Brett Twelmeyer

Four years ago, I had no clue where I would be today.

Now, I know that’s a basic generality, but it’s true.

Like a lot of people around that time in their lives, the one thing I did know was that I didn’t truly know what I wanted to do after high school. I always knew I would end up at Iowa State. It just felt like my destiny, but I knew I needed to wait.

My parents met at Iowa State in 19-something. They were ushers at Hilton Coliseum and CY Stephens. You can probably guess that I was raised in an Iowa State household.

There are so many pictures of me throughout the years in Cyclone apparel, and I cherished every time I got to go to Hilton Coliseum or Jack Trice Stadium, because it wasn’t all that often.

Funny enough, one of the football games I went to was the 2014 win over Toledo, when Matt Campbell coached the Rockets.

And here I was, 10 years later, interviewing him as Iowa State’s head coach while attending the school.

Crazy how things happen, right?

Going to those games and watching the Fred Hoiberg coaching era growing up was awesome. I loved those basketball teams in the early to mid-2010s.

Every Saturday in the fall was spent watching the Cyclones, no matter how good or bad the team was. The day after, our TV had NASCAR races and NFL games on all day. I didn’t have a lot to cheer about, however, as I made the mistake of being a New York Jets fan.

I know, I hate it too.

But as I think back on those days, that’s where that initial spark came from for sports media. I looked forward each week to sitting in the living room and watching my teams play, win or lose. 

I just didn’t realize then that that’s what I wanted to do.

In high school and middle school, honestly, I figured I’d do something in STEM, probably engineering, but after I took some classes in high school for it, I realized my passion wasn’t there. Sure, it’s a great career, but it just wasn’t for me.

I decided to save some money and figure out what exactly I wanted to do by attending DMACC’s Ankeny campus for two years. I also worked part-time in the customer service department at Hy-Vee, two minutes from my house.

While I was at those places, I longed for Ames. I wanted to escape and get to Iowa State.

But as I look back, I’m grateful for those years and those experiences. I’m still good friends with some of the people I worked with at Hy-Vee, and while DMACC was fun in itself, everyone knew there was more in store for their journeys.

At DMACC, I fumbled through many changes in my major. I was everything from business to marketing, economics and accounting. I actually started DMACC as a landscape architecture major.

The thing I liked most about DMACC was that I could still live at home and get my gen-eds out of the way. I highly recommend it to anyone who doesn’t know what they want to do after high school.

But it wasn’t until my second year there that I finally found something that stuck out, and that was journalism. I took one journalism class there, but it introduced me to many avenues within the field, such as writing, radio, television, social media and everything in between.

It was like a lightbulb suddenly turned on when I told myself I could do this for sports, and with my inevitable journey to Iowa State quickly approaching, I jumped on the opportunity.

That summer between DMACC and Iowa State was one of the first when I felt fully in control of my future. I was in the driver’s seat for my own life.

I won’t forget move-in day. 

I spent two extra years living at home, so it was my first time living away from my parents, pets and brother. It was a big change.

Those first two weeks were rough. Watching my parents drive away was something I had never experienced before.

I tried to find a routine. Classes were fine, my professors were great, but still, something was missing.

That something was the Iowa State Daily.

A few months prior to Admitted Student Day, my mom and I went together and toured the campus and the Greenlee School of Journalism and Mass Communication, which is where the majority of my classes ended up being.

She mentioned the Daily, and at first, I brushed it off, thinking I’d be too busy and enjoying things. But I soon realized that I wasn’t going to go anywhere without experience, and what better place than the school paper?

I brought it up to my roommate, someone I have known since kindergarten and am still excellent friends with, and he thought it was a no-brainer that I should join. My parents agreed.

A couple of weeks into my first semester in Ames, I joined the Iowa State Daily on the sports desk. I loved (and still do) that no experience was required. It’s a place to learn and grow in a professional setting.

That initial meeting with the people who ended up being my editors, Christian Royston and Logan Shanks, was the start of it all. I knew I’d be at the bottom, but I was going to do whatever it took to climb through the ranks and cover the big sports.

I had to, since I only had two years here.

I will never forget my first story I wrote for the desk. In class, I got a text from Royston about writing about the golf meet that wrapped up that day.

Of course, I said yes, because what else would I do in that situation?

I re-read that article a few days ago. Pretty bad. Don’t worry, I think I got better.

Soon after, I was bumped up to the volleyball beat, where I reconnected with Cayden Storm, whom I went to high school with. Together, and throughout this past year, I enjoyed getting to know him more and was glad to have a familiar face around.

Writing for the volleyball team was so much fun. I had never paid too much attention to college volleyball and I grew a greater appreciation for not just Iowa State’s program, but for the sport as a whole.

My first interview for the Daily was with head coach Christy Johnson-Lynch, and it was probably the most nervous I had ever been. But her calm and patient demeanor was much appreciated and she made me feel like more than a reporter.

When November of 2024 rolled around, I was asked if I wanted to cover women’s basketball. Again, what would I say no?

I’m so appreciative of Royston and Shanks’ trust in me so early on in my journalism career. I truly believe that my first year at the Daily was one of the best years of my life, followed by this past one, but I’ll get to that later.

Covering women’s basketball was a blast, and that’s where I got to meet Pavle Markovic, the guy who not only became a trusted co-worker but someone I’m glad to call a friend.

He’s the one who further got me out of my shell and made me experience Iowa State fully as a college student.

While those games at Hilton were amazing to be at, my favorite was when Iowa State played Drake in Des Moines, my hometown. That day also happened to be my mom’s birthday, so we had more of a reason to drive down.

It was also the first game I covered away from Ames, so again, my excitement was high that day.

The year ended with a trip to Kansas City, Missouri, at the Big 12 Tournament, where the Cyclones fell just short in the title game against Texas.

After year one, I was so excited for year two, and even more so since I was named Sports Editor and Markovic would be the Assistant Sports Editor.

Covering my first game at Jack Trice Stadium was a surreal feeling. I had only gone to a handful of games growing up, and now I was in the press box.

So cool.

On top of that, we travelled around not just the Midwest, but the country following the Cyclones’ historic 11-win season. We went to Iowa City, Kansas City, Arlington and Orlando, all stadiums I had never set foot in before.

I’m so appreciative of everything I got to do this past season, and for it to be the best in school history? That’s just the cherry on top.

Even two years ago, when I finished at DMACC, I had no idea of all of the amazing places I would be fortunate enough to go to. It made my college experience that much greater.

During this time, I was also able to begin my time covering the men’s basketball team. Needless to say, they also were not too shabby.

Like football, we travelled to Iowa City for the Cy-Hawk game, and made it to Manhattan, Kansas for the regular season finale against Kansas State, Kansas City for the Big 12 Tournament again and Milwaukee for the NCAA Tournament.

Before attending Iowa State, I had not once attended any Big 12 Championship in any sport, nor a bowl game and not even an NCAA Tournament men’s basketball game, even though Des Moines has hosted a couple.

It’s still insane to me that I got to do all that, just because I took a chance on myself and finally decided on a major that seemed fun and something I wanted to do for the rest of my life.

Forty years is a long time, people.

If there’s something I want anyone to take away from this, it’s that not everyone’s path is the same, and that’s okay.

I would have loved to spend four years at Iowa State, but this path made more sense to me, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. The people I met at both places were amazing, and working at the Daily has been the best job I’ve ever had.

To be honest, I think having less time at Iowa State made me appreciate it that much more.

While it’s sad to say goodbye, all good things must come to an end. The Daily was a new chapter at one point in my life, became a part of me and now it’s what I have become.

But through it all, one thing has remained the same: The New York Jets still suck.