KMCH SPORTS: Former Beckman Catholic Standout Owen Grover named 2024 NCAA Today’s Top 10 Award Recipient

By Wartburg College Sports Information Director – KatieJo Svenson

INDIANAPOLIS — Wartburg College’s Owen Grover was named a recipient of the 2024 NCAA Today’s Top 10 Award, the national office announced today.

Grover and nine other exceptional former student-athletes will be recognized at the Honors Celebration Jan. 14, 2025, during the NCAA Convention in Nashville, Tenn. The awards ceremony will be streamed via the NCAA YouTube channel.

Started in 1973, the award recognizes 10 former student-athletes from across all NCAA divisions for their successes on the field, in the classroom and in the community. All recipients completed their athletics eligibility during the 2023-24 academic year.

A biology major with minors in chemistry and leadership, Grover graduated from Wartburg in December 2023 and was chosen as the student commencement speaker. He is pursuing his doctorate from the University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine.

“Being named to the NCAA Top 10 is an incredible honor, and I am extremely grateful,” said Grover. “It truly means the world to me to be able to represent Wartburg College on this level because this school has given so much to me. The countless hours of dedication from coaches allowed me to grow into the very best version of myself both on and off the field. On top of this, there was so much support on the Wartburg campus from all of the faculty and staff that not only allowed me to have the most incredible experience during my time there, but also prepared me immensely for my future. More than anything I am grateful for my teammates, who became my best friends over the past few years, for helping me grow into who I am today. I am looking forward to having the opportunity to meet the other athletes being honored in January.”

Grover is only the fourth student-athlete from an Iowa college or university to receive the award and the first in Wartburg history. Previous honorees were Central College’s Blaine Hawkins (football, 2022) and Emilie Hanson (women’s basketball, 1996), and Simpson College’s Kelly Schade (softball, 2000).

He is the fourth Division III football player to ever win the award and first since Hawkins.

The NCAA Honors Committee, which selects the honorees, is composed of nationally distinguished citizens and dedicated representatives from NCAA member schools and conferences, including past awardees. Before 2013, the award recognized eight student-athletes and was known as Today’s Top VIII. The NCAA Honors Committee expanded the award to include 10 honorees to recognize the growing number of college athletes, sports and championship opportunities.

“One runs out of superlatives pretty quickly when trying to capture and describe the type of young man that Owen Grover is, and the indelible impact he had on our football program and on the entire campus community during his time at Wartburg College,” said John Cochrane, Wartburg’s Lowell J. Walker Athletics Directorship Endowed Chair and director of athletics. “He was a model student-athlete, embodied every characteristic that is used to define unselfish leadership, and yet, despite being what I believe was the finest Division III football player in the country last year, his greatest passion may well be his unwavering commitment to the service of others. He walked the path that most can only pay lip service to and was wholly devoted, both on and off the field, to the betterment of those around him.

“Owen Grover is an incredibly rare combination of great athlete, committed student, driven and tenacious competitor, leader, and humble servant to others. His impact will be felt in our program for years to come; he will be held up as a model of aspiration and as an example of all that is possible as a student-athlete here at Wartburg.”

Wartburg’s head football coach, Chris Winter, called Grover the “most impressive and impactful student-athlete” that he has ever coached.

“He was a servant-leader on our campus and made everyone he crossed paths with a better version of themselves. The old saying of ‘leave it better than you found it’ applies to Owen’s relentless effort during his college career. The Wartburg community, Waverly community and our football program are all better today because of the contributions he made during his time as a Knight. There is nobody more deserving of the NCAA Today Top 10 Award, and I could not be prouder to have Owen represent Wartburg College with this prestigious honor,” Winter said.