For love, not money
While top athletes in mainstream sports cash in after college, most wrestlers toil in obscurity
Tuesday, February 08, 2005
Scott Priestle
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
An Ohio State football player who received All-American honors as a freshman, sophomore and junior likely would not be around as a senior. He would be cashing a six-figure check in the NFL.
A similarly talented basketball player would be off to the NBA, and a hockey or baseball player off to the minor leagues.
Former OSU wrestler Tommy Rowlands’ reward for gaining All-American honors as a freshman, sophomore and junior was a chance to return to the mat as a senior and rewrite the school record books, which he did. A year later, he is pursuing a spot on the 2008 U.S. Olympic team, training in relative obscurity and living anything but extravagantly.
”I’m middle America, “he said. ”That’s the way it is when you’re trying to be an Olympic champion in wrestling. You don’t have a yacht in the Caribbean or a mansion or anything like that.”
Rowlands, 23, of Columbus, is hardly a typical wrestler. He won a silver medal on Jan. 30 in the 211.5-pound weight class at the prestigious Ivan Yarygin Memorial Tournament in Krasnoyarsk, Russia. Rowlands was one of 11 American freestyle wrestlers chosen to compete in the Siberian tournament.
In many ways, Rowlands’ story is typical. Those who wish to continue in the sport beyond college do so for the competition, not the compensation.
Rowlands’ former teammate at Ohio State, Jeff Ratliff, is training for the 2008 Olympics in freestyle while attending law school part time at Capital University, working part time for his father and helping coach the Pleasant High School wrestling team. He lives with his parents in Marion to cut expenses.
”I’m sacrificing a social life for the next four years, “Ratliff said.
Another recent OSU standout, Nick Preston, 25, is finishing his degree at the University of Virginia while assisting with the Charlottesville Wrestling Club and training with the UVA wrestlers and coaches.
Current Ohio State assistant coaches Ken Ramsey and Mitch Clark accepted low-paying collegecoaching jobs to continue their careers. Ramsey competed in freestyle for eight years after college, and Clark for 2,½. Both retired after the 2000 Olympic trials.
Former Ready and Penn State standout Ross Thatcher competed in Greco-Roman for three years while also serving as an assistant coach for the Nittany Lions. Adam DiSabato was an assistant coach at Ohio University when he reached the Olympic trials in 1996, and after three years off to work and support his family, he rounded up sponsors to help cover the costs for one final charge to the Olympic trials in 2000. Rex Holman went a step further, joining the Army so he could pursue his Olympic dream through the World Class Athletes Program.
“It’s a meager life, “Clark said. “There’s no glory in it. You really need to love the sport to be doing it, that’s for sure.”
A rare helping hand
Ramsey, 35, competed in freestyle throughout his college career. Upon graduating from Ohio State in 1992, he accepted a job as the part-time assistant coach at Purdue. It allowed him plenty of time to train and compete in freestyle, but it paid only $10,000 per year.
Just as Rowlands and Preston are doing now, Ramsey worked as many youth camps as possible to supplement his income. After two years at Purdue, he joined Russ Hellickson’s staff at Ohio State as a fulltime assistant, which meant better pay but less time for training and competing. He made it to fourth on the Olympic ladder.
“I started to become more concerned with making a buck in the summer and supporting my family instead of supporting my wrestling career, “Ramsey said. “I had to give a little bit.”
Rowlands has not faced that choice, and he might not need to. It is a luxury few have, and a reflection of Rowlands’ talent and the good will he fostered during college.
As the volunteer coach, he works out with the current OSU wrestlers whenever possible, but his own career can be his priority. He has made numerous trips to the U.S. Olympic training center in Colorado Springs, Colo., and in addition to the current trip to Russia, he has an upcoming trip to Cuba.
USA Wrestling paid for the trip to Russia, and the club team Rowlands wrestles for ” Sunkist Kids in Arizona ” helps fund his U.S. tournament trips. He also has received help from benefactors such as Terry O’Keefe, a longtime central Ohio coach, and he makes a few extra bucks by assisting Thatcher and former Ready coach Jim Edwards with the kids club they run through the Ohio International Wrestling Club.
“I’m thankful for the situation I’m in at Ohio State, and I’m being helped out in numerous ways, “Rowlands said. “Basically, it’s just the huge loyalty in the sport of wrestling. People see the price you pay, and they’re willing to help you out in any way they can.”
Ratliff, 23, has received less tangible support, in part because he is not as highly ranked. Rowlands is ranked third at 211.5 pounds, Ratliff is ninth at 145.5, and Preston is ninth at 185.
But Ratliff has received help, as well. He said his father has been “pretty lenient “with his work schedule at his law office, and he is hoping the folks at Capital will be flexible with his class schedule when the freestyle season picks up in the coming months. He might have to skip a class or two to compete in a tournament.
“I’ve got a pretty good situation at home, “Ratliff said. “That’s the thing you gotta have.”
A somewhat lonely sport
Unlike Rowlands and Ratliff, Thatcher did not expect to continue competing after college. He said the Penn State coaches offered him a staff job and the opportunity to continue wrestling, and with no other plans, he accepted. He rose to second in his weight class before injuries and burnout took their toll.
“I just lost the passion for the sport, to be honest, “he said.
Thatcher, 28, said he made “decent money, “and since returning to Columbus last year, he has been able to make a living by running clinics and camps. His career is evidence that money is merely the first hurdle when pursuing the sport beyond college.
After wrestling for middleschool, high-school and college teams, the Olympic hopeful now has no teammates to lean on, and he might not have a coach to push him. Wrestling is an individual sport, but never more so than after college.
“Having the right workout partner and the right situation to train is important, “DiSabato said. “If you aren’t able to put 100 percent into it, it’s hard to do, because chances are the next guy is.”
Thatcher and Clark frequently train with Rowlands, giving their friend a push when he needs it. Ratliff has a personal coach, Sergei Kitaev, and he often works out with the OSU wrestlers, as well.
“You gotta go every day, “Ratliff said. “It’s a full day, but it’s what I always wanted to do. I always wanted to continue wrestling.”
Despite the long days and low pay, Rowlands wouldn’t have it any other way.
“It’s pretty much for the love of the sport. This is the greatest sport I’ve ever been involved in.”
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