Penn State’s wrestling team will send four wrestlers – David Taylor, Matt Brown, Ed Ruth and Quentin Wright – to the 2012 Olympic Team Trials in Iowa City, Iowa, on April 21-22, but there will be four other wrestlers going with Penn State that you might not know about.
That’s because the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club, an integral part of Penn State wrestling but a background figure to the common fan, has a residential program, where wrestlers – some former Penn Staters, some not – train in the freestyle discipline day in and day out for a shot at the world championship, the national championship and the Olympic dream.
Mark McKnight (55 kg), Shawn Contos (55 kg), Jake Varner (96 kg) and Lee Stigman (120 kg) will join the four collegiate wrestlers in an attempt to get back to the top and be a part of the 2012 Olympic Wrestling team, slated for competition this summer in London.
‘I like my chances of just throwing my name in the hat and go out and scrap against these guys, and if you rise to the level of competition, anything can happen,’ McKnight said. McKnight was an All-American at Penn State.
There is no doubt that the collegiate level is grueling, but the international level is a step above that, and there was a clear consensus during Wednesday’s media session that the old learn from the new, and vice versa, in a room Stigman described as second to none.
‘It’s nice to be a part of the old guard – with Coach [Troy] Sunderland and the old staff, and now the new guard with all the new guys, and I get to combine the best of both worlds and I’m benefiting a lot from it,’ McKnight said.
So which Penn State wrestler will have the most success? It’s hard to say. Wright’s style carries over best from folkstyle to free style with his propensity for throws, but Taylor’s lightening quick arsenal, Ruth’s strong man style, and Brown’s pure strength are all hard to deny, and current Penn State coach Cael Sanderson was quick to say all four of his wrestlers have a great chance in Iowa City.
‘Having four guys going to the Olympic Trials, it’s a big deal to have our guys get that experience, and they’re going there believing they are going to win,’ Sanderson said.
‘When you have the reigning world champion in your weight, it makes it incredibly tough,’ Sanderson said, asked to handicap David Taylor’s chances. The sophomore will wrestle in the 74 kg, or 163-pound weight class.
‘But all our guys want to be Olympic champions. Ed Ruth has been saying all year he wants to be an Olympic champion, and Ed doesn’t talk about his goals much, so for Ed to be talking about being a gold medalist, you know he wants it.’
As for Sanderson himself, he decided not to participate in the trials, even though he qualified.
‘To win at this level, you have to want it, and with my other responsibilities, I didn’t think I’d have time to do it the way I want to do it,’ Sanderson said.
But come next weekend, a spot on the Olympic team will be on the line, and Wright knows what to expect.
‘I’m pumped and excited, and since we have four guys going, it’s going to be a lot more fun than just being out there by yourself,’ Wright said. ‘Freestyle is a lot different from folkstyle because you can lose it a lot quicker, so you just always have to be on your toes.’
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