Something doesn’t seem right about the phrase.
Pataky won a PIAA Class AAA 112-pound title at Clearfield in 2004. He graduated from the wrestling warehouse a year later. He then spent the 2006 postseason as Penn State s starting 125-pounder.
Shouldn’t Pataky be entering the second half, possibly the fourth quarter, of his college career?
Well, it s a lengthy tale, one that has reached a fascinating point.
Barring injury, Pataky will return to his starting 125-pound spot when the Nittany Lions begin their dual meet season Nov. 16 against Hofstra at Rec Hall. The meet will end Pataky s 927-day layoff between appearances in a Penn State singlet.
Pataky never went away. He spent the past two years hanging around and training with many of his current teammates.
But he enters this year after two straight redshirt seasons.
He took a traditional redshirt season in 2006-07. He then requested and received an Olympic redshirt for 2007-08. Pataky’s second year away from college competition culminated with an appearance in this past summer s Olympic freestyle trials in Las Vegas.
They always say summer wrestling improves your season wrestling, Pataky said during Thursday s media day at the Lorenzo Wrestling Complex. I was doing a lot of traveling and a lot of competing. I have a little bit of a hunger strive coming into this year. I m anxious to get back into the collegiate style.
As the Nittany Lions prepare for Sunday s public wrestle-offs at Rec Hall, questions surrounding a program that placed third at last year s NCAA Championships float from multiple directions. Pataky is the subject of some inquiries. After all, not many associated with the program have seen Pataky compete in a meaningful college event since the 2006 Big Ten Championships.
Mark McKnight spent the last two seasons as Penn State s 125-pounder and ended his career by placing a surprising fourth at the national championships. While McKnight confounded coaches and teammates, Pataky focused almost entirely on freestyle training.
It seems like he has been there as long as I have, but he s only a sophomore said fifth-year senior Jake Strayer, who has known for Pataky for more than a decade. He s anxious to get out there. Yeah, he s ready to go.
Pataky didn t take classes last year and approached wrestling like a job. He made frequent trips to Pittsburgh to train with former Penn State national champion and freestyle ace Sanshiro Abe. He traveled to Maryland and traded takedowns with Pennsylvania legend Cary Kolat and visited the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs with former Penn State All-American James Yonushonis. The Nittany Lion Wrestling Club, where Pataky helped young wrestlers during his days in State College, provided funding for his training.
It s an experience not many people get to receive, said Pataky, who was required to complete a travel and training journal to receive an additional year of eligibility from the NCAA.
Between trips, Pataky bounced around the Lorenzo Wrestling Complex. He often ran on a treadmill as teammates practiced or trained with McKnight at odd hours. He watched the Nittany Lions finish 14-5 last year from the bleachers and followed road events on the computer.
I never felt away from the team, Pataky said. Coming back into State College, it was like a family. They were there for me and I tried to be there for them whenever I could.
Pataky resumed classes this fall, switching his major from secondary education to history. His return to full-time folkstyle wrestling has included gradual improvements.
It s a weird situation wrestling a lot of the top guys in the world with a different style. coach Troy Sunderland said. You really have to focus in on that style to be the best at it. It has taken him a little bit of time. I think his best week of practice from beginning to end was probably last week.
Sunderland said Pataky, a big-move specialist in high school, has developed poise since returning to folkstyle wrestling. Pataky said two years of freestyle training and working out with McKnight has improved his single-leg takedown attempts.
Pataky went 15-8 as a true freshman but the season ended with a disappointing 0-2 performance at the Big Ten Championships. If applied properly, the lessons Pataky learned from wrestling the world s best wrestlers should lead to better results in 2008-09.
Wrestling with the older guys helped me a lot, he said. I was a boy wrestling men. I m hoping I m the man wrestling boys now.
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