John Fuller, Real Pro Wrestling
Being at the top of the ladder is not unchartered territory for Donny Pritzlaff ““- it just hasn’t happened in a few years.
The New Jersey native, and Pennsylvania Hammer team member, is now on the top of the U.S. freestyle ladder at 163 lbs. after his victory over RPW Season One champion Joe Williams in the U.S. Nationals finals. The win was shocking to pretty much the entire wrestling community, except those named Pritzlaff.
“I would say that not many people expected me to beat Joe, “Pritzlaff said with a smile. “But that’s part of wrestling. You have to be ready for the unexpected. I didn’t train to lose in the finals. I train to win the Nationals, the Trials and eventually a gold medal.”
Amazingly, the four-time NCAA All-American is somewhat used to being an underdog. But when you don’t parade around the mat pounding your chest after wins, being an underdog is an easy role to play.
Even with one NCAA title under his belt while at Wisconsin going into his senior season, he was usually the underdog to Joe Heskett, a Season One competitor for the Iowa Stalkers and the wrestler Pritzlaff defeated as a junior for an NCAA crown.
Pritzlaff quieted all critics with another win over Heskett in the NCAA finals that year.
But with Williams lurking and Olympic champion Brandon Slay sitting on the verge of retirement, Pritzlaff might as well have been packaged by Garfield and sent to Abu Dhabi. He was a forgotten man.
“I don’t crave much attention anyways, but that was a real shock, “Pritzlaff said. “Two years in-a-row, I was wrestling in front of nearly 20,000 fans on this major stage, and when you go into freestyle, it’s almost like you’re starting over in some ways. You have to re-prove yourself.”
For Pritzlaff, always a quiet individual, it didn’t take long to get his name known in the freestyle world. He placed third in the 2002 U.S. World Team Trials, putting him within arm’s reach of a spot on the World Team that year.
It seemed like the future was bright as he prepared for a move to Hofstra to become an assistant coach.
Instead, the future became grey.
Ask any professional athlete, and they will tell you to savor any time you have at the top, because you may never know when you are going to get there again. This was starting to hold true for Pritzlaff, who wasn’t all that close to matching his third-place finish in 2003 or 2004.
With Hofstra starting to become a powerful collegiate program nationwide and Pritzlaff limping through the 2004 Olympic cycle, he started hearing the whispers to retire.
“I’m not going to lie, it crossed my mind, “Pritzlaff said. “I think retirement crosses anyone’s mind at the end of an Olympic cycle, though. That four years is grueling, and I put my all into it. But at the same time, I knew I still had a lot left in me, and in international terms, I was still fairly young at that time.”
Now 27 years old, five years younger than Williams, a rejuvenated Pritzlaff is again the man to beat. He is feeling as close to 100 percent healthy as a freestyle wrestler can at this time of year, and he is preparing for his first tournament where he is ensured of wearing a red singlet in every match since 2001, the year he won his second NCAA title.
“I never really thought about it that way, but I guess that’s kind of ironic, “Pritzlaff said of the red singlet. “Hopefully, I have the same results with that color.”
Though instead of wearing the letter “W “on his singlet, he might as well have a big target on his chest. After all, it does get lonely at the top.
Editor’s Note: This article was written before Hofstra head coach Tom Ryan accepted the job at The Ohio State Univ. Pritzlaff is still considered a staff member at Hofstra.
On keeping your composure: Don’t get discouraged by anything. This sport can throw a lot of things your way. You have to be prepared for every hurdle. You may not get over all of them, but if you are prepared, they won’t knock you down either.
For the coaches: Don’t overload young wrestlers. With so much changing technique throughout wrestling, it is important to just stick to the basics with younger wrestlers. When they get older and more comfortable, then it may be time to expand. Remember to work at their pace, not yours.
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