NCAA Div. I Championships quotes from the Coaches of the Top Four Teams and the Individual Champions
Gary Abbott/USA Wrestling
Individual Champion Quotes
125 lbs. “Joe Dubuque, Indiana
(about what his win means for Indiana) “This is the last stepping stone for us. We made big noise at the Big Tens. We came in here and placed in the top 10 at nationals, and had a national champion. It is about time we got the respect we deserve.”
(about riding the entire third period) “That was the game plan. Coach Mena and I did a lot of planning and scouting. He is tough on his feet. I defended well. I knew he wasn’t the strongest on the bottom. I knew if I was ahead going into the last periods, I could win.”
(about his confidence and excitement on mat) “I love the spotlight. This is where I become a national champion. I am a champion in my heart. When the fans cheer, I turn it on.
(about coach Mike Mena) When I came to Indiana, Coach (Mike) Mena told me I could be a national champion. I believed it, he believed it and I am. I wrestle him every day. I have my style, but he tweaks things. It makes my wrestling well rounded.”
(about his size) “My wrestling is about being faster and quicker. My weight has nothing to do with it. I use what my strength is, my quickness and my speed, and my intelligence on the mat. My mat awareness has grown since I have been here.”
133 lbs. “Travis Lee, Cornell
(comparing this title to his title in 2003) “I guess it is a lot different. I came in here seeded No. 1. Then I was an underdog. Bunch and I had a couple of matches and we were 1-1. There was some controversy about who should be the top seed.”
(his approach to the match) “I felt a lot more nervous, as this was my last year. Losing last year motivated me a lot. When I lost in the semifinals and had to cut weight, I thought about it.”
(about the first takedown) “We had wrestled a bunch of times. We knew each other’s styles. It wasn’t who was quickest or strongest. It was who wanted it more.”
(preparing for Bunch) “I went by what I remembered. We had seen him before. I knew what to expect.”
(what the victory means for Cornell) “It is huge for us. When I first got to Cornell, we were like 22nd in the county. To come from 22nd to the Top Five in the nation is an amazing feat.” A lot of people take Cornell granted because it is an Ivy League school. Now that we are winning, we bring two things together, academics and athletics. We proved we could be a wrestling power.”
(about his future) “I’m going for the masters of engineering program at Cornell. I am going to try out for the World Team, and help coach the athletes here.”
(about what style) “Probably freestyle.”
(about trying both styles, since his coach thinks he could excel in Greco-Roman) “At that level, you are so focused. You have to take one style and stay with it.”
141 lbs. “Teyon Ware, Oklahoma
“He was up 4-0 on me the last match, but our last bout went down to overtime. Our coaches said I can’t sit around and I have to move him. He tries to slow me down. My coach says one good takedown is the match. A lot of time it’s him who gets it. This time it was me.”
“I knew he was coming at me. Most of the time I get hit with a stall call, even though I am not stalling. That is my style, I guess. He is waiting for me to take a lousy shot and then strike. I came out and I struck.”
“I told myself, this is it for the next 7-8 months. You can enjoy it this summer. I had one more match “just come out and wrestle. He’s the Big XII champion, and I wanted that. I am the national champion. I would rather be the national champion.”
“It feels good. I remember what my coach and parents say. You wrestle for the glory of God. It doesn’t matter if you win or lose; it’s how hard you go. The only pressure I feel is the pressure I put on myself. I just come out to wrestle.”
“I was telling my teammates the other day I can’t think of the last time I looked at my matches and was satisfied. I am satisfied with it now. Have fun, celebrate and look to next year.”
149 lbs. “Zack Esposito, Oklahoma State
(about his beat-up look) “”I don’t care how I look. This will heal. That will not heal (losing). I’m tired. My knees hurt. My face hurts. I’m national champion now.”
“Riding time is huge. I know he is good on top. Last year I was rode out. I had to put a sparkplug in my butt to get out. So I got out here.”
“I was up by two. If I took neutral, I could get hit for stalling. I wanted to get over the fear from last year that I couldn’t get out. So I knew if I could get out her, I’d never have that fear again.”
“There was a lot of emotion going into this match. It is a relief to get it out of the way. But I loved every second of it out there.”
(about going to the Olympics as a training partner) “It helped me get an edge. Our coaching staff is unbelievable. John Smith, two Olympic golds and four World titles, Eric Guerrero, Daniel Cormier, Jamill Kelly, you look at the whole lineup. I also spent a lot of time with Pat Smith this summer. When I had to go to the Olympic Training Center to train with Jamill, that showed me that this is possible. The Worlds and Olympics, it is a possibility. And when I was over there with Jamill, it was awesome. I am sitting in the stands and watching along with World and Olympic champions. It was a great experience and it helped me prepare for this tournament now.”
157 lbs. – Ryan Bertin, Michigan
“I’m satisfied. That is the last time I’ll wrestle ever. I’m happy I won. I felt I was the best in the country. I couldn’t say it then. I can now. I’m done and I won.”
“We had a real good team effort. Joe (McFarland) always emphasized on getting to the podium. Being being Oklahoma State is great. Oklahoma State are studs. It is like being first for us. Oklahoma State is hard to compete again.”
(comparing to other title) “That was more satisfying. That was a bad year. That was a lot more satisfying. It was more of a roller coaster that year. I was on an even keep this year. I didn’t have anything to overcome. I can say it is easier to wrestle when you are healthy.”
(about his future) “I am going to get a BBA at the business school. Then might be grad school or law school. I’d like to help coach for a couple of years, but I don’t want to make a career of it.”
(will he wrestle again) “I am done. I knew that from the beginning of the season.”
165 lbs. – Johny Hendricks, Oklahoma State
“I knew it was going to be exactly how it was. I’ve been in the finals of many things. To me, this surpassed all of them. You prepare for this your whole life. But every time you are out there, you feel like it is the first time.”
“Perry is a tough kid. He beat Letters, a lot of other good kids this year. He will do great things. In his freshman year, he is second. How many people are second as a freshman?”
(about the first takedown) “I had to get it to set the pace. I knew if I got that first one, I could set the pace the whole match. Getting the first takedown is important in every match, not just in the finals.”
(about Mark Perry, and the fact he is from Stillwater and related to his coaches) “”When I first came here, me and Perry hung around all summer long. Last summer, he came around sometimes. He’s a great kid. He showed great character off the mat as well. My coaches want me to win. It is true that he is their nephew. I just look at him as another opponent. Off the mat, he is a great person.”
(what helped him win this year) “Placing fifth last year. It wasn’t where I wanted to be. You can always do better. When I lost last year, I felt I did not place. 1-4 is a place to me and I did not do that. I used that to push myself this year. God, my family, my coaches and my workout partners all have a piece of this medal.”
(about the OSU team success) “We take pride in this. We did something OSU hasn’t done in 50 years, going back to back to back. We three-peated. We wanted to blow everybody out. We wanted to get the record. The thing is to prove how good we are by how far we set that scale. We wanted to show everybody that we have the skills, the coaches and the wrestlers to win another one.”
174 lbs. “Chris Pendleton, Oklahoma State
(about his shoulder) “We got in an awkward scramble. I couldn’t pull my arm out. It was stuck between our bodies. I felt something pop. It scared me a little.”
(about Ben Askren) “All I can say about Ben Askren is that our relationship did a full circle. He started out as a young punk, and turned into a guy I hated when he beat me at the Big XII last year. You look back at it. He gave me his full effort every time he wrestled me. I have a lot of respect for him. I wish him luck the next two years. After the match, he said to me, ‘thanks for the battle.’ I’d rather not have that battle. But he is a good guy.”
“He is the kind of guy who, when its under the spotlight, you don’t want to wrestle him. If we met in a room, we could roll around and work out for hours and have fun. He is inventive. I think he made up some stuff out there tonight. I looked at my coaches and they were shaking their heads.”
“The emotion this year is different. Every year is different. Our team had done everything that was asked of us without complaining or breaking down. We traveled to their gyms, and would wrestle three times in a week sometimes. We came out of it with a win. By the NCAA’s and the Big XIIs, having a week with coach Smith was a nightmare. We looked forward to getting on the road again. Coach Smith is the best in the world. He knows what motivates each person.”
“Most of the year, I had my goals set out. I wanted to win another NCAA title, the Hodge Trophy and win the OW at the nationals. After I lost in December, that wasn’t the picture anymore. I looked at enjoying the moment with my teammates. This is the first time my mom got to see me in national competition. She went nuts out there. I had to go over there and give her a kiss on the cheek.”
(about the Olympics) “I spent last summer training with Lee Fullhart and Joe Heskett and the Gator club guys. It has never been a big dream for me. But seeing the Olympic Trials and the World class competition, it gave me a bug.”
184 lbs. – Greg Jones, West Virginia
(about not allowing takedowns) “A lot of it has to do with my style. Attacking all the time, you are open to counter defense. The more high percentage shots you take, you cut down on that.”
(thoughts about his legacy) “Not really. It is time to move on. I enjoyed every moment competing for West Virginia Univ. It hasn’t sunk in too much. Before I warmed up, I put on my singlet and I thought I would never wear it again. That drove it home for me.”
(his place in WVU sports history) “To be honest, I don’t know where I stand. Just to be mentioned with Jerry West “gosh, he is the NBA logo. It feels good just to have that conversation.”
(about the Olympics) “That is the plan. You have to give me a few days. It has been a long year. That is the goal that I have had. That is our next move.”
(about being considered a wrestling great) “I hope so. I would like to think so. Being at West Virginia, outside the Big Ten or Big XII, not just myself but others, we get overlooked sometimes. Over the years, I’ve earned that respect. Whatever recognition I got, I’ve earned that.”
(the match against Baier) “It was a hard fought match. He was tough to finish on. There was a weird feeling there when I was trying to finish my shots. When I got that lead, I stayed in good position the rest of the way.”
(about his opponents) “I don’t think their style matters. My main thing is to establish a rhythm and to keep the pace throughout the match. If I establish that, it doesn’t matter what he does.”
197 lbs. – Jake Rosholt, Oklahoma State
“I had to wrestle to win against every opponent this tournament. I tried to move my feet and stay away from what he does best. He got a takedown at the end. Luckily, I was able to get the escape. It has been a tough last three days. I had a lot of tough matches.”
“It feels good. I didn’t wrestle my best tournament at all. I had a rough string of matches. I won. That is what matters. Knowing you can win when you are not wrestling your best is good for your confidence.”
(about going up to 197) “”Coach Smith tried to talk me out of it. He didn’t care, or maybe he thought it might be good for me. But he wanted to make sure I was committed to it and that I did it right. I had to lift and put on some of the muscle I lost when I went to 184.”
(on his coaching staff) “These guys are amazing. (Mark) Branch is an amazing coach and an amazing guy. All of our coaches would do anything for you. You look at them and say, they gotta know what they are talking about.”
HWT “Steven Mocco, Oklahoma State
“That is the first time I hit an off-side footsweep in competition. I have been practicing it since I was a little boy. I drilled it a lot since I was young. When you drill it every day, you can hit it in a match.”
(on OSU’s dominant win) “It is impressive. But there is never a perfect ending. You can have nine, then 10 champs. 10 champs can be improved upon. 10 champs all unscored upon. 10 champs with all pins. There is room for improvement no matter what.”
(about envisioning this win when he transferred to OSU) “I just envisioned getting better. I felt my leg attacks have gotten better here.”
(Will he attend the World Team Trials) “I start training for the Trials in four or five days.”
(about the redshirt year) “It helped me be a fuller wrestler, to see the competitive world of wrestling on the next level. I didn’t reach my goals last year. It motivated me to train harder.”
(about Coach Smith) “He motivated us by any means possible. He puts the fire in your belly. He makes sure we are focused.”
(about his finals win) “I am not satisfied with that win. I’m satisfied with 8-0, or 10-0, 12-4, 15-0, a first period pin. I am not satisfied with that win.”
First Place Team
John Smith, Oklahoma State
(comparing this team to the 1993 OSU Team) “I think depthwise that was a solid team. This team this weekend gave their best effort every way. In every tough situation, we excelled. I can name a number of them. There were key situations that made the difference.”
(is this the best team of all time) “That is for you to judge. This is my best time. Effort wise, they were outstanding. We had our very best performance all year long at the Big 12 and the NCAA Tournament. There is no question that our best effort came at the end.”
“We had some guys who had a real passion to win a national championship. They were not self centered. They put the team first sometimes. That is why we had five national champions.”
(compared to the 1997 Iowa team) “I saw that up on the big screen. For us to be favored that year, I’m not sure who was keeping score. Coach Gable was having his last year, and put some drama in it. We had a good performance that year to take second, but we were disappointed. (Iowa) did it with several seniors on that team. We did it this year with one senior.”
(about how this national title compares to others) “There is nothing that equals the first one, with the excitement, the joy of it. These become more satisfying. More importantly, it is great to see the individuals do what they wanted and get what they wanted to get. That is as satisfying as the team honors.”
Second Place Team
Joe McFarland, Michigan
(the last time Michigan was second) “It has been 31 years since we were second. 1974. I have a picture of that 1974 team on my desk. It is my intention to beat them someday. Oklahoma State had an awesome performance. Kudos to them. It became a race for second place and we were fortunate to come out on top. All of the guys who came here expecting to do something, they lived up to expectations. We had five seeds. We had five All-Americans and a national champion. To have two freshman come around and be All-Americans was big.”
“There is no question it was a team effort. We did have a national champion. But to have a team effort was so important. We were consistent all year. We plugged away and worked hard. It is nice to see them get the accolades.”
Third Place Team
Jack Spates, Oklahoma
“You know what is amazing. Somehow, I don’t know why people don’t give us respect. We have been third three of the last four years. We come to wrestle. We train hard and battle well. We came with seven guys, while other teams had nine or 10. All seven were in the All-American round. We ended up with four All-Americans, a national champion and a third place trophy. We are proud of all our guys.”
“Teyon Ware is great. He wins as a freshman, breaks his neck as a sophomore and is still an All-American. This year, he goes against a guy who beats him four times in a row, and he comes out with the trophy.”
“My assistant coaches come up with a great game plan. They reign me in. I like to think more is better. But more in not better. You have to rest sometimes and listen to your bodies. We have a great staff and great kids with character. We will be better next year. We lose one guy. It will be a great year.”
Fourth place team
Rob Koll, Cornell
“It is funny. You take fourth and are thrilled, but we were second the whole tournament. Going in, if yout told me we would win an award, I would have taken it. I knew we were a good tournament team. I am thrilled that Tyler Baier made the finals as a senior, and also to see Travis Lee go out like this.”
“We didn’t even win our conference, but we came in fourth in the nation. That says something. As far as recruiting, we still have people aske if we are D-I. We won’t get that any more. Name recognition is important. When recruits around the country watch us, they will consider coming to Cornell.”
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