker.

“I always try to be an observer first and a coach second,” Dresser said. “Initially, that’s what I wanted to do when I first got to Iowa State. It was apparent with [Parker] right away, he was blue collar.”

Now, Parker has turned into a person of consistency, not only for the coaching staff but for his teammates.

It stems from doing all the little things correctly, which has made the redshirt junior a consensus top-12 wrestler at 141 pounds.

“I listen to coaches and I take my wrestling very serious; it’s very important to me,” Parker said. “I’m willing to do whatever they say.”

Still, obstacles have stood in his way of achieving three goals of his: winning a Big 12 Championship, becoming an All-American and winning a National Championship.

Revolving door of weights, results

Parker was a top-100 prospect after completing a prep career at St. Johns High School in Michigan that saw him win two state titles and a Fargo Freestyle National Champion.

He was recruited by former Cyclone Head Coach Kevin Jackson and was redshirted his first year at 133, going 17-8 wrestling unattached while finishing in the top 4 at all four open tournaments he participated in. That stretch included a third-place finish at the Dave Schultz Memorial International, which is a freestyle tournament.

Even with success before entering the starting lineup, Parker began to wonder if his future was best set at the second-lightest weight in college wrestling.

And his future at Iowa State.

“I still believed in myself,” Parker said. “When I first heard that Kevin Jackson was getting fired and the whole staff was gone, I was like, ‘Dude, I’m out of here.’ When I heard they were getting Dresser, maybe I’ll stick around for the summer.”

When he found out the Cyclones hired Dresser and heard they were bringing in Assistant Head Coach Brent Metcalf, he decided to stay.

Dresser believes finding the right staff is a crucial part in keeping guys under the previous regime.

“Personnel have to fit,” Dresser said. “When you bring in a blue-collar coaching staff, Ian was a pretty simple fit. More so, Ian getting comfortable with us. We want to keep that guy. Ian had to see what we’re about; he had to feel it.”

Still, his weight was in flux.

Parker even remembers wrestling at the 149-pound equivalent at the UWW Worlds, another freestyle competition that weighs by kilograms instead of pounds. He went 2-2 during the tournament.

That, coupled with comfortability in his body, Parker bumped up to 141 at the tail end of his redshirt freshman season.

He admitted there were some cons with that move.

“It was kind of tough,” Parker said. “I think, naturally, I was a 141-pounder. I was really kind of content to do so. I already was having this huge season at 133, and I probably had my automatic bid at NCAAs.

“Making 33 was hard for me, 41 was right. The weight was kind of too taxing on me.”

What Parker didn’t know was that he would experience the biggest high of his season shortly after the move.

Oklahoma State’s Dean Heil was a two-time defending National Champion. He was the face of the 141 weight class and heavily favored against Parker.

David beat Goliath that day as the Saint Johns, Michigan, native used just one takedown to defeat Heil 3-1 in his first ever win at 141 and a signature one to boot.

To this day, that’s when Parker believes he arrived at his new home.

“It was reassuring,” Parker said. “I had to finish out every single match that year really hard to get a spot at NCAAs. This is definitely the right move. The coaches were right; I feel so much better.”

Dresser believes it too. He explained how tough Parker is and how that win solidified his thinking.

It also catapulted him to the weekly honor of Big 12 Wrestler of the Week.

“We always knew he could compete with anybody, but I think that win, probably, he walked out of that building thinking, ‘You know what, I can beat anybody,'” Dresser said.

After experiencing the highest of highs, once March happened, Parker hit the lowest of lows.

Because of the weight switch, he had to make up a lot of time with matches in order to receive an allocation for the NCAA Tournament. He also was battling a knee injury after moving up.

That year, only three auto bids were awarded at 141. Parker placed fifth.

Despite his win over Heil, it wasn’t enough to secure an at-large spot. In his first full Division I season, Parker missed out on the NCAA Tournament.

“Rollercoaster of emotions,” Parker said. “That hurt me quite a bit. Didn’t feel like I did earlier in the year. It was not fun. You don’t get to reap the rewards at the end was really hard and a shot to my belief.”

The close call fueled him.

Tale of two years

Look at the numbers and it’s clear Parker has made some methodical changes.

He led the team in his redshirt sophomore year with eight of his 14 bonus-point victories by falls. The other six were major decision victories.

This year, Parker has eight bonus-point victories and still has the Big 12 and NCAA Championships left on his schedule.

Despite the lesser amount of bonus points, teammates have noticed very little change in how Parker is wrestling.

“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” said Jarrett Degen, redshirt junior wrestler. “There’s really nothing he needs to do that he’s not already doing. I see it, and I watch it closely; he’s doing everything right.”

There’s an element to Parker’s development that even surprised himself: riding.

A one-time NCAA qualifier, Parker recalls during his time in high school, he was an easy turn, that he could never establish himself on top. When he came to Iowa State, things started to change.

“This new coaching staff, really listening and buying into their philosophy,” Parker said. “That same imposing will I have on my feet, I can have on top. Same mentality, but making that switch.”

He’s now one of the best riders in the starting lineup, consistently grabbing that extra riding time point. He’s ridden out guys for whole periods, allows very few escapes and accumulates multiple minutes on top.

It’s an element to his style that, to him, is still a work in progress.

“I wouldn’t think of myself as someone who’s good at riding; it’s not part of my self character,” Parker said. “It is funny to hear Dresser say, ‘Parker does this really well,’ but that doesn’t sound like me. You want those 20 second, 30 second segments.”

In the eyes of Dresser, this is something he has seen in the making. It goes back to the toughness of Parker.

Over the last three years leading Iowa State’s program, Dresser has seen little-by-little improvements in Parker’s riding ability and views it as a top-tier strength of Parker’s.

“It was good when we got here, but it’s really good now,” Dresser said. “Some matches, it’s great. With his style, he gets guys really tired on his feet. Top comes easier to him. If the match comes down to Ian Parker riding him out, we’re in good shape.”

Adding that to his repertoire has made Parker one of the best wrestlers at his weight class.

Stacking up with the elite

It’s been a small struggle for Parker to grab signature wins during his three-year tenure at 141.

The win over Heil two years ago is at the top, but outside of that, he’s hovered under .500 against the current top 10 by InterMat.

Parker is 1-2 all-time against Oklahoma’s Dom Demas, 1-1 versus Nebraska’s Chad Red, 0-1 against Minnesota’s Mitchell McKee and Ohio State’s Luke Pletcher while also nabbing a win against Campbell’s Josh Heil.

He has never wrestled Penn State’s Nick Lee, Iowa’s Max Murin, North Carolina State’s Tariq Wilson and Stanford’s Real Woods, all who are in the top 10.

None of the head-to-head matchups or rankings enter Parker’s mind when he’s out on the mat. It’s how he views himself that he cares about.

“I get most of my confidence from my body of work,” Parker said. “These top guys in the country, back points are huge. I see myself as good enough, just up there with the top guys like Pletcher and Lee, and beating them.”

Sam Colbray sees it first-hand that Parker can beat the top wrestlers at 141. Through ambition and goal-setting, the 174-pounder in Iowa State’s lineup would be stunned and surprised if Parker isn’t on the podium in Minneapolis.

“It’s every man’s best effort once you get to the Big 12s and NCAAs,” Colbray said. “Analyzing Ian Parker, his mindset and his work ethic are top-five. From what I know of Ian Parker’s progress, I believe this man is top-five.”

In order for Parker to reach All-American status and claim his first ever top-8 finish, Dresser believes it’s going to be one takedown and a bunch of riding time.

That formula has led Parker to a 21-3 record in his redshirt junior year.

“Being able to get that solid leg attack to the body, you’re seeing progress,” Dresser said. “Gonna have to shut him down and figure out a way to score.”