From Glenwood to Golden Gophers: multi-sport success leads Drake Buthe to Minnesota football commitment
Championing techniques between football and wrestling, senior offensive lineman Drake Buthe becomes first Glenwood football player in 21st century to commit to a Power Four football program
GLENWOOD, Iowa —
Glenwood, Iowa — Glenwood senior lineman and three-star 2027 recruit Drake Buthe allows his play to do the talking for him.
“He’s a humble kid,” Glenwood football head coach Cory Faust said.
“Just focusing on my job and doing it fast and physical,” Glenwood senior lineman Drake Buthe said.
Fast, physical, and flexible, Drake has turned heads in Class 4A football the past two season. His technique in the trenches carries from the wrestling mat.
“I don’t think I’d be the person I am today without the sport,” Buthe said. “There’s sometimes out there where I can feel certain people’s leverage and where their weight is at and their body. Especially with offensive line, in wrestling you’re learning how to move people against their will.”
“Having your body in different positions and using your leverage is really important in wrestling and football so there’s some carry over there,” Faust said.
A first-time qualifier his junior year, Drake placed third at the Iowa Wrestling State Tournament in the heavyweight division. Along the way, he learned how to handle success and adversity.
“It’s a mental battle so I feel like it helps me down on the field,” Buthe said.
College recruiters took notice. Eventually, Buthe vetted offers from 17 Division I programs, but he says Minnesota was the right fit to hone his craft.
“I grew up watching Big Ten Football with my dad every Saturday,” Buthe said. “It’s been a dream to play in the Power Four and Big Ten. What Coach Fleck was building there, I feel like he runs a tight and intense program and everything is detailed and structured, which is how I feel like I am as a person.”
With his commitment to the Golden Gophers on May 31st, Drake became the first Glenwood player since Scott Davis in the 1990s to commit to a Power Four football program.
Until then, Drake continues to develop.
“As a leader is where he’s grown the most and that’s where we need him to go,” Faust said.
Staying in the moment, while chasing State title glory with Glenwood.
“My job is here not done,” Buthe said. “Right now, I’m a high school football player and that’s what I’m going to keep focusing on until that time is over.”
Drake also plans to wrestle his senior year before enrolling at Minnesota in 2027.
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