Conversation with 4-Timer Kellen Wolbert

Oconomowoc's Kellen Wolbert joins the show to talk about his journey to becoming Wisconsin's 32nd ever 4-Time State Champion!

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:07

Welcome to the Wisconsin Wrestler Podcast with your co-host Teet Fenwick and Steve Lurk.

SPEAKER_01 0:16

Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to another edition of the Wisconsin Wrestler Podcast. I'm your host, Teak Fenwick, coming to you recorded from Holman, joining me as always from Koshkinong, my co-host, Steve Lurquin. Steve, great to be here. Pumped to be here, buddy. It's gonna be a fun one. Steve, the Wisconsin weather is on a heater, and we're on a heater as well, because we are podcasting two weeks in a row in the summer. That's unheard of for us. Well, hey, we're rolling, and uh, fortunately, our four-timers have been pretty available. So we got two four-timers, two weeks in a row. Uh, can we make it a streak next week with uh Miss Whiting? We'll find out on the next episode of the Wisconsin Wrestler podcast. But for now, love this one, Steve, because we have seen plenty of this guy's matches live and uh gonna be a roommate with uh our last guest that we had on, Hawken Peterson. And the reason we have him on, of course, well, he has four state titles to his name. Haleen up from Oconnellk, our next guest. You all may know him as King Wilbert, but we'll refer to him as Kellen here tonight. Kellen, welcome to the show.

SPEAKER_04 1:36

Thanks for having me, guys. I really appreciate it.

SPEAKER_01 1:39

That's a heck of an intro. Can't believe I got it all out with warm breath. And Kellen, Hawken kind of put the pressure on you. I mean, he we usually do like an hour, hour and a half. We don't expect 18-year-old kids to talk a whole lot, but we went for two hours with Hawkin, but I'm sure you've talked wrestling with him before, and I'm guessing you're 0% surprised by that.

SPEAKER_04 2:06

Yeah, no. Once he starts talking about wrestling, he gets going. So I can see it.

SPEAKER_01 2:12

His brain is like a steel trap, and I'm guessing yours is the same because the one thing I've noticed, Steve, you didn't agree with this. Every four-timer pretty smart when it comes to wrestling. So uh looking forward to talking about your career tonight, Kellen, especially the high school stuff where we got to cover you. Uh, we gotta start somewhere. So, Kellen, let's talk about your wrestling career from day one. When did you start wrestling?

SPEAKER_04 2:37

Sounds good. Um, I got put into wrestling when I was five, and I was really fortunate that like AWA was just starting up. Um, so I started at AWA, um, the Lake Country uh Academy. So like I've been wrestling under Ben and John for 13 years now, um, going on 14. So I've been really blessed with like just the opportunities I've had. Um, but yeah, I started when I was five, really little. I had an older brother, uh two older brothers. One of them stuck with wrestling, the other one didn't. Um, so like they all kind of put us in the same year, and I was fortunate enough to be old enough.

SPEAKER_01 3:10

Were you were you a part of one of the first ninja classes then?

SPEAKER_04 3:15

Yeah, yeah, I'm pretty sure I was part of one of the first ones. Um, I know I'm like the first uh I'm the first kid to go from ninjas all the way up through the high school progression and go uh D1, which was pretty special. But yeah, I was I was in there with the first ninjas.

SPEAKER_02 3:34

Kelly and Hawkins came home with a flyer and his parents brought him. You said he got put in. Now, was that like were you kicking and screaming when you went? Or was it?

SPEAKER_04 3:41

No, what is that? I think I'm I would guess that I was pretty excited about it, but like my dad wrestled a little bit in high school, but like he he was mainly a baseball player. Um and like I think he just put us in there because he he knew like the life lessons that you can learn from it, not only just like the sport lessons that you can learn. Um, so yeah, I mean, I wasn't like five years old asking to go when I started, but it was uh I think my dad just kind of put me into it. Did you like it right away? Yeah, I liked it a lot. Uh AWA does a great job. And I I remember when I was first starting, they did this thing with uh they'd have these like bracelets of like kind of like this material here where it's like the the rubber ones, but it'd be like they'd have different colors, it'd kind of be like a belt system, and then if you did good, like in the practices, uh Coach Mesenberg would cut like a little piece of black tape and put it on. And once you got enough black tape, you you'd bump up uh the next color. Um, but I think they got rid of that before I got like the black belt for the bracelets or whatever. But um I don't know. I I really enjoyed it like ever since I was a little, and it's always been my favorite.

SPEAKER_01 4:51

So that's the one thing I want to dive a little deeper in on since you're one of the first guys to completely go through the AWH system. I know Ben is big on preaching, uh like youth levels, like that five-year-old age, like even to eight to ten years old, not really a whole lot of competitions, uh, just a lot more practicing, just getting kids to love the sport, have fun. I guess with not a lot of competitions or like more practicing and whatnot. Like, when did it start to hit you that you're you know you're pretty decent at wrestling?

SPEAKER_04 5:25

Um, I don't know. I mean, I've always I've always done better. Uh like I I've always like won more than I lost, but like I never really thought of myself as like really good. Um, I guess a big eye-opening moment was like eighth grade going into my freshman year. I'd be I think it was eighth grade year. I beat Koji in uh in a match, which was it was pretty close, but I feel like I kind of like I was in control the whole entire match, and it was one of those matches where it wasn't necessarily like a super high scoring match or like I didn't blow him out of the water, but it was like pretty well controlled, and I was I was in the driver's seat the entire time. Um and after that one, I feel like it was kind of like a real uh like eye-opening moment where it was like if I take this really seriously, like I really could kind of go with it. Um, and then obviously, like following up that eighth grade summer, I ended up winning Fargo and stuff, which uh I mean, obviously is a pretty pretty big statement um to kind of like the improvements I was making and stuff. So I'd say those were probably the two biggest moments where I was really like, if I take this really seriously and kind of put my full effort into it, I could I could make it something that I'm good at.

SPEAKER_01 6:34

So you won Fargo, and then you also you beat uh was it Spurly at Who's the Big Cheese?

SPEAKER_04 6:42

Yes.

SPEAKER_01 6:43

Are you a four-time Who's the Big Cheese winner, or did you not wrestle every year?

SPEAKER_04 6:49

I think three. I think three. I didn't wrestle in it every year. I wrestled Declan once, Reed once, and then I wrestled uh Rocco.

SPEAKER_01 6:57

So going back a little bit, because eighth grade, that's uh that's late in the game in terms of youth wrestling. For those like, oh, like I I could do something pretty special in this sport. What was it? What was it like uh those prior years? Like when did you first qualify for state? How'd you do at state in youth? Take us through that.

SPEAKER_04 7:16

Um I think the first year I was gonna try, I ended up dislocating and fracturing my elbow. And then the next the next two years I made it uh to the finals and I lost to Colbo's deal twice, I'm pretty sure, uh, when I was little. And then um I ended up winning youth state twice, I think. Um but like at that point, especially when I was younger, like he was really just like I just really enjoyed wrestling. Um I didn't really focus too much on the wins and losses. Uh there was one time actually where I was really little and Quentin won a tournament, and we both won the same tournament we were at. And we were walking out to the car with our trophies, and like Quentin he didn't win as much as I did when I was little. And so like he was really exciting about he was really excited about getting the trophy. And I said some really like cocky, snarky remock remark to what he said after saying, like, look at the trophy I won or something. I think it was along the lines of something like I got another trophy. Like just something really cocky and kind of snarky. And my dad really kind of like bit that at the like right away and like really got out of me about how like it's not okay to be rubbing, rubbing that stuff in people's faces, and like um, it's really important to stay humble, like in victory. Um, and I'd say that was like a really big moment in like not caring as much as not caring too much about winning, um, and like really um trying to stay humble while winning because um it was a little weird like having an older brother that didn't win as much, and like I won a lot more, um and trying to balance that of like I care for him, and I'd almost get more mad when he lost than I did. Um but that moment was like a big moment of like uh learning more about humility and being uh a lot more humble, like in victories and stuff. Um, but yeah, for the most part, like growing up, it was all just I just loved the sport and I just loved wrestling and like winning and losing didn't really affect how I felt about it. Um I mean obviously winning felt great. I was a competitive kid, but um yeah, I was more just like I really enjoyed it and up until like eighth grade I didn't really didn't really look at it as like I'm really good at this sport, it's just like I really liked it and I really just wanted to go do my best.

SPEAKER_02 9:31

But Kellen, what what did you can you tell what what you what did you like about you know what I mean? Like most people say I like winning, I like this. Like what you know, not not a lot of kids can say, Yeah, I like getting my face, you know, beat in and cross-faced, all that kind of stuff. So what what did you like about a team camaraderie? What was your uh explain that?

SPEAKER_04 9:50

I really like the individual aspect of it. Um I like I said, like I was really competitive when I was little, and like when I was on a sports team, like for baseball or soccer or football, um losing, like obviously, like there's stuff I could have done better, but like losing because other people failed to do their job or something really like annoyed me. Um so like the individual aspect of it I liked a lot, like that sat well with me. Like if I won, it was because of me. If I lost, it was because of me, and I could handle that well. Whereas like losing because of something I couldn't control, um sure just didn't sit as well with me. Um, and then I mean I'd say like I won a lot more when I was little, so I think it I had a nicer experience. I didn't get my face shoved into the net too much when I was little, so that helped a lot with enjoying the sport. But but like practice.

SPEAKER_02 10:39

Do you enjoy practices and all that kind of stuff? Yeah, is that yeah.

SPEAKER_04 10:43

Yeah, I've I I'm not I wouldn't say I'm not one of those guys that like I love competing, I hated practices, or like I hated practices and loved competing. Um, I love kind of both parts of it. Um, AWA does a really good job of making it fun. Um, so like I I always had fun at practice. Um, and then competing I really enjoyed too.

SPEAKER_01 11:02

Big process guy, which is really helpful in this sport.

SPEAKER_04 11:06

Yep.

SPEAKER_01 11:06

Yeah, I know you and Quentin growing up, a little bit of a difference in weight, but I mean being siblings a few years apart, there had to have been some one-on-one matchups, right? Off the books.

SPEAKER_04 11:17

I mean, uh, we never wrestled in a match, but yeah, definitely off the books, like uh in practices and uh uh just like around the house and stuff. Um I mean, he's been my first practice partner since I was little. Um him and my old other brother, uh JJ, but he plays baseball now. Uh he quit wrestling pretty early. Um but yeah, Quentin's been like my day one partner, like literally since I started wrestling. Um, but yeah, we've had a lot of a lot of matches and uh close fights because of it and stuff. But um I can't really I know like early on, like he'd always beat me. I mean, he's my older brother. Um, but like as I started catching up in weight and passing him in weight, then I kind of started started getting the edge a little bit. Um But yeah, I can't remember like any like definitive like we wrestled a match uh when we were same weight and stuff.

SPEAKER_01 12:10

But I was gonna say, was there uh what was the point where uh where you started to like get the the leg up on him in your unofficial match?

SPEAKER_04 12:18

Um definitely yeah, probably like eighth or fresh eighth grade or freshman year. Um what that's definitely when I started catching up in weight and started kind of passing him in size. Um probably those years. Uh just when I started catching up in size and getting a little bigger than him.

SPEAKER_01 12:37

So going into high school, did you have any thoughts about being a four-timer or what were your goals going into your high school career?

SPEAKER_04 12:48

Yeah. Um going into freshman year, I feel like I uh struggled with like putting like goals out there a little bit. Um like uh like kind of like saying it, like I always felt like if I said like I want to be a four-time champ or something like that, I'd come off like a little bit cocky and then also like a little scared that like if I said it and then didn't live up to it, then it's like I I'd look like an idiot or something. Um but I mean, definitely like in the back of my mind, I really wanted to be a fourth-time state champ. Uh, but freshman year, I really tried going in like one match at a time. Like I didn't want to kind of put something in front of put one match in front of another and then end up losing a match that I should win or something like that. Um, but I think if you would have asked me then, I would have said just like doing my best. But now, like it definitely was. I wanted to be a four-time state champion. Um and uh I'd probably add like I really wanted to go undefeated throughout my high school career, um, which didn't happen. But um yeah, those were kind of the main goals.

SPEAKER_01 13:49

Well, I'd say, in regards to the undefeated thing, Callan, uh credit to your coaches, they did a good job chasing losses, so to speak. Yep, right. I mean you look at a kind of a walk schedule over the course of your career, and yeah, getting out of that gallant undefeated.

SPEAKER_00 14:07

That that is something.

SPEAKER_04 14:10

Yeah, definitely tough schedules. I know like that was a big thing like our coaches like would talk to us about, like, even not just me, but the other guys on the team is like you learn more from losses, and like if you are too scared to wrestle tough matches and scared of getting losses early in the season, then it's like you're gonna be scared going into the postseason, so it's better to go chase those tough matches, get used to kind of getting in grindy, gritty matches that later in the season you can kind of show out for it, um, which I really appreciate. And I feel like it's it's that's kind of all been that's been my mentality like growing up. Like I love going into scraps and getting into dog fights, and I feel like I'd look l I'd feel less about myself if I went and avoided matches.

SPEAKER_01 14:51

Mm-hmm. That's good. Well, we got your perspective. I mean, going in, you you beat Spurly, you beat Campbell, you win Fargo. Obviously, you're you're on people's radars a little bit. Did you ever hear any of that outside hype about like, oh man, this kid's gonna be uh pretty solid coming into high school? And how do you handle that as a 15-year-old?

SPEAKER_04 15:14

Yeah, I did a little bit. Um, I mean, I tried to just kind of like like brush it off a little bit. Um, like I kind of treated over, like kind of overhype or like uh like harsh criticism kind of similarly. Um because like people who you can find a lot of like constructive criticism and overhype and like kind of like hate comments or whatever. I don't know the right way to describe it, but like um like people who doubt you versus people who like kind of like over uh believe in you, you can f kind of find the middle ground, um, which is kind of what I try to find a lot, um, especially freshman year. Um, I mean, I remember like I'd be walking in school and like somebody would ask me like how I'm gonna do at the duel this next week, and I'm not wrestling anyone who's even like ranked in the state. And like all I'd tell them is like I'm I'm gonna try my best. Um, which was kind of like the big mindset of it, like freshman year was just trying not to like get my head too big or really like overhype the situation. Cause I feel like if I overhyped the situation, then I'd perform less. Whereas if I just kind of treat all the matches the same, I'm able to go out there and consistently compete at the same level.

SPEAKER_01 16:22

Love it. Well, like high school. So the big jump from youth to high school and your freshman year, obviously a resounding success. I don't think yeah, you went undefeated as a freshman now that I'm looking at this. But uh, did you have a moment at all early in the season where like a welcome to high school moment, I like to call it, where you're like, oh, this is like a different ball game than than the youth level.

SPEAKER_04 16:50

Um I'd say it was probably like right before the season. Because right before the season, I wrestled uh Ben, who I ended up wrestling uh three times in the season. Um I wrestled him right before high school season started, and he beat me. Uh which I was that was probably the moment where it was like all like kind of a wake-up moment to like this is it's high school, like it's it's a different ball game. Um and then also like top bottom has always been a struggle for me, which is a rough thing to say leading into college. Um but even before high school, like top bottom was like a rough, rough spot for me, which I've gotten better, but still need a lot to improve on there. Um, and I think I was wrestling Cade and uh wrestling Cade at one of the WI wrestle duels right before it, and I was beating him and I didn't try, I mean, I can make a lot of excuses, but he wrote me out in the third period. Um ended up still winning the match, and like and I know leading up to the match with Reed Spurly, that was like a big thing was like people were like um wondering if I'd be able to get out and if top bottom would be a big issue in the match. Um at least it might have been RQ who put like posted an article and said that or something, and it really kind of like put a chip on my shoulder, and like I can't remember exactly the match, but I'm pretty sure I chose bottom. And uh, but like leading into the match, like I really wanted to go bottom, uh, just to kind of like prove that like yeah, I've made improvements there, and like that's not a that's not something that's gonna affect my high school career um or that first season necessarily, but definitely that match with Ben and then also getting ridden out that one time was probably like a wake-up moment to the high school.

SPEAKER_02 18:23

Well, hey, for me and others who don't what happened? Did you take down and did you get out? Because Sterley's a beast on top. Did you get out? Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 18:31

Nice. I yeah, I didn't get ridden out in that match. I'm pretty sure I chose bottom. I can't say confidently, but um, I'm pretty sure I chose bottom in that match and ended up getting out. Which is funny, this last big cheese that I wrestled that I chose bottom and didn't get out. So yeah. But um it happened. So make a famous output.

SPEAKER_03 18:51

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 18:57

Because you have had uh for four timers one of the most exciting careers looking at your resume. But we gotta start off with this one. Your first ever tournament, and in the championship match, you wrestle a very familiar name in Wisconsin wrestling, Mr. Jacob Herm. You remember a lot from that match? Uh at the slinger, right? The gunslinger invite.

SPEAKER_04 19:21

Yes, sir. Um, I want to say like I got maybe like one or two takedowns. Uh and like just it was a close match and like a scrap. Like Jacob wrestled really hard, and like that's one thing that I'd say. Like, he did a great job like all through high school. He was just a hard wrestler. Um he wrestled really hard and he was he was really gritty. Um, I mean it was I remember it being a tough match, and like it was pretty, pretty tiring of a match, but I knew like leading into it, like those are the matches that I really lived for, and I knew I was gonna enjoy it, uh, which it was a fun match, but I can't remember exactly how it went. I want to say like I got a takedown in the first, um, which that was a big emphasis freshman year was getting takedowns early because again, top bottom wasn't like a strong suit that I had, so like I really had to make up for it on my feet. Um, so like I want to say I got a takedown in the first, and then it just kind of like was pretty close throughout the rest of the match, and maybe got one more towards the end. Um but I can't remember.

SPEAKER_01 20:19

It was either like that or it was a decently high scoring match, and we both got takedowns, but it was uh so it was eight to three, still two-point takedowns at that juncture. I take it. Did you get out of did you get out of Herb and his persistent arm barring?

SPEAKER_04 20:36

Yeah, I think so. I didn't I didn't get turned at all, which was good. Um but then I must have got I must have got like three or four takedowns, because um eight to three would be four takedowns, three escapes, I think. I probably chose neutral if I'm being completely honest. Um, there was a lot of matches where I chose neutral freshman year. Um so I probably chose neutral at some point in the match, um, if I had to guess, because I don't think I turned him. Um so based on the score, I think I I probably got four takedowns, he got three escapes, and I probably chose neutral and just avoided it completely.

SPEAKER_01 21:10

Well, we gotta talk. I mean, the big thing from your freshman year, and you brought him up already, but the series with Ben Bast, he he beat you before the season, and then going into the cheese head, can you just explain that the like the grind that the cheese head takes on you? Because it's hard to game plan for any specific individuals because every bracket seems to be loaded, and you're wrestling eight or nine matches over the course of two days. Like, what'd you do to keep yourself fresh over the course of that tournament?

SPEAKER_04 21:44

Um I don't know. I mean, I'd say like I've always had like pretty good endurance and like pretty good cardio. Like that's never been like a too too big of a struggle. Um, and I think what really helped was like in practices, like I wrestled really hard too. So like I was kind of used to like having. Like more than one match in me to be able to kind of like go through a grindy match. Um I want to say like the first couple rounds I made it through pretty easy, but Samise, I know I had a really close one. Um I think I was up for most of it, and then at the end I almost gave up a takedown to lose, but it ended up being called the no takedown. Um so I think I won by one in that one. Uh so like that match was super grindy. Um I mean, obviously, like the Ben Bass match was really grindy. I'm pretty sure that one went into either overtime or I took him down right at the end.

SPEAKER_01 22:34

Um Yeah, because it ended in regulation. Both four to three matches, by the way, in your semis and finals. What uh what adjustments did you make against Ben this go around?

SPEAKER_04 22:46

Um, I think the first time I wrestled him, I really struggled with uh his reach. Uh that's been something that I've struggled with uh in the past, is just really longer, lenkier wrestlers because I'm I'm pretty short and stocky. Um, not as short or stocky as my brother, but still on the shorter end.

SPEAKER_02 23:03

Um, there that's really good.

SPEAKER_04 23:06

Yeah, just gotta slip that in a little bit. Um but yeah, those really tall and longer wrestlers are pretty tough, and I think I struggle with that a lot. Um so just being a little bit more disciplined uh and ready for those kind of sneakier attacks where they they're able to reach the leg and then build in uh to it. Um and then I think I think I chose neutral also uh because I think he rolled me out or turned me in our first match. Um because I knew against him like bottom was a big, big issue. Uh so I really needed to kind of focus on my feet against him. Uh, but in that match, I think I just kind of kept it close. Russ was really disciplined and just kind of got it done at the end. Yeah, because I think I was down 2-3 going into the third and chose neutral, maybe.

SPEAKER_01 23:56

Yeah. I was I forgot if Steve was there on finals day, but I remember commentating that finals, and that was an electric finish.

SPEAKER_02 24:05

So you are I was watching. You are right.

SPEAKER_01 24:10

And then as the rest of the season goes on, uh you beat Ben again 9-4 at the Highlander. Man, cheesehead Highlander. Yeah, you guys didn't go to Minnesota yet at this juncture.

SPEAKER_00 24:23

No.

SPEAKER_01 24:23

Then going into uh the postseason, we'll we'll just jump right to state here. Well, hold on.

SPEAKER_02 24:29

I did have a win over a lawyer slump. That's a pretty big win.

unknown 24:34

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 24:34

Did I wrestle him at the Bayport tournament?

SPEAKER_02 24:38

Um, no, that was a duel. You didn't wrestle him at all. No, you did. You're right. You um you guys must have dueled them at a duel tournament.

SPEAKER_04 24:48

Well, we might have hosted that um a duel tournament at Ocon, I think, that year. That was the only year that I wrestled at that one.

SPEAKER_01 24:56

Yep, middle of January. Yep. Oh, a pin over schlump.

SPEAKER_04 25:02

Really?

SPEAKER_01 25:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 25:05

I don't I don't remember that one. I really got a man at the time. He probably didn't have his sunglasses on at that point. Yeah, no.

SPEAKER_04 25:14

Yeah, I don't really remember that match. I don't remember that match really.

SPEAKER_01 25:19

And it's funny you say that that your top and bottom wrestling needed some work because I mean you're miles above in wrestling ability than I could ever dream to be. But for every time I watched you wrestle, I'm like, wow, Kellen is really good on the mat. So really, yeah. Yeah, well, especially, I mean, we'll be talking about it in just a few moments here. But going into the state tournament, yeah, this was a fun, you had a fun slate this year. You had Mavari, Bass, Schlumpf. It was uh you developed quite a hit list over the court of Schrader, who I think did Edwin from Oshkosh, did he end up making the state finals or semis? I think so. Uh he made the finals uh one year, I think. That's right. Yeah, two years ago, I think he did.

SPEAKER_04 26:08

Yeah, because he beat Cade in the semis.

SPEAKER_01 26:11

Yep, yeah. Yeah. Good recollection. Yeah, he was good.

SPEAKER_04 26:16

Uh I feel like I I'm pretty sure I gave up some sort of point in that match that I was upset about. It's either like stalling or like I did something. No, I don't think it was like I think actually, I think I was going for a Turk, and he was like burying his head, and I like grabbed his like forehead and like lifted his head up to go crossface because I couldn't get my arm through. And I guess you're not allowed to like lift the head up like that. So I think I gave up a point like that.

SPEAKER_02 26:46

I mean, but as a referee, yes, you are, but within reason. I mean, you know, you can't decapitate a guy.

SPEAKER_04 26:53

Yeah, no, yeah. I don't think I was too, I think I just like lifted really hard, and then I didn't like punch him across the face. It was it was the lift that I think I got in trouble for. Um, but yeah, I think I was I was kind of annoyed by that one.

SPEAKER_02 27:06

But I love the I love the mindset of a champion. He's like, he still won the match and he won the tournament and goes undefeated. Yeah, but I gave up that point, which really upsets me. That's hilarious.

SPEAKER_04 27:18

Yeah, there's yeah, there's there's a couple points throughout like my wrestling career where it's just like just dumb moments where it's like, what am what am I doing?

SPEAKER_01 27:27

Oh, I I hope I hear the rest of them over the course of the rest. They'll probably come up. So going into the state tournament your freshman year, and how hard were the nerves hitting if they were hitting?

SPEAKER_04 27:42

Uh right before the tournament, I don't think they weren't hitting too hard. Like, I think I was still like it was a normal nervous level. Um, but I just remembered like the March of Champions. I was sweating so bad. I was so nervous. Like it was wild, like looking up in the crowds and like all the fans are like on top of you. Um, and it was it was electric. But yeah, I was super nervous like before the finals, but like heading into the tournament, like I felt pretty confident. I felt good. Um, wasn't anything too out of the ordinary, but that march of champions really got the nerves going.

SPEAKER_01 28:16

Oh yeah, I think I think it gets everyone's nerves going that's in the coal center. But yeah, for you, for you especially, and understandably so. Well, especially like Kellen, it is uh you beat Ben twice that year already, and Ben is a great wrestler, as we all know. And it's hard to beat a great wrestler three times. I know this is many moons ago, but just just take us through that match, and I can pull up the box score here too to help you recollect a little bit if you want.

SPEAKER_04 28:47

I think I can remember kind of how it goes. Um, but leading into the match, um I think those two victories uh before uh kind of like was in my mind a little bit. Like I was nervous, like like I should be confident. I already beat him twice, I beat him worse the second time. Like I should be confident going into this. Um but at the same time, it was kind of like if I lose, it's like I look I'm gonna look so dumb and like I already beat him twice. I should be able to beat him again, but like if I lose, like it's bad. Um but I think just once the match started, I think I started pretty slow. Like I wasn't moving as well on my feet as I should have been. Um I was just kind of like just on edge a little bit, just nervous uh for the match. And I'm pretty sure he took me down once in the first period. Uh towards the end, rode me out uh for the rest of the period. Then we go into the second period. Um I think he took me down again.

SPEAKER_01 29:47

So the second period, do we want to guess what Kellen chose to start the second? Neutral. Yeah. Yep. You got a takedown right away, and he uh That's right a few seconds after, then he got a takedown, and then he rode you out uh the last minute and a half of the second period. And I remember this because uh you were you were good on the mat, but Ben just he was excellent as a mat wrestler. He was really good. He was up five to two, it was his choice, and uh I just remember that I was doing the commentary, and I'm like, oh man, like I think like Kellen's in a little bit of trouble here. And yeah, yeah, because he got the escape, made it six to three, and what happened next? I think if you weren't already on people's radars then, I think the entire coal center was watching after this. But three takedowns in the last 90 seconds to send it to overtime. What were you feeling in that third period? And yeah, how did you like what how'd you dig deep just uh get those three takedowns against Ben?

SPEAKER_04 30:59

I think at that point, like I was just kind of like whatever, like I'm already losing 6'3, 6'2, or whatever it was, and like it's if I give up more takedowns, like it's just it I'm already losing. Like, there's nothing to lose at this point. Like, I'm in the match, I'm wrestling, and at that point, I feel like uh I the nerves were kind of gone. Like I was I was there. Um and I don't know what it is, but I feel like me personally, like I like being like if I'm in a close match, I like to be losing more than I like to be winning. Um, like I feel like when I'm losing, like I'm kind of on the chase, and like I'm almost like I'm hunting him for that that last takedown and stuff. And like I feel better in that situation than kind of like trying to defend. Um so yeah, I just feel like I just kind of got into like I just kind of like got into that state where it was just like I need takedowns, I need to go score. Like there's nothing to lose. So I just started wrestling a lot better. Um and I think also like nerves could have got started getting to him, and like I think at that point, like he probably was getting more in his head, and I was getting out of my own head um at that point. Uh because like I think like going into the match, like he has nothing to lose. He's lost to me twice. If he beats me, it's an upset. If he loses, then that's how it was supposed to go on paper. Um, whereas like going in the match, it's like I already beat him twice, I should beat him. Like, what if I lose? Um and like at this point, it's like he's up 6'2, like he should win. He shouldn't give up this lead, and like the nerves could have could have been getting to him. I obviously don't know. I haven't talked to him in depth about it. Um that's fair, yeah. But like at that point, the nerves were kind of gone for me, and I feel like I was just kind of like going out there trying to get the takedowns, and like I was the last one was in like the last 10 seconds, I'm pretty sure. Like, it was really close to the time being out that I got the takedown. Yeah. Because I shot and then like he like stuffed it, and uh he almost defended it and like was able to like kind of sprawl out a little bit, and then I don't know what happened, but I was able to like pop out, get my chest up, and like drive through or something. And I don't really know, like I can't tell you like what it is that like helps me dig deep in matches. Um, I mean it happens more than it should, so I think like the familiarity in that situation helps, but yeah, I I don't know what it is. Like, I'm not telling myself anything. Like, I feel like at that point, like I'm totally like I'm not thinking at all. Like, I I barely remember those situations like right after the match. Um but yeah, I don't know. I was just able to dig dig deep, and I think it was just kind of like a testament to like the training that I put in and like the hard work and just kind of like how I am as a person. Like, you don't give up when things get tough. It's like when things get tough, you just have to get tougher. Um But yeah, and then that that only tied it up, and so we're going into overtime, um, which that was stressful because we get into overtime and there was like two scrambles on our feet there. Um, and like in my mind, I was like, if I don't get a takedown here, I'm losing the match. Like, I need a takedown in this in this minute. Like I cannot beat him on the mat. Um, but like we were wrestling, and uh I think we got in like one or two big scrambles. Like I almost scored, and then he almost scored. Um, and like both times, like watching it back, I think like the crowd kind of got a little loud. Like I was close to scoring, and then he rolls me through.

SPEAKER_01 34:17

He almost scores on me, and then either time ran out or I had blood time, um, which then we go into the the second overtime, which second overtime that would have been the the double ride out, or yeah, yes, the double ride outs.

SPEAKER_04 34:33

And so this point, I'm like me and my coaches are freaking out because it's like we don't want to go on bottom. Like, I don't think I'll escape. Like, I'm trying to go neutral, but the I I can't remember exactly how it happened, but like we're freaking out a little bit. I think I'm pretty sure you can see it like in the video, where like we're just like wanting to choose anything but bottom, but we know we can't choose top because he'll get an escape. Um, but I ended up choosing bottom, and he just got a little high in the leg ride, and I was able to get out. Um, and I don't think anything else happened that period. Um, there might have been like one little flurry uh where one of us got to each other's legs. Um but then third period starts, he chooses bottom, and like I'm just like I I gotta hold my, I gotta hold him down, like I was able to get an escape. Um and like things lead into the next thing. I think we might have gotten into a pretty big scramble, which waited up wasted a lot of time. Um, and then I had blood time, I think, which I got really lucky with blood time, I'm not gonna lie. Um and so I started bleeding, and like I think I was gonna, I think I had his leg and like he was sprawled out on top of me or something like that. And so then ref calls blood time, so then it resets and he's he's down still, and there's like 10 seconds left. And it's like now I'm like, I can run it for 10 seconds. Like I'm in the state finals. Like, I should be able to ride it back for 10 seconds. Yeah. Um, so then I'm able to like ride him out for the last seconds, and like it was just euphoric a little bit. Like it was I don't I don't know, it's hard to explain the feeling. Like it's especially like a match like that, like it's one thing to like win a match, like just with ease, like, and especially when you're expected. Um not taken away from matches like that. Like, it's it's a great feeling to be able to win um with ease and like know that you are you've extended your skill level far past everybody else. Um, but like a match like that, like it's just when you're in a match where you're just about equal level as someone, and then like you're able to come out on top and prove to everybody that maybe you're not even better, but you're tougher, you're grittier, and you're able to just get things done when it matters. Um it's just uh those matches are really special. And like those are the ones that I've always had the most fun. Um, even the ones that I lose. But yeah, those ones, those ones are really cool.

SPEAKER_01 36:46

You retelling that, like, I think my heart rate has gone up like 30 beats a minute. I remember being on the call for it, and uh, I can like almost picture the match in my head without even watching it. Like that was and the roller coaster, it really was a momentum deal where going in the third, like Ben looks like he's in the catbird's teeth, and you knock things up. And I think like, oh, now he has another minute, he just got three takedowns, like he'll probably do it again here. Yeah, then that minute goes by, and once it goes to the mat stuff, I'm like, uh-oh, I think this swings back in Ben's favor a little bit. And uh it was, I mean, that it's one of the most emblematic matches of what it means to be a four-timer. Yeah, just just that grit and maybe not being in the most favorable position and coming through. It was uh it was like a Rhett Kaneche-esque win. But in this it's it's uh it's uh it's a Kellen Woolburn-esque win, I think we can say. Exactly.

SPEAKER_02 37:47

Well, what I think is crazy, uh crazy in a great way, awesome, is uh you were able to in a match, you know, in a 10-minute time frame, go from being the favorite, and in your mind you switched to being the underdog, and and self-admittedly you said that's what saved you. Like, I'm the underdog, and I'm as just go out and take this guy out. That that's that's sweet.

SPEAKER_04 38:07

Yeah. Yeah, I think I just wasn't like mature enough to kind of have that like uh that like hype and like expectation on myself uh to like go win. And I feel like uh like in that moment of like my life and like my wrestling career, like I just wasn't mature enough for like I don't know if not ready was the right word, but just like I I didn't handle it as well as I should have, um, which I feel like I've matured a lot more now. Um and like I'm able to handle expectation a lot better. Um but yeah, it was it was a crazy match. And actually funny, I uh I had a I had a bowl of spaghetti before that match, and I it was a great bowl of spaghetti. It was amazing. I like threw up a noodle like mid-match. Like if you go and watch it, you can watch me like run. I can't remember when it was. It was either like either in overtime or like towards the end of third or something. Um I like throw I run to the edge of the mat and like I run into the garbage and like I have my hand on my feet, and it's like I I it was only one noodle too. Like I'm like confident, like throwing up, and I grab one noodle, throw it in the trash, and I go back out there and start wrestling. And like I don't know, but I I wouldn't say that saved me in the match or anything or changed anything, but like I just remember that vividly. Like it was that's absolutely like it was it was either my man, my mom, or like my uh coach or teammate said something about me eating this bowl of spaghetti because they're like it was a pretty big bowl of spaghetti, and like they were like saying something like you've got a match coming up. Like, are you sure you should be eating all that? And I was like, Yeah, it's fine, like I'll be good. Um, but yeah, I ended up throwing up one noodle, and it was just yeah.

SPEAKER_01 39:46

Admittedly, I might go back and watch the match just to see if I can catch that.

SPEAKER_04 39:50

I'll tell you, you'll see it. Like, I run to the edge of it. I think it was I want to say it's either end of third or end of the first overtime that I it happened, but uh I want to say end of the third because end of the end of the first overtime, like me and my coaches started kind of like freaking out a little bit about having to having to choose.

SPEAKER_02 40:08

I will not be. I mean, I just you telling the I have a bad gig reflex, just you telling the story, I'm like, and if I have to watch that now knowing it, I'm gonna be like, no, I'm out. So it's not like it's not bad.

SPEAKER_04 40:18

Like, you don't see me like gagging or anything, but it's like I like yeah, no, there's no projectile or anything. Like, it was like I coughed a little bit, like coughed and burped a little bit, and like I just like felt the noodle in my mouth.

SPEAKER_00 40:31

You're good.

SPEAKER_04 40:34

Oh yeah. All right. Put a cap on that match.

SPEAKER_01 40:39

So you uh oh, that's great. Um you're coming off of a big match, like huge win. Does it hit you right away that you're a state champion, or is like the euphoria kind of just like winning a match like that?

SPEAKER_04 40:56

It's I don't know, it's crazy. Just because like it would have definitely been easier if I like had won the match pretty easily. Um like it'd be a lot like but like like we said, like the match was very roller coaster, like I should win, then I shouldn't win. Then it's like I I definitely can win, and then it's like I'm probably not gonna win, and then it's like I do win. Um it's just kind of like this explosion of emotion. Um and it's just like uh yeah, it's just a lot. And then like obviously, like the walk back up to like seeing my family and like all my relatives that were there, um yeah, it's just a lot of emotions. It's hard to put into words exactly like what you're feeling, but um it was really exciting. Like it's fun to win, but it's really fun to win in like the biggest moments.

SPEAKER_01 41:42

So yeah, and you're you're a big in the moment guy. Yeah, and you uh at what point did you ever think about after your freshman year, like, oh, I got I got like the hardest one, or I got the first one out of the way. Like, did more thoughts of winning four start to trickle in after that one?

SPEAKER_04 42:03

Yeah, definitely uh more thoughts started to kind of like trickle in, but still at that point, like I was still kind of in that like I didn't like putting my goals out there, I didn't like telling people like um I'm gonna go win. Like, um, I don't know why I struggled with that. Like I feel like I shouldn't have. Like, I was never like super cocky um or anything like that. Um, but I just always thought like I just struggled with that. Um, but definitely like in my mind, like it started creeping in more. Like, I'm definitely one step closer. And um, it's a lot more feasible now. Like, I just be nationally ranked guy in the high school state finals. Like, who else? Like, who am I gonna wrestle better in the state finals um than the guy that I just did? Um I mean, granted, Lucas Peters, I think might have been ranked higher in the national scene at the time that I wrestled him in the state finals, but so was I, I guess. But it definitely helped with like the confidence of like I can I can go win four now.

SPEAKER_01 43:02

Oh, we're gonna tap into your your freshman to sophomore offseason a little bit. We don't always go in depth, but notice looking at the grappler website and your uh quote unquote offseason results. Uh you got injured, it looks like at the US Open because there's no Fargo results here, no uh national team dual results. Uh do you wanna you don't have to go in depth on the injury, but it's what happened and how long were you out for?

SPEAKER_04 43:33

Uh yeah, I uh so in my first match at the US Open, um, I was just kind of being a little lazy, and the guy got behind me in the rear standing, and he did that thing where like he's got a he's got his body lock and he put his like shin behind my knee and was like pulling me back. And so while he's doing that, I want to step back with my right foot. I think it was my right, yeah, my right foot. I stepped back, and so like all of his weight lands on my ankle, um, which like Ends up, sorry, I'm plugging in my computer here. Um, which ends up like I you I hear a pop and like my opponent hears a pop too. Um and so like ultimately like it breaks my ankle. Um so like if this is like my tibia, it's like this part is like completely broken off, this part of it at the bottom. Um, but like at the time, like I just heard the pop, I like yelled it. It was more like scary than like hurting in the moment. Um, so like the match stops, like he gets the takedown. Um and the trainer comes over, and I'm like, I don't know, I heard a pop. The kids like saying, like, yeah, I heard a pop too. And um the trainer's like, all I can really do is like tape around the shoe. And I was like, Yeah, tape it up and we'll finish the match. Um, and so they tape around the shoe, uh, just kind of like secure my ankle a little bit. We finished the match and I ended up winning like 13-7 or something. And it happened in like the first 30 seconds of the match, too. Like, that was the first points was him getting that takedown and my ankle breaking. Um, so I mean I end up winning 13-7. I like kind of jog off the mat. Like I felt fine. I mean, like adrenaline's a crazy thing, like the fact that you're able to like do that. Um, but like, yeah, the adrenaline was just pumping. Like, I my body was just in that state where like I need to go get this, I need to go win this match. Um, and then like a couple minutes after I'm off the mat, it's like I can't put weight on my foot. Um, and like I can barely walk um at this point. And so like we go and like we see the trainer, and we're like sitting there, and she's kind of like feeling it, feeling my ankle out uh a little bit, and like it hurts, obviously, and I'm telling her it hurts. And like at one point, she like asked me to like stand up and hop on my right foot. And like I go to hop and I just started hopping my left foot. Like, I couldn't, I couldn't hop on my right foot. So like I went to start trying to hop on my right, and I just like put my left foot down and bounced a couple times on my left foot, sat back down, and she ended up saying that she thought it was like a high ankle sprain or something like that. And so I was like, like, I I can wrest, like I could wrestle. Come on, it's an ankle sprain, like it's not that bad. Um, so then my next match comes up, and I go and I start I start wrestling, and like I can barely even stay in a stance. Like, I'm I'm putting my right knee down instead of my foot. I can't take a shot. Um, there's one point, like, I'm this guy takes me down, and um, I can't remember who it was, but like I shouldn't have given up the takedown. Like, I'm pretty sure it was like he was applying pressure, and like I had to step back and put weight on my right foot, and I just like lifted my foot right away and like flinched, and then like he fell in on my legs and laced me once out of bounds. So he's up like 4-0, and then we get back to the center. He pushes again, and I have to plant on my right foot, and I just like started hopping on my left foot. And so then Ben calls the match, which I was a little upset about. Um, but he calls the match, and then we go uh to like the hospital near us, and we get like an x-ray, and and again, like the doctor kind of like felt my foot around, like there's no swelling or anything. Um, and he was like, Yeah, it's probably like a sprain or something, like he doesn't think it's broken, and then he like comes back and he's like, Yeah, your ankle's broken. I was like, I was just like devastated because it was like, I don't know, like I love wrestling, it's a huge part of my life. Um, and like even after that second match, like I started crying a little bit, like we're back by our stuff because it wasn't like the pain was like overbearing and I was crying because it hurt and stuff. It was just like I knew a part of me knew that like I couldn't wrestle for a while now, and like just like losing wrestling was just like a big hit on me. And like I've been injured before, like the um when I was younger, I dislocated a fractured my elbow. Um, but I was also younger, so it was like the wasn't as emotional as it was uh when I was older. But like just the the weight of like losing wrestling and like not being able to wrestle for a while just like hit me at that tournament, and then like the confirmation from the doctor that my ankle was broken was just like it was devastating a little bit, um, which realistically, like that's a nice problem to have is like I lost wrestling. Like that's not it's not really a big deal in the grand scheme of life, but like in the moment it it really hurt a little bit, but then like your it's your life at this point.

SPEAKER_02 47:57

Yeah, you know, when you're to a 14-year-old kid or 1450, whatever you are, that's a big deal.

SPEAKER_04 48:02

Yeah, exactly. So um, but then like obviously, like I I didn't need surgery, which I was really lucky about. Um, like the bone didn't move at all, like it was in a spot where it could just like heal really nicely.

SPEAKER_01 48:22

Oh, Steve, am I am I legging too or is it just Kellen? No, it's just Kellen.

SPEAKER_02 48:27

He's frozen.

SPEAKER_01 48:30

All right.

SPEAKER_04 48:30

Oh yeah, I got him frozen out here. There he is. Hey, are we sorry? Did we cut out a little bit? Ah, you froze a little bit.

SPEAKER_01 48:38

Uh yeah, where did we uh where did we uh end off at? Steve says I got a cast. Yeah, yeah, you got a cast. Yep, continue.

SPEAKER_04 48:47

Yeah, so I got I got a cast for my foot. I was lucky I didn't need surgery or anything. Um and like looking back, it was probably nice to have that little of a break. Like, obviously, like wrestling all year long can be pretty tolling, like it whether I'd admit it or not. Um, but so the break was probably pretty nice. Um But uh yeah, I was just really the whole entire time I was just excited to get back on the mat and then started doing PT and stuff, and just really wanted to be smart about it. Um but like again, like I was really lucky it was only bone. So it was like once the bone got back, it was just a matter of building muscle. Uh so I didn't like hurt anything around it really.

SPEAKER_01 49:22

So, how long did you end up being out for?

SPEAKER_04 49:27

I want to say there was like three months in the cast, three months of PT, and then I think I can't really remember. So I think about like six months, maybe.

SPEAKER_01 49:37

Yeah, so uh you're obviously excited to get back out there. And how do how do you navigate that half-year journey of not being on the mat?

SPEAKER_04 49:47

Um, I mean, I I have a great family and like I have great friends too. So it was like it's pretty easy. It's pretty easy to like uh find fun things to do. Um obviously, like I'm not like fully capable of walking and running around and having fun like sports-wise, but like I have a great family, great support system, so it's it wasn't hard to like find fun things to do or like enjoy the time I had. Um and like even like school started back up, and I I was still had the cast and stuff, and one of my buddies had like one of those scooters that you like put your knee on. So like I'd just be I'd just be whipping around the school on that little scooter, and like sometimes my buddies would be pushing me around on it, I'd just sit on it. Um there's actually uh we we have two campuses at Ocon, and there's a trail going back from both of them, and it's a little bit of like an uphill and then a downhill for the trail. And so every time like going back to main campus, I I could leave early so there's nobody on the trail. I'd get to the part where it starts to go downhill and I'd just sit on it, and I'd like put my feet up and just ride it all the way down. Um, and there was one where like I hit a rock and like I started like getting really wobbly, and I like fell forward and I used it, I used my right foot that was in the cast as a plant, and I planted right on my heel on my cast to like save myself from falling. And I was like super nervous. I like called my mom. I was like, Mom, I just used my right foot to like plant, like could I have just messed up all the healing and stuff? Um, but like I was far along that like it didn't do anything, but it was just kind of funny and something dumb I did while I was still in my cast.

SPEAKER_01 51:18

You know, I'm not a parent by any means, but like I almost got frustrated hearing that story. Like then I think of me as a 16-year-old, and you know what? I probably might have done the same thing. So same thing, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 51:32

Definitely I wouldn't say I'm the smartest.

SPEAKER_01 51:37

Well, hey, you you made it out, the light was at the end of the tunnel. Uh when did you uh so when did you end up like wrestling again? Oh, that'd have been October.

SPEAKER_04 51:52

Probably October. Yeah, it was a little bit before the season.

SPEAKER_01 51:55

Yeah. Did it take uh how long did it take to get back into wrestling shape?

SPEAKER_04 52:03

Uh not not too long. Uh like obviously the first couple practices are really hard, but like at that point it's just kind of like pushing through, and then like your body will follow uh pretty quickly. Uh at least for in my case. Uh and like I'm I'm pretty active like outside. Like I know like in the cast I can't do like a ton of stuff, but like when I was hurt, like I wasn't just sitting around, like I'd be moving a decent bit. Um like that's nothing compared to wrestling shape, but once I got back to wrestling, it's really like I it was mentally tough, and like I'd have to push through, kind of getting exhausted. But like once you do that a couple times, it's like your body gets back into wrestling shape pretty quickly.

SPEAKER_01 52:39

Right. Well, you hit your sophomore year, uh, it's like you hit the ground running uh you're undefeated all the way through the holiday break, and uh we'll just head right to the cheese head here. Uh first high school loss, and I know I bring up the losses all the time, but you don't have anything to talk about, so we gotta talk about them. But you wrestle Logan Swenson in the semis, a lose seven to six in the tiebreaker period. Uh, where are you at mentally after that match?

SPEAKER_04 53:15

Um I don't want to say I was in shambles, but I was kind of being a baby after that after that match, if I'm being completely honest. Uh um, I wasn't like pouting or anything like too crazy, but like I was just kind of dwelling on it a little bit. Um, but like that's one of those moments where it's like I gave up a dumb point. Like I figured forward him. I figured forward his head, and so like I that's the point that I gave up, uh, which is just really annoying. And then also I couldn't escape, I think. Um like he didn't escape from me. I I gave up that figure four, which gave him the point, and then he rolled me out. Um, so I think just kind of like how I lost really upset me. Um and so then I I was dwelling on that like a little too long, and like that kind of um I don't want to say that affected my next match, um, but I just I just didn't wrestle all that great afterwards, in my opinion. And I feel like I was just kind of dwelling on that. Um, more on like how I lost rather than like the fact that I lost. Um but yeah, it was it was really upsetting and just annoying, kind of giving up that figure four. Just again, something stupid. Like I didn't get out-wrestled in the match. I just did something dumb, made a really dumb mistake, and yeah, like I can look at myself in the mirror after a match. If I got out-wrestled, it's like I gave it my all and I got out-wrestled. That's just what happened. But like when I make like a really dumb mistake or just do something stupid, that's those are the ones that really like annoy me and eat at me the most. Um, but yeah.

SPEAKER_01 54:37

Well, and I know too, your goal was to go undefeated through the high school career. I guess this this might be a silly question, but what is it different losing in the high school season wrestling for Ocon than like perhaps like losing at Fargo or at national duels or something along those lines?

SPEAKER_04 54:56

Uh yeah, I'd say it's different. Um more so in like uh I feel like I'm representing a community more when I wrestle for Ocon. Um and like I have the team kind of backing me. And like, don't get me wrong, like at Fargo and like at junior duels, like Team Wisconsin is a team, and I feel like we have a really unique uh community for Wisconsin wrestling, and I think we are really close knit. Um I think AWL AWA helps a lot with that. Um, that like we're all practice partners, but it's a different team feel, in my opinion, than like for wrestling for your high school. Like it's a smaller community, so it seems like it's more impactful almost a little bit.

SPEAKER_01 55:34

These are kids you go to classes with every day, yeah. Right. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 55:37

Yeah, exactly. Um, and so then like we we win and lose as a team, and so like when you lose, you there's like kind of that feeling of like letting the team down a little bit or like um almost like misrepresenting the team a little bit um in like the losses and stuff. Um but it's not too different. Um, but those little differences I'd say like the team aspect of it and like the weight of like representing the people and like representing the O that you wrestled for. Um, well, in my case, it's an O. Um but yeah, and it's more so in like duels where the losses um affect more, which I don't think in my high school career I lost in a duel, but um, because at she said we weren't competing for a team title or anything, so it wasn't too big of a deal. But like um, yeah, I'd say the losses are a bit different, but at the end of the day, they're both losses and they both they both suck.

SPEAKER_01 56:32

But fair. Did you wrestle a Jesser Roga every year of high school, by the way? I'm just like perusing your results.

SPEAKER_04 56:40

I think I wrestled in three years.

SPEAKER_01 56:42

Okay, because definitely sophomore, I might need to look back at your freshman year now, but yeah, sophomore and junior year for sure. But yeah, a name that definitely sticks out. But you wrestled Lucas Peters twice at Cheese Head. Was that a match that you were potentially anticipating to be a match that you see at the Cole Center? And take us through uh the Peters matches at Cheese Head.

SPEAKER_04 57:06

Yeah, for sure. Um, I was really excited to kind of like get a go at him before stay. Um, because I feel like I I do a lot better like adjusting for matches almost. Um, like I feel like I have a style that's pretty um hard to like game plan and adjust for, um which I could be completely off base for that. Like other coaches might watch me wrestle and be like, it's really easy to count with this guy. So like I really don't know. Um, but I feel like I generally do better, like yeah, like I feel like I generally do yeah, but uh I feel like I do better like in series against guys than guys do against me. Um so like I felt I was excited to wrestle him. Um and then I don't remember exactly how the cheese head matches went. I know the second one was really close.

SPEAKER_01 57:53

I can drop you the scores real quick. You got at the end of the pool action, you won five to two, and then you won a four to three in the Concy semis.

SPEAKER_04 58:05

Yeah, so I think the first one I think I controlled the match a lot better, and I think I got two takedowns probably um and was able to escape. And then I think in this con sorry, excuse me, the Concy semis, um I think it was just a lot closer. Um again, I feel I felt like I was dwelling on that loss, and I just didn't let myself kind of like go out there and get it. Like I was trying to just just get by the rest of the tournament, get it done with, and just kind of like win win the last couple matches and just kind of be done. Um but I feel like I just kind of like tried to hang on to the win for the second one a little too much, which is why I was a bit closer, and I feel like I just kind of like was a little bit more aggressive and controlled in the match um in the first one.

SPEAKER_01 58:55

You end up placing up fourth at the cheese head going through uh the rest of the season. Well, you don't lose a match. There's oh yeah, 6-1 match against Ethan Immel. What's the experience like wrestling Ethan Immel? Because that dude just seems like a dog on the mat.

SPEAKER_04 59:13

Yeah, he's really tough. He's he's really tough. He's really strong too. Um, like he's one of the stronger wrestlers I've I've ever wrestled. And like, um for the most part, like there's very few matches, very few guys that I can think of where it was like I was wrestling them and I felt overpowered. Um, and like I wouldn't say like I felt overpowered by Ethan at all, but like there's also like few matches where like I feel like I'm like equal strength to a guy or like even less. Like I feel like I'm stronger than the person I wrestled just physically, um, a lot of the times. Um which I think plays into kind of like the style that I wrestle, and like the style that I wrestle, I feel like isn't isn't necessarily a bad matchup against Ethel, Ethan, but it's definitely a tougher one. Um he's really strong, and like he kind of has like a I don't want to say goofy, but like a different stance, like a little bit different of a style. Um so like that match was pretty tough, and I'm if I don't remember wrong, I think I was really trying to get better at top, and I think I wrote him out for a period and I didn't get any turns or anything. So there was like a two-minute period where it was like I wasn't scoring or anything. Um I I think if I remember remember correctly, that's uh that was part of it. Um so I think maybe the second or third period, like I just wrote him out, and so like there was no points for a whole period. Um, and then I think I I started cutting him a little more, or I think I cut him in the third because it was like it was it was a pretty close match, and I didn't I didn't want it to be too close at the end. Yep. Um but yeah, he's a really tough wrestler. He's pretty uh he's really strong, and like he's got a he's got a different style. Uh his stance is a little bit different. Um but yeah.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:57

Steve, you got anything before I jump into the postseason? No, you're good. Keep keep rocking. Yeah, Kellen, anything else for you on your regular season before we hop into state here?

SPEAKER_04 1:01:09

Sophomore year? I got whooped by Thomas Beretti in the third place match, and that that helped with my top a lot after that match. Um, because he beat me pretty bad. Um, I don't remember exactly the score, but he turned me a couple times. Nine to two. And what? Nine to two. Yeah, nine to two. Like he beat me pretty bad. Um, which that match I was really disappointed in, like my performance. Um but yeah, nine to two. He turned me a couple times, and just like the aggressiveness that he wrestled with on top, I think like helped me mentally um like figure out top a little bit more. Um because I feel like I treated top and bottom as more like an exha auxiliary, uh, like not really important to my wrestling. And like on my feet, it's like I'm going to score, whereas like top bottom, it's like, oh, like I have to do this because it's folk style. And I think after that match, it really helped me kind of like rethink top. And it's like this is a position where like I have to go score, and like I had to change my mentality with it, um, which I think showed later in the season. Um, but yeah, that match really helped me with my top wrestling, even though I got got it handed to me pretty bad.

SPEAKER_01 1:02:21

So the first question, and it definitely did show later in the season. The first question I have on state, we'll just knock this out of the way now. Does the nerve do the nerves ever go away for the March of Champions, even once it's been there, done that, or do you still get a little bit of the that excitement?

SPEAKER_04 1:02:38

The excitement's definitely the excitement was definitely still there. Like that the March of Champions is like one of the most exciting nights um possible, I feel like in wrestling. Uh, at least so far in my career. Um, like the excitement didn't change at all four years. I think it was just the outlook on the excitement. Like freshman year, I took it as like more daunting and more of it was definitely more daunting and just challenging to kind of face that. Whereas like sophomore year, it's like I'd been there, so it was like I knew how to kind of react to it a little bit more, and I felt uh just just more ready for the situation. But the excitements were definitely, definitely high.

SPEAKER_02 1:03:15

A little bit of difference. I mean, being 120 and then 132, you got a little bit more time to kind of take it in if we have to get on that go time. Yep.

SPEAKER_01 1:03:26

So you wrestle Lucas Peters a third time around in the finals, and unlike the Bass series from prior, where you probably got your closest run in the finals. From what I remember for this one, and I by the way, I gotta give credit to Lucas because I think he could have made a choice to wrestle at a different weight, and he he chose to try and take down the top dog. Uh, coming from your perspective, it just seemed like you just really opened up your offense in that match. Like you've always been a good offensive wrestler, but the way you wrestled in that match, like you were just like unstoppable. What do you what do you feel changed from your freshman state final to sophomore state final that that allowed you to do that?

SPEAKER_04 1:04:10

Um I think it was just kind of the confidence, um, and just kind of figuring out the balance between like cockiness, humbleness, and like confidence, and kind of figuring out that the whole dynamic with that. Um I think I started getting a better balance of like what is confidence compared to like being cocky. Um and so like I feel like I I got a lot more confident and just like also my dad would probably say like I got meaner on the mat, which was something that I had to got I had to get a lot better uh with growing up. Um and just like still to this day, he'll tell me to be more mean when I'm wrestling. Um so I think just like getting more comfortable with like imposing my will on guys and like um kind of like uh I wouldn't say yeah, just getting meaner on the mat a little bit and just kind of like more confident in the situation.

SPEAKER_01 1:05:02

Yeah, yeah. That was that.

SPEAKER_02 1:05:04

I was gonna say, what what year did you uh shave your head? Because maybe it was that the year you were going for being more mean?

SPEAKER_04 1:05:14

Sorry, what'd you say? You cut out a little bit.

SPEAKER_02 1:05:17

Oh, yeah, sorry, you did too. I said uh your dad wanted you to become more mean. Was that the year you shaved your head? What what year was that? Yeah, that year I shaved my head. Yeah. Yeah, there you go.

SPEAKER_04 1:05:29

Well, actually, freshman year is the only year that I had like normal long hair for. Um, and I'd say sophomore year was probably my worst-looking haircut. I think I shaved it way too short. But yeah, that was the year I shaved my head. And uh yeah, I think short hair is just like uh, you know, you're just more ready, less to think about. And like I don't think hair like matters too much um necessarily, like whatever you feel comfortable with. But yeah, I I don't know, the buzz cut just kind. Like it's serious. Ready for business.

SPEAKER_02 1:06:02

And uh give some whisker rubs too. If you get a guy down, you just start cranking the head on him a little bit. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 1:06:08

Exactly.

SPEAKER_01 1:06:11

So between a sophomore and a junior year, I gotta go back to that tab. Anything you want to talk about on your off-season between sophomore and junior year? I guess first and foremost, how was it wrestling a full offseason?

SPEAKER_04 1:06:25

It was great. I was I was really excited to wrestle. Um was that the year I took I took like seventh, right? Or like sixth or something.

SPEAKER_01 1:06:36

Oh, did I ask for the grappler page? I'll I'll find it real quick if you want to keep going. Keep talking.

SPEAKER_04 1:06:43

Yeah, so I think that might have been the year that I did, I think I might have took second at U17. Uh lost to Nate Askew in the finals, the best of three. And that's one of the very few matches where I wrestled a guy that was stronger than me, like physically just stronger than me. And uh I really struggled in that match because before that, again, like there's not many matches that I even felt like I was close to the same strength as the other guy or like equal in just physical strength. Um, and so like my style kind of like relied on me being stronger than the guy uh for most of my like earlier career, and so that match really kind of like helped me put it in perspective that it's like you need to be good at wrestling, you can't just be strong. Um, not saying that I wasn't good, like obviously, like I had skill, but it was like a lot of the skills revolved around me being stronger. Um, and so like in that match, like I really struggled just because of how strong he was. Um but I did really good at U 17 world team trial, uh yeah, world team trials. And then Fargo, I I was really disappointed in how I wrestled. I feel like I just uh didn't perform all too well. I lost a match against Carter Freeman, I think, that year that I just don't think I should have lost. I think I I just underperformed in that one. And then I had a match with Sam Herring, um, which he beat me really bad. I think he text me in that match. Um just again, like I feel like I just wrestled poorly in that match and uh just didn't wrestle as well as I could have at that far go. Um and um yeah, just kind of like just disappointed really in my performance through the most of it. Um and that match against Sam, I still haven't been able to get back, which is which that really moves me because a lot of the almost almost every match I lost in high school, I've been able to like avenge uh that loss. Like Logan Swenson, my first one, I wrestled him at junior duels and I was able to tack him, uh, which was really cool. And then uh Thomas Veretti, I haven't been able to wrestle either since losing to him. Um, but like I've had opportunities to wrestle him, but I've just done better in the tournament and like he lost on the other side or something. Um, but yeah, same hearing, I've had many tournaments with him, and like I haven't been able to wrestle him again, which um he's a great guy. Like I've talked to him and like he's really cool. Uh, but I I want to get that one back.

SPEAKER_01 1:09:05

What is the what so being someone that's been stronger than 99.9% of your opponents, how humbling was that when it first hit you that the dude was stronger than you? And do you remember the moment where it hit you? Like, did he get his hands on you? Was it one of you shooting or what?

SPEAKER_04 1:09:24

It was like just like in the hand fight, like it was like he was not reacting to like what I was trying to do. Like, he he like wouldn't move when like normally like another guy would move. And uh like any position where like I felt like I might be able to like overpower him, like I just couldn't. Um and like in the match, it didn't like there wasn't really like a oh crap moment where it was like this dude is really strong. It was more like I was in the moment, so like I was just wrestling, I was going and trying to score and uh just try to overcome the difficulties in the match. Um, but like as soon as like the matches were over, it was like that dude was strong. Like, I don't know, I don't know what it was. Like, he was strong.

SPEAKER_01 1:10:00

Um well long term it worked out. It was like, oh, something like has to change somewhere, right?

SPEAKER_04 1:10:05

Yeah, exactly. So I mean the loss you learn a lot more from losses than you do from uh from wins.

SPEAKER_01 1:10:11

Is is this also the offseason uh of the the junior duel title?

SPEAKER_04 1:10:20

No, I think that's the next year.

SPEAKER_01 1:10:21

The next year, all right. Well, stay tuned, folks. We'll be talking about it. Stay tuned.

SPEAKER_04 1:10:25

Yeah, I think it's the next year. Or wait. Is Aiden two years or three years older than me?

SPEAKER_02 1:10:33

Oh, that's a great question. I said you're Aiden Sinclair?

SPEAKER_04 1:10:38

Yeah, did he graduate? My two years, yeah, he's two years older than you. Yeah, so going into my junior year, he was already graduated.

SPEAKER_01 1:10:46

Yes, he would have just graduated. Yeah, he just graduated. It would have been his last year. It was the year Charlie Millard assembled the Avengers, I think.

SPEAKER_04 1:10:56

Yeah, then that yeah, that was the uh that was that was the year we won the junior duel style. Yes. So dude, how's that experience? That experience was amazing, honestly. Uh that last duel was probably like this is probably one of my like favorite wrestling memories uh of my career at the moment. Um I mean it was just electric the whole entire time. Like everybody was like into the duels. Like, there's nothing worse than when you're wrestling in a duel and it's just like everybody's just down in the dumps, like nobody's energetic, nobody's cheering, nobody's doing anything. Um and like, but like every duel, like everybody was in it, like everybody was in every match. There wasn't a match where like everybody was super quiet. I mean, obviously there's quieter matches and more energetic matches just by like the energy of the match, but um, like every duel, like everybody was into it, like everybody was involved. Um, so just kind of like the whole lead up to the to the final duel was amazing, and then like just having the opportunity to be the last match in that duel was I mean, it was incredible. Um and like uh it'd be wrong to say that like I won the duel. Like, there were many matches leading up to it where other kids on the team had much harder opponents. Um, and I mean this with like no no disrespect to the guy I wrestled, but a lot of the guys on our team, if they would have been matched up with an opponent like that, would have performed exactly the same way. Um, but like I was just fortunate enough to be the last match and to like have that opportunity to go out there and get the pin to be able to win the duel for everybody. And like that that was a very euphoric moment as well. Like just being able to kind of like know, like going into it, it's like I have to go get this pin. And it's it's kind of crazy too, because like I'm walking up to the steps to go up onto the mat and check in, and Ben's there to give me like a high five, and he's like, he's like, You gotta like you go get that cow catcher, or like go get that honey badger. And I was like, All right, like I'm gonna go do it. So like I slap his hand really hard, I walk up the steps, and I go out there, check in, and I hit a head pinch on him. I'm in front head and I'm like, it's right there. Like I got the honey badger. And it's like I stink that arm, and like as soon as I as soon as I sunk it, I knew I had it, and like I knew I'd just be patient with it. He'll go over and just kind of ran him to his back, and like as soon as as soon as he went over, like it was. I mean, I I've gotten pretty good uh like within that like front head honey badger position. Um I wouldn't call it dirty, but it maybe a little bit, like you can kind of choke the guy pretty well there, um, which will kind of like help get him over, uh, convince him a little bit. But as yeah, as soon as I got like the chin hands tight, and I got I got this hand on his back and I had it locked up. Like I knew I knew I was gonna get the pin at that moment. So like right when I got that locked up, I was like, we won the duel. And so I got all I gotta do is put him to his back, hold him there. Rough called the pin, and just jump up in another just like burst of emotion, and just it was it was really cool. That's cool.

SPEAKER_01 1:13:51

Oh, that video of that pin still, yeah, gives me goosebumps. And and on that note, I mean, I know uh you know, talking about like love you giving credit to your teammates, like they could have done the same thing there. You're still wrestling a guy on a national duel team, and his job is to not get pinned. So like that's still not an easy job to do, and for you to do like it was it was very it was like a vintage Kellen Woolbert thing. Like you've kind of built up this legend as being clutch, and that's exactly what it was. So that was awesome. Junior year Kellen, it really seemed like your results definitely jump off the page a little more just in terms of dominance. You know, there's a couple matches we got to talk about, of course. Uh what do you what do you feel uh helped you jump levels from your sophomore to junior year, or was it just the fact that you were able to wrestle that entire offseason?

SPEAKER_04 1:14:50

I think definitely uh wrestling the entire offseason helped. Um but again, I like I'd say it's just like another jump in confidence. Um I'd say that's a big thing through my career was just like uh kind of like that fight with like confidence and um being sure in myself. Um and so like again, like I'd say it's just another jump in confidence and another another jump in like being okay with being mean while I'm wrestling. Um and like I don't know why, but like sometimes I feel like I'd I'd hold back a little bit in a match or something. Um not like the close ones or anything, because I feel like that's why growing up I really liked the close matches was it was because like those close matches, I could let it go like 100%. Like I didn't feel bad about going hard or like wrestling my heart out because it was like this guy is just as good, if not better, than me. And in order to win, I have to do that. And like sometimes I I would uh not necessarily feel bad, but like it was hard to bring myself to go as hard as I could when I knew I needed I didn't need to do that to win. Um like I almost felt like it was like kind of like over the top, like overkill almost sometimes. Um and like I feel like again, like junior year like was another jump in like being okay, like they're stepping on the line and they're they like know the consequences of stepping on the line uh to wrestle someone. Like that's just part of the rules and part of the sport. Um, so like I think just another jump in confidence and another jump in just being okay with like imposing my will on guys. And I'd say that year, like um that year and like definitely recently, like definitely I've enjoyed like imposing my will and like that feeling of like breaking a guy uh has like kind of like I've enjoyed a lot more recently. Um, which I don't know if that's necessarily like a bad thing or not, but like when you're on the mat, not a bad thing. Yeah, not a bad thing. Yeah, exactly. So definitely just kind of like being more comfortable with being mean and imposing my will on guys.

SPEAKER_01 1:16:51

Oh, your junior year, like yeah, like I kind of already uh mentioned that. Pretty dominant throughout, only one loss, and again, another story of your career. You lose to Davis Perro 12 to 11 at the Christmas tournament. You come back, beat him at the cheese head. I know it was a loss, but how fun was that paro match? Because 12 to 11 Christmas tournament finals. As speaking from a neutral objective, like that was a pretty fun match to watch. Obviously, I was rooting for you. It was some great wrestling.

SPEAKER_04 1:17:27

No, for sure. It was it was definitely a fun match, and again, like another one where it's just like you kind of go out there and just let it fly. Um, and I'd say like I got a little tired in that match, like uh I kind of lost my legs under me, and like just towards the end of the match kind of faded a little bit, which is very unusual to me and like my style, I feel like. Um, but like there was one big moment where like he kind of got me in like a feet-to-back situation, and then I just wasn't able to kind of claw my way out of it. Um, and like that match I think helped me a lot with uh actually, I I don't even know if I could say this because it still happens, but there's matches where like I'll just kind of like get lost in the chaos of a match, and it's like I'm just letting guys score on me way too easily, but then I'm also scoring, and then it's just like this back and forth of like take down, takedown, takedown. Um, and then like I'm ended up losing by like one point or something, or just a handful of points, and it's like that match I was gonna say helped me with like just being more disciplined in matches, but like it still happens. Like I've lost a few matches um this upcoming sum, like the next summer that we're probably gonna talk about. Um, and then also this this past summer I lost a match like that. So I was gonna say it helped me with that, but like it really hasn't yet.

SPEAKER_02 1:18:34

So still it's still part of the journey.

SPEAKER_01 1:18:37

Yeah, I think the process of getting better, you know, most of the times it requires more than more than one learning moment. So uh you're sitting in a pretty good spot, Mr. Woolbert. I will I will I will I think four-time regional qualifier. Uh at the G said you have Justice Jessaroga figured out at this point. You wrestle them twice this time, brings your career total to four. You tech him both times, and who else but Davis Parrow in the finals? I were you thinking about this rematch before the tournament, or was it something that you blocked out until that match came to fruition?

SPEAKER_04 1:19:20

No, I was I was definitely thinking about that one. I was 100% thinking about it a lot. Um, I mean, I remember I lost the match in the Christmas tournament, and like where are we saying the hotel is connected to where we wrestle? I went from the mat to my hotel room. I didn't like like I was walking in my singlet from the mat to the hotel room. I had my clothes like from my coach handing them to me, and like I went into my room and just like replayed that match in my head multiple times. And it's just like again, just like another like dumbest thing. Like, I wouldn't say, I mean, like I got out-wrestled, but I wouldn't say like I got out-wrestled completely in that match. Like, there's there was one moment in the match um where I gave up a big move, and it was like outside of that one moment, I dominated the entire match, and it was just like I mean, I'd say looking back on it, I beat myself up way too much than what I should have um about the match, but uh definitely lit a fire in me for cheese head because like I knew it was gonna be there. Um, and I was like, I I have to wrestle him at Cheesehead. Um, so leading up to the tournament was definitely like I need to go get that match back. Um, but like I've talked to Davis like in between tournaments and stuff, and like at tournaments, and like he's a great guy as well, and like I'm grateful for him. Like he's helped me improve a ton. Um, but yeah, like I I need to go get that match back.

SPEAKER_01 1:20:32

And I we did talk about it a little bit after that match too. But yeah, it's just kind of like you brought up on the show. I think you wrestled a little more control to where it's not like you were wrestling defensive, but you were making sure he couldn't land the big one on you that time. So I think there's there's that learning moment for you, like good learning moment where you you got a lead, you built it, and you you know, you played you didn't need to be a hundred percent on the attack there, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 1:21:03

So yeah, it was like I vividly remember that match. Like uh, I don't know, like like I said, like I enjoyed the match. Like that I the match that I lost against him in the moment I enjoyed that match way more than I did the one I won. Obviously, like afterwards it was like I won, so I'm happier. But like I remember like uh because he's a he's a really good counter offense wrestler, like his defense and his counteroffense is really good. Um and like that's kind of where he exposed me um in our first match. But like so, in that second match, I knew like once I got once I got that takedown and once I got the lead, like I I didn't want to press it just because it was like I knew where he was dangerous. Um, but like I remember thinking like we aren't doing anything in this match. Like, I like vividly remember like I'm in the middle of the match and I'm like this match is boring. And like I had to like talk myself out of like trying to go get him. Um and like I remember like having conversations with myself like in the match, like there just wasn't a lot happening. Um and I did not really enjoy wrestling that match, but like afterwards it was nice to get the win back, but like I just knew it was like you gotta follow the game plan. Like I know he won't he won't shoot much, so like if I can just defend and like I mean, I'm pretty sure I took even when I was losing, like in the third period, I was winning the entire time, and I'd I'd be confident to say that I took more shots than he did um in the in the period, but just kind of like there were more half shots, granted, like I they weren't super committed, um, if I'm remembering correctly, but it was just like no need to overstep myself or anything. Um, but yeah, it was it wasn't the most fun match I've ever wrestled.

SPEAKER_01 1:22:43

Yeah, had to show some restraint. Yeah, but also he's a good counter. What's up, Steve?

SPEAKER_02 1:22:49

At the Chiefs head, did they start with Kellen? Because that was the first year you and I did the finals together.

SPEAKER_01 1:22:54

Uh I'm trying to think what when did I I almost ended with Kellen, I thought, because didn't they remember they closed out with Heiser that year?

SPEAKER_02 1:23:02

Oh, maybe they did. You're right. I just remember, Kellen, you coming over and rather very happily and aggressively getting the Jolly Rancher from us, which brought a huge smile to my face. I was very uh we're like, Kellen Wolver just talked about it.

SPEAKER_04 1:23:14

I'm messing around with Jolly Ranchers.

SPEAKER_02 1:23:16

That's right. Oh, you could we would have gave you a whole bunch of important one more question about this one. T I I don't know if this is a misprint or not, but Kellen, did you have so you had a pin over Connor Flanagan of St. Thomas Academy at the cheese head? Two minutes and four seconds. Did you have a four-second pin in a period? Which match was this? It's uh Connor Flanagan, St. Thomas Academy. It says a fall in two minutes and four seconds. So that means you had a pin in four seconds. I don't think I don't remember it. Maybe you know, it could be a you know misprinting. Yeah, that's impressive.

SPEAKER_04 1:23:55

Yeah, yeah. I don't know. Maybe if I had a guess, I probably either hit like a honey badger or like an assassin or something, but I don't even remember that one.

SPEAKER_01 1:24:03

I want to guess that it didn't happen because you would definitely remember a four-second pin.

SPEAKER_02 1:24:07

Yeah, I think you'd remember that.

SPEAKER_01 1:24:08

I'd remember a four-second pin. Oh, I might need to go back and try to try to watch the film on that one. Well, again, after uh the the paro saga for those for those few weeks, pretty pretty uneventful, which you know you'll take. Pretty dominant for you throughout the the rest of the season. And I think, oh yeah, you guys made uh team sectionals this year, didn't you?

SPEAKER_04 1:24:36

Yeah, yeah, we did.

SPEAKER_01 1:24:37

Yeah, because regionals, you guys wrestled Germantown. And how cool is that, Kellen? Growing up through the through the Ocon program, and O'Connell Walks and Steve and I have started covering like just what they've done to grow their program. How cool is that being a part of and seeing like a program just gradually get better over the years?

SPEAKER_04 1:24:58

Uh it's it's awesome seeing that really. Like uh, and like I know I played a factor into it, but I wouldn't want to say that like I played a really big factor. Like the coaches there are really doing a really good job and they're setting up a really good system. Um, and I think the sport's just kind of growing in the area, which is really cool. Um, but it was really cool to see like each year, like I got more and more invested in the team aspect of it, like caring more about making it to team sectionals than like I did about me making to sectionals, and that might also be because like I was pretty secure and like knew that I would make it um for the most part. Um, but like each year, like I grew more and more involved and like more like I remember freshman year, like I don't really care too much about the team score going into like regionals and stuff and um all that, but like once I hit junior and senior year, like I cared more about making it to team sectionals and like trying to get like a team state run um than I did uh about like individual.

SPEAKER_01 1:25:56

It's a good time, man. It's uh once you I I always say like some of the sometimes it feels like your teammates' wins like feel better than some of your individual wins in some spots. Exactly, exactly. Oh, that was awesome. You guys made team sectionals, and then at state, you get two pins, a tech fall, and then lo and behold, you are wrestling another Luke in the finals. Or you have Luke Kamish, and I'll speak on this, Kellen, because I know you are not an excuse guy by any means, uh, and I'm not making an excuse for you. Uh I heard through the grapevine that you might have been a little under the weather, which may check out because don't get me wrong, I've watched Luke Kamish wrestle a lot. I have a lot of respect for him as a wrestler. I thought that'd be more than a four to two match in your favor. But if you were under the weather, if that was true, that would check out. And man, Kamish had to have been the worst matchup for that because that guy is a grinder, and that's not someone I'd want to wrestle in general, let alone like sick. So you can talk about state however you want. Yeah, however you want to run through that one.

SPEAKER_04 1:27:06

Yeah, I mean, I don't really want to talk about it too much, but yeah, I was leading up to it, like I it wasn't too bad. Uh like the first and second day, like it wasn't terrible, but I definitely like kind of like noticed that I was getting a little sick, like heading into my match with uh um Tristan North uh in the semis. Um and I just remember like I I was walking out to the mat and like I felt a little sick, but like nothing too terrible. But and like I knew I could kind of push through it. Um so I go out there and I wrestled really hard, and like going into the I think I went into the second period, maybe even the third, but um like going into like the next period, like breathing was like it like was stinging to breathe a little bit and like it was just really uncomfortable to wrestle, um like outside of wrestling already being a tough sport. Um, but again, like I didn't think anything of it, and I don't think it affected the way I wrestled too much. And then the next day, like I'm trying to go to bed and like Like I luckily I wasn't cutting any weights like I didn't have to go run or anything. Um like my weight was good. Um but like I could barely I slept really poorly that night. Um like I would I would woke up like intermittently a little bit, which isn't too unusual for like tournaments for me. Like uh I'd say like I'm a pretty restless sleeper when it comes to tournament time, but that night was a little bit worse than usual. Um and then just like a lot of coughing, and I woke up weighed in, and like you can ask a lot of the people that I know and like that people know me. Like I eat a lot and like I love to eat. Um recently I've been kind of pulling back on it. I've been getting it under control. Um, but like I eat a lot, and like that that day after weigh-ins, I think I had like half a peanut butter honey sandwich and like half a Jersey Mike's tub. And like we don't we weigh in in the morning, we don't no spigetti this year. No spaghetti. No, um, and so like we weigh in in the morning, we don't wrestle until night. So like we have the whole day, and like I barely ate anything, and uh, which was pretty unusual. And like I think I had a little bit of a fever, but again, like I don't think it was that bad of a sickness. Um, I should have been able to wrestle through it, but we started wrestling, and like heading into the match, I'm like, I'm just gonna get a takedown and then like see what happens. And like if he forces some stuff to happen, like obviously like I'll react to it. But like I'm pretty sure I got a takedown like the first like 15 seconds of the match, and then it's exactly what happened. Is I got the first takedown and then like nothing happened. And um looking back at it, like I'm disappointed a little bit in the way I wrestled because that year especially was like a year that like I really wanted to make a statement that I that I jumped levels and like I'm continuing to grow and get better and um just kind of like prove like I'm I'm better than everybody else by like a large standard. And that match really kind of put like a not like a shadow over the season, but like it definitely kind of like it didn't leave the statement that I wanted to leave uh that year, which was a little disappointing. Um, but to like what you said, like Luke Camish is he's a dog, like he wrestles really hard. Um, and like you're saying, like that's definitely not a guy that I'd want to wrestle like sick or anything. Um but yeah, I mean I was a little sick, but again, like I should have been able to wrestle through it and just a little disappointed in kind of like the stamp I left on it.

SPEAKER_01 1:30:17

But I think in terms of in terms of you know making a statement or that outside perspective from from my lens, I've I've watched a lot of state finals, a lot of state tournament matches. Like I didn't view that match, that was like before knowing you were under the weather. I didn't view that match as much of an indictment on you as much as I like as much as it was like, oh, is Camus just capturing lightning in a bottle right now? Like, like that's what happened. So yeah, it you're right. Like if people just look at the box score, maybe they think that, but uh, you know, we've got to see over the course of the year too. And yeah, you you definitely made a statement with your body of work that entire season. Yeah, I get what you're saying. Like, you do it on the biggest, you want to do it on the biggest stage in front of the most people and all that.

SPEAKER_02 1:31:07

Uh yeah.

SPEAKER_01 1:31:09

Hey, the big thing is you made it through, and now you're here talking to us because you won that last time. There you go. Yeah, yep, exactly.

SPEAKER_02 1:31:17

Tegan, as you go into the offseason, how happy was Ben Lauer to not have to wrestle you anymore? I look in the last three weeks of the season, and he's like, can can Kellen Wilbert just go away? And Ben Lauer's a good wrestler, right? He's a nice kid. Oh yeah. Oh, three times and like uh three times like three times in the last two weeks. That's how many times I wrestled him? Yeah, yeah. He wrestled a conference final regional.

SPEAKER_04 1:31:45

Yeah, because we had yeah, we had like conference regionals sectionals, maybe or something like that.

SPEAKER_02 1:31:49

Yeah, and then I don't know if he called, did he purposefully lose that state that one round so we didn't have to wrestle you? I'm just kidding. I don't know. Just joking.

SPEAKER_03 1:31:59

No.

SPEAKER_01 1:32:00

All right, junior to senior year. Man, I mean, this is uh I feel like this is kind of a big one in a sense, like I don't know what like in a sense, but I know Ben had his hell scare, and like that's uh like you two are pretty close. Like, how were how do you handle that?

SPEAKER_04 1:32:23

Um I was pretty lucky, like uh at the time I was out in Oklahoma for a while, uh training with like Oklahoma State and stuff. Um, I was really fortunate to be able to do that, but it's like I was kind of away, and that I didn't really grasp the whole like picture, like how bad it really was. Yeah. Like the entire time I didn't think it was as bad as it was. So like the entire time I was away, it was like I mean, one, I was busy with like the root training and wrestling that I was doing, and uh but then like I just like I heard that he was sick was kind of like the main thing was that he he was just pretty sick, and so like I didn't realize like how bad it was. And looking back, like I don't I don't feel guilty about it, but like I feel a little bad that like I wasn't as worried about it as I was like for the situation, and again, like I didn't know exactly how bad it was. Like I didn't realize that he was in a coma and that like he was that close to dying and like actually dying four times. Um but like yeah, I I was just I feel like I was kind of fortunate to not know the whole picture and to be away for the major like kind of like the initial part of it. Um but then like when I came back and like I found out like how bad it really was and like how close he was um to dying, it it hit pretty hard. And um it was just it was weird. Like I've never I've I haven't had anyone that I'm really close with uh like die around me. Like I haven't had a lot of death um in like my life, which I'm really fortunate for. Um and so like having been so close to that was just it was different, and like it's really hard to explain. And like he's been a really big part of my life for 13 years going on 14. Um like he's been I have a picture of him coaching me when I was three feet tall, if not less. Like I've been wrestling under him for a really long time, and um it was really hard, but yeah, it was just just a weird feeling. Like, I haven't had a lot of like super close people, super people a lot of people that I'm close with like die um throughout my lifetime. So it was like eye-opening a little bit, like just kind of like makes you rethink about the time that you've had with them, and like if I was really um utilizing it to the best of my abilities, and like not even like not the wrestling aspect of it, but like the other aspect of it. Like, I feel a little weird saying like friend, because like he is an adult, but like he is like a really good friend of mine, and like I I really like like he's really important to me, and it was just very weird and um it was hard. Um but yeah, I just tried to kind of like I just try to think positive about the whole situation and just kind of like keep wrestling. Like I knew like he wouldn't want me, um he wouldn't want that affecting anything that I was doing, so I just tried to stay positive and like I just told myself like he'd be okay and I just went and wrestled as hard as I could.

SPEAKER_01 1:35:25

I think your answer there it it very much sums up how someone feels like when someone is close to passing away or does pass away, but like yeah, 17-year-old kid and that happens, and like you like it's a lot to think about and a lot to process. Yeah, that that's not easy. Like, I almost man, you made me think about like I had I had like a close loss in my life, and like I was like, that's like your answer was very relatable to that. So yeah, you guys are sorry I like threw a heavy question on you, but yeah, I mean no, it's awkward. Thank you for like sharing your thoughts and your feelings because that was very eloquent.

SPEAKER_00 1:36:04

Of course, eloquent, yeah, eloquent.

SPEAKER_04 1:36:08

I'm glad I was able to kind of like express it in a in a in a good way, and like that I could make sense while kind of talking to it because it is like a really confusing time. Um, and just yeah, the big thing was definitely just kind of like rethinking like how I was utilizing the time with him, um, really, just because like I feel like in a lot of moments I was taking it for granted like before that. Um and like I'd be wrong to say that I don't always that I don't take things for granted at the moment either, but like I feel like I've been trying to do a better job of not taking things for granted and um thinking of less of like uh or not less of like a coach, but like more of as a coach, but then also like the other aspect of things and like the the kind of like other dynamic of our relationship outside of just wrestling.

SPEAKER_02 1:36:56

Sure. Reminds us to appreciate the people that are around us too. Exactly. When we're with them, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 1:37:05

Well, I think go going off of that too, I think one lasting image I'll have of you was the the Fargo finals that year. And you coming on the entrance and you have the Askren Strong shirt, and you know I don't know if like you know what happened was like something that galvanized you and that performance or whatnot. And like dude, even though it ended up in a loss, like that was one of my all-time favorite matches. Like you and the Rainy Dude let it fly. And I and I was thinking when you like it, I'm like, man, this is like a match. Like I know Ben just loved. Like it was yeah, it was awesome. So I guess with that being said, it take us through that Fargo match, man. Like where your head was at and going into the match, and then just through the match in general.

SPEAKER_04 1:37:54

Yeah. Um, I mean, I was I've been in a Fargo final before. Um, obviously, like that eighth grade year leading into my freshman year, but like um, I really wanted to get it done in like the junior division. Um, because like not to like hate on the cadet division or anything, but obviously like it's not as tough. Like you guys are younger, it's earlier in the earlier in life earlier in your life, so like it's not as um I don't want to say not as important, but like it's not as impressive, I guess, in my eyes. Um, but I was really nervous leading up to it. And I so the lady who was like running the curtain, like before guys would run down the steps, was super strict on like no headphones, no shirts, no, no nothing. Like you couldn't have anything on. And like I really wanted to wear the Astrican strong shirt going down. And so like I walked up to her and I was like, and this is something that like I'm not good at, like, I'm not good at like going out of my way to do what like I want opposed to like the rules or like what other people want necessarily. Um, so like I walked up to her and I was like, hey, like, do you know what's going on with Ben? And like I don't think she met this in like a dis disrespectful way or anything, or like uh I think she was just like caught up in the moment. Like there was a kid, like the weight class before me, like this kid was like pretty disrespectful, and he was like, I'm not taking my sweatshirt off. And she's like, Then you're not going down there. And he's like, No, I'm not taking my sweatshirt off. Like, I'm going down there with this on. Like, you like you don't you can't tell me not to. So, like that before that, I think also played into it. Like, that kid was being pretty disrespectful to her. Um, like I walked up and I was like, Hey, do you know like what's going on with Ben? Like, I really want to wear this shirt. And like, she was like, No, there's no shirts, and I was like, Okay, like I didn't ask any more about it. Um, and like I didn't want to try and fight her, like Ben like has almost died or whatever, and like I want to wear this to like support him. Um but it's like I didn't like fight it anymore, and I just walked down there with it like in my hand and whatnot. Um, but yeah, going through the match, it was just like I don't know, I was just excited to wrestle. I feel like that's one of the matches where like I feel like I was in a really good headspace, um, like not thinking too much about it, and like I did a good job of kind of like entering like flow state a little bit, um, like not getting too hyped up about the situation, but also not being too relaxed going into it. Um I actually remember I remember seeing Kobe Merrill for the first time in person. That dude is huge. Impressive his leg is the size of my body, it's insane. He is so big. Um, his bicep is like the size of my quad in hamstring. It was wild uh to see him in person. Um but like outside of that, like I felt like I was in a pretty good headspace. Um so like walking down the stairs, like I was just super excited. Uh I was just really excited. Russell had Coach John and uh Coach Meserbrick and Wade in my corner. And so uh it was a really it was a corner that I was really happy to have, um, even though like Ben wasn't able to be there. And so I was just like, I'm just gonna let it rip. And initially, I think he kind of like started early um to get the lead. And like again, it was just one of one of those moments where it's like I have nothing to lose. Like I'm here to wrestle, like I enjoy it. And it's just a battle that I'm gonna have to try and overcome, and like this is just another obstacle and another another tough match that I'm just gonna enjoy wrestling. And like it was just a great match. Uh, I felt like I uh did really good. I I feel like I I don't know why, but I feel like I get second wins in matches a lot. Um I feel like I kind of I was more tired like at the start of the match than I was at the end. Uh like I I don't know why, but it's like I feel like at some point in in matches, like I just kind of like hit a switch and like I get a second win, and now it's like I'm just I'm just on the attack and I'm ready to go. Um so again, that was another match that was like pretty back and forth, and like just a few arrows and like watching back the match, there's like the moments where like I'm giving up points. It's like I'd like do this, do this. Like I'm thinking in my head, like, why did you just do this? But um again, like those matches, like I enjoy those matches so much. Like just like the fight and the struggle, like in those matches, it just it's unlike it, it's unlike any other match you can have. Um, like whether you lose by a lot or win by a lot. Um, and I feel like it's just like a true like you really see who someone is in those types of matches. Um, and I feel like I showed the type of person I am and like the character that I have in that match really well. Um, and I feel like wrestling is the easiest way for me to express myself. And the easiest way for me to express myself myself in the matches is in matches that I can't hold back in. Um and I feel like that match I really didn't hold back, and I was able to kind of wrestle the best of my performance in it. And like obviously there was those little mistakes. And um one moment where I got put on my back and like I couldn't do anything, I was stuck there and got lucky going out of bounds, but gave up like an extra two because of it. So I mean, just all those things, but watching the match, like I can watch that and be like, I I showed who I am really and kind of like the heart that I have um and the fight that's in me that I'm I'm willing to give for the sport. And I could be happy about the match, even though like after the match, like again, like I walked off the mat, went back into the tunnel, and sat there, like head in my hands, like just thinking about what I could have done differently to get the win. Um, but yeah, it's I I'm really happy with how the match went.

SPEAKER_01 1:43:07

That was one of those matches too where like you can watch the film after even like try to prep for it before, but with uh I forget which rainy it was, but either one of them you could say this about, but like he's like one of those dudes where like you step on the mat and you throw that all out because like you guys were just all over the place. Like, I think it's just uh like it's like a true chess match because it's just pure like someone does something and there's a reaction, and like it was uh yeah, it was fun. That was weird. I'm a big folk style fan, but man, I think that might be like my favorite freestyle match that I've watched.

SPEAKER_04 1:43:44

No, exactly. That match was all over the place. Like, there's there was not like if you would have asked me how that match would have gone, I would have never said that. But um, yeah, it was it was awesome.

SPEAKER_01 1:43:53

I I'm really happy with the way it went, but obviously I would have liked to win, but hey, maybe uh maybe you get another shot, maybe you get your redemption on the the folk style scene. Oh yeah coming up. Hopefully in college. Anything else from the offseason before we jump into your senior year?

SPEAKER_04 1:44:12

No, I don't I can't think of anything else.

SPEAKER_01 1:44:15

I got you. Yeah, that was uh that's kind of a hard one to top. That that that moment right there. But uh Yeah, your senior year. Of course, we gotta talk about you get another win over Perl. I mean, looking at the box score was four to one, just real quick, was that kind of the the same match as how Cheesehead went?

SPEAKER_04 1:44:36

Or yeah, it was similar. Um I feel like I got the takedown a little bit later in the period, so I was able to ride him out. Um like for for that uh for that match, so like he so just the one-point difference to make it like a little bit bigger of a gap. But um yeah, it was a similar match to cheese head. Like there was just wasn't much to it. Uh, I knew he wasn't gonna shoot much. Um so just had to pick my spots really.

SPEAKER_01 1:45:05

And then going to the cheese head. By the way, a lot of a lot of big wins this year as well. I mean, you you tech fall auberg. There's a couple more names in here that I'm doing a lot of scrolling right now. Once again, you wrestle Justice Jessaroka. He he keeps a little closer this time. 4-0. You're 5-0 against him in your career, by the way. That's wild. What are the odds you wrestle someone at a turn? Like a lot of things have to happen for that to go down like that. Uh I think this was the closest match with him. So either he figured something out or you got the takedown and you were fine with uh not letting caution fly to the wind. But the match that I really want to talk off the cheese at is Hunter Stevens. When I think about you sending a message, and I think like the biggest match from your senior year, obviously winning the four state titles pretty sick, but a lot of hype for you versus Stevens because Hunter took a year off, he came back, and it seemed like he had jumped, and well, he did. It didn't seem like he did jump multiple levels, like he was dominating like this seemed like it was gonna be a really good gauge match to see where Hunter was at. That did you hear any of the outside hype coming, or maybe it was just my hype, I don't know. But that was a lot were you thinking about that match coming in where it's like, oh, this is a really good chance to show like where I'm at in the state of Wisconsin. But yeah, take us through a pre-match and just that match in general, because you yeah, that was one of those matches, like you said, you looked like you were in a flow state, and you're just in attack mode.

SPEAKER_04 1:46:43

Yeah, no, for sure. Um, that match I think that's definitely one of my best like performances in a match. I think um like there's not a lot of matches that I can look at and be like, I wrestled a better match than that. Um, and like I have a ton of respect for Hunter, and I I love the way he wrestles, he wrestles super aggressive, he pushes the pace a lot, and I feel like it's just kind of a bad matchup against me because I feel like that's how I wrestle, and that's the matches that I do the best in. Um and so really I just feel like uh that kind of just played against him where you as it normally does, it plays for him. Um but yeah, just going to the match, I definitely like heard the hype, and I feel like uh I had a little chip on my shoulder um at the uh heading into this match because I feel like it was like uh like a really anticipated match, and I feel like I kind of like there wasn't ever like somebody said anything to me or like directly, but like I I felt like I kind of I could kind of feel the energy of like like honors here to kind of like uh he wants to make a statement too, yeah. Take my spot, like yeah, yeah. He wants to be the big guy, like uh kind of like take my spot and like the best guys in the state. And um I don't know, I feel like I kind of took it a little personally and headed into that match. Like I definitely wanted to make a statement. Like it was like everybody thinks he's right there with me, and I just have to prove that he's not. Like, I'm I'm by far the best guy in the state. Um, and I feel like that was like another big jump and just kind of like the confidence thing. Um because like at this point, like I feel like I I kind of sat down and really kind of like looked at it, and like it was like it's not it's not cocky for me to tell myself that I'm the best in the state. And if somebody asks me like what my opinion on it opinion on it is, it's not cocky for me to say like I'm I'm the best in the state right now. And Coach Roper at Oklahoma State helped me a lot with this. Um, I talked to him a little bit and he was like, uh cockiness is when you have to tell other people how good you are. Confidence is confidence is when you tell yourself how good you are. Um, and so like when people like ask you, that's just you telling yourself that you're that good. And I feel like I I do my best to not go out of my way to tell other people how good I am. Um, but like I feel like that was definitely a moment where it was like I needed to show that I am the best guy in the state, and there's not anybody that can kind of get in my way for this. Um and I've wrestled Hunter a decent amount of times. Um, and again, like I have a bunch of respect for him. I like him, I've talked to him a handful of times. And he went out to the Pittsburgh Classic with me. Um, and like Cade was out there. Um, but yeah, I just kind of feel like uh at that, like leading up to that, like he'd been kind of chasing me a bit, and like I had that target on my back, and I just wanted to kind of like turn around and prove a point, really.

SPEAKER_01 1:49:24

Yeah, yeah, and prove a point you did. Steve, but I think we were kind of awestruck during that match.

SPEAKER_02 1:49:32

We were, yeah, we were we were commentating and we were building up to it, like, hey, everybody keep a track, it's on that, whatever. And but all of a sudden it was happening, I think we just stopped talking.

SPEAKER_04 1:49:41

Yeah. We're like, Yeah, it didn't even go, yeah. It didn't really go how like I thought. I mean, like in my mind, like I was going in there to tech him, like I was going in there to be dominant and win the match uh in a dominant fashion. But yeah, I just think like the way he wrestled really played to my benefit, just because like um I feel like when people wrestle. Really hard and they create a lot of action. Uh, it becomes apparent like who is a technically superior wrestler, uh, like pretty quick. Like, the more action there is, the more that gap is gonna build between the the kind of like technical uh side of wrestling. And I feel like Hunter creates a lot of action, which I respect and like I love to do myself. Um and so like I feel like it's just like it just I'm just a lot more technical than he is, and he's able to kind of like uh close that gap technically with a lot of like the really good guys with the pace and that how intense he wrestles. Um, but I wrestle just as intense and just as hard as he does. And um, I feel like it just kind of like showed the technical superiority that I had.

SPEAKER_01 1:50:42

I I know there's uh there's people that could disagree with me on this one. I I do respect Hunter because it got to the point where like he had to shoot an attack, and then like you really started pouring on the points. He maybe could have shut it down to where he didn't get tech'd, but like he he kept going for like that's that is truly Hunter's mindset. Is like he doesn't care if he gets tech'd at that point. Like, yeah, what's there losing by eight or losing by 15?

SPEAKER_02 1:51:09

Well, where I I gained respect for him too, I think afterwards, if I remember right. I'm not gonna say he gave up or more. He was just kind of like it was over, and he just kind of went, Yeah, yeah, you're good. You know, and he was totally uh totally respectful for it. You know, that's yeah, it was it was good to see where he's just like, Yep, Kellen, congratulations because uh you're good.

SPEAKER_04 1:51:30

Yeah, no, that's exactly like I respect him a ton mainly because of that. Like he has he's he wrestles hard and like he's not afraid to create action, he's not afraid to go out there and scrap with a guy, which is like that's probably the easiest way to gain my respect when you wrestle, whether you win or lose, is if you go out there and you wrestle hard. And I think he does that like some of the best in the state. Like he wrestles harder than most of the most of everybody, and uh um yeah, I respect respect him a lot for uh going on with your senior year.

SPEAKER_01 1:51:58

I mean, big win. I could see this potentially being an answer in one of Steve's speed trivia rounds later, but you guys beat Arrowhead in a duel. Well, now it's before cheese, but you get what I'm saying. You guys beat Arrowhead, which I'm sure it never is a dull time for you from Ocon. And you make team sectionals. I know the the lineup was a little thin at Team Sectionals, and it didn't pay, but like you guys definitely did have a team state worthy team. It just it seems like injuries did not, you know, just didn't play out in your favor at the end of the year. So props to you again on you know being a part of that program. Like you said, it takes a community to build it, and I'm sure you know having someone like you, and I'm proud of you for saying too, Callan, that you you grew to care about the team years beyond.

SPEAKER_04 1:52:49

Yeah. No, I I really did, and that was that was a big thing towards the end. And I mean, you can't force that mentality on everybody, but I definitely tried to kind of like push it on the other seniors and the other guys on the team, and even like the young freshmen that were pretty good, uh, trying to kind of because I know it's easy as a freshman to not really care. Uh, like you don't have any time uh like dedicated to this team necessarily. Um, so it's easy to not care too much um about the team aspect of the season. I know like my freshman year I didn't really, uh so that's kind of like the perspective I looked at it from. Um, but yeah, I definitely try to kind of like get the team to kind of care about it as much as I did. Um and we had a really good, really good year.

SPEAKER_01 1:53:32

And finishing off your last weekend of wrestling at Wisconsin in the Wisconsin high school level, of course, you have another rematch. Three of the guys that you wrestled at the state finals, by the way, in your career, you wrestled at one point earlier in the season. So yeah, exactly. I guess uh yeah, you made a statement this year. You were on a war path, pin in the quarters, pin in the semis against the Holman guy, and then a tech fall in the finals. How'd you feel like that?

SPEAKER_04 1:54:03

Technically with the Holman guy? Yeah, let's hear about my cousin uh knows him. Uh so my cousin, my older cousin Riley Clark, wrestled for Aquinas in the 30th senior year. Yep. And so Marcus Clark is my other cousin, his brother, and he wrestled for Aquinas this year also, and he made it to state. Um, and Marcus knows the Holman kid. And Marcus went to that kid's grad party, which was kind of funny. And like he sent me, like a I think he sent me a video, and there was like a photo from like our podium or whatever from this last year.

SPEAKER_01 1:54:36

I think the funny thing is like AJ he really jumped levels this year, like pumped that he made the semis, and uh I I think he knew who you were, he didn't know how good you were, so he was just like, I respected it because hey, I'm just gonna go in and like give it my best shot. And I'm like, heck yeah, brother, like that's all you can do. Exactly. And then yeah, you beat Sam Gehring, you get Samuel, sorry, Sam. Beat Samuel Gehring in the finals, you get the tech. How soon after does it hit you that you won your four state title? Like, take us through that experience with the coal center crowd and everything.

SPEAKER_04 1:55:12

Yeah, I mean, I think it kind of helped. Like, obviously, you never know, like going into a tournament if you're gonna win. Like, you the future is not determined, but uh I was really confident going in uh that I was gonna win. Um, so I think that helped like kind of like wrap my head around it, uh just kind of like the knowing beforehand that like it's pretty, it's a pretty sure thing. Um but yeah, it was just another like euphoric moment that was just kind of like it's weird. Um, and like everybody says it, but like the feeling of like becoming a four-time state champ and like achieving that goal that I've thought of of like since I was little, like it's it's crazy how little it affects your life, but at the same time, I feel like everybody like downplays how like not cool it is. Like, I like I won the four state title, and like I just try to soak it all up, uh, because I know like the moment would go by fast, and uh yeah, and like even it's kind of funny because like I was talking beforehand if I'd do a backflip or not, and so like uh pretty quickly after like winning the match, and like as I'm walking to my coach, like I was still like on the fence about it, like I didn't know if I wanted to do it, so I'm like, Do I do it or do I not do it? And so then I like over to my coach, hug him, and I'm like, Do I do the backflip? And he's like, Yeah, go do it. And he like kind of pushed me, so then I went and did it. Um but yeah, it's just like uh just a weird feeling. Like it's obviously like really cool, it's awesome. Like I've been I put a lot of time into it. Um, but yeah, like it really it didn't change my life at all. Like I went to practice the next week, like I kept living my life. I saw the same people the next day, and like I don't know, it was really cool to be able to win in and it was awesome. And um really blessed to be able to do that. But yeah, it's just hard to explain everything, really.

SPEAKER_02 1:56:53

Yeah, that's a great answer. Yeah, it's like you know to your friends and your family, you're still the guy that, you know, you're still you're still the dope. You know, to your parents, you're still the four-year-old that ate dirt out of the plant, you know, or something like that. Exactly.

SPEAKER_01 1:57:07

Yep. Yeah, the one thing that's guaranteed about life, it always goes on. Like that's yeah. Oh, you go, Ken.

SPEAKER_04 1:57:17

Time is always moving.

SPEAKER_01 1:57:20

I remember there was a golfer that he just won the US Open and he said, like, his three year old or his four-year-old afterwards on the phone, like, hey, when are you coming home? Like, yeah, like, yeah, guess what? You're still just dad. Yep, you still gotta take care of that kid. Kellen, it's been a ride, man. Been a ride talking. So I got uh got a few more things for you here.

SPEAKER_02 1:57:42

Hold on, can I can I jump in here, T? Um, so Kellen, I uh well, by the way, guys, I don't know if you noticed this, and this was totally unintentional because I forgot who you wrestled in the finals, but did you notice the shirt? Oh, wait, there you go. Did you notice the shirt I had on?

SPEAKER_00 1:57:56

Oh my gosh. Gearing's beat market title brought to you by Gehrings Meat Market by Aiden St. Lawrence.

SPEAKER_01 1:58:05

Great, great, family. That's awesome. Sorry, Kat. It's been like a running joke we had this whole season.

SPEAKER_02 1:58:10

Yeah, we got some uh we got some meat meat products at a tournament from the Gehrings Meat Market that we've been you know promoting ever since. It's delicious, by the way. Um that's awesome. Hey, listen, you are rivaling hockey right now, but uh um I have uh Kellen, I have a commitment that I have to get to, and I got about eight minutes left. So and I'm desperate, I'm kind of upset because I'll I'll go back and hear it. I want to hear about your uh next steps with Michigan, and uh, we're excited to follow you. So I have to do my part and then I'm gonna uh bow out. But I tell you what, it's been awesome. It's been awesome sitting here with you guys.

SPEAKER_04 1:58:43

Yeah, it's been great talking to you too.

SPEAKER_02 1:58:44

Thanks for having me out. Uh this is my part right here. Yeah, you're not done yet, Kellen. Yeah, you're not done. He's gonna take you through the rest of the round real quick speed speed round of questions. This isn't trivia because you know them all. It's not really, you don't have to think about them, but we just I asked you seven questions. You just uh name them off uh the top of your head or as fast as you can. But uh here we go. You ready to rock? Yep. All right, wrestler, past or present, uh, who's someone you you look up to the most? Uh Jonah Burrows or Ben Asker. I knew it was coming. I mean that's uh with everything that you talked about already. I thought Ben would be in there. All right, best uh favorite takedown. Going. Best uh favorite pinhole. Honey badger. Honey badger. Yeah, you only mentioned that several times throughout this. All right, you just made weight, uh, and you can't say pasta because I don't want to have any, you know, uh coming up, but you just made weight, and what's your go-to food after weigh-in'?

SPEAKER_04 1:59:45

Post weigh-in peanut butter honey sandwich, post-tournament culverts.

SPEAKER_02 1:59:49

Oh, interesting. Interesting culverts. It's peanut butter and jelly sandwich all the way. All right, biggest rival, individual. And you can you can give an out-of state one and an in-state one if you'd like.

SPEAKER_04 2:00:10

In-state's gotta definitely be Ben uh uh Ben Bass. Um that freshman year.

SPEAKER_03 2:00:16

Um I don't know.

SPEAKER_04 2:00:19

Uh if you don't have an out of state, that's that's fine too. Yeah, I don't have to be a good one.

SPEAKER_01 2:00:23

Uh who's the who's the strong dude?

SPEAKER_04 2:00:25

Nate Askew.

SPEAKER_01 2:00:27

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 2:00:28

I mean, I haven't wrestled him ever since.

SPEAKER_01 2:00:30

I mean, I guess right now I'm probably. What about the Sam guy? Or who's the guy that you're like, you you gotta get his number still?

SPEAKER_04 2:00:36

Sam Herring, but again, like I only wrestled him the one time. I guess biggest rival would probably be like Tyler DeCraker at the moment. We're one in one with each other. Uh so like that one.

SPEAKER_01 2:00:45

Um but yeah, I mean, other than that, there's a handful of guys that want to wrestle. I was gonna say Jesseroga, but both sides have to win for it to be a rival. That's right. That would be a rival. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 2:00:56

Ouch. Ouch, ouch. All right. Teague and I, I think already's already calling us out who he thinks this one is, but who's your biggest rival on the team side?

SPEAKER_04 2:01:07

Either probably arrowhead.

SPEAKER_01 2:01:11

There it is. There it is. It could just be the whole classic, eight, even.

SPEAKER_02 2:01:15

Yeah, it's either Arrowhead, Mosquego, or Maguanico.

SPEAKER_01 2:01:18

Big mook.

SPEAKER_02 2:01:20

All right, last question. This is a big one. By the way, Hawkins, Teague, tell me if I said this right. Hawkins was 24K Magic. Is that correct? Am I saying that right, Teague?

SPEAKER_01 2:01:28

By Bruno Mars, yes.

SPEAKER_02 2:01:30

All right, here we go. You're uh you're about ready to wrestle in a dual meet. It's at Michigan. Ohio State's coming into town. The uh ring announcer, whatever you call it, he comes up, he says, Kellen, you get to choose your walkout song against Ohio State for tomorrow. Which one are you choosing?

SPEAKER_04 2:01:47

I'm terrible with walkout songs. Um this is bad. I should have this picked out by now, but um if I had to think, I'd probably right now I'd probably pick like a Rihanna song or something. Nice. But I can't think of one at the bottom. I'm really bad with walkout songs. I need to pick one to kind of stick with, but yeah. Like Umbrella by Rihanna. Like Umbrella, like uh Dancing in the dark, maybe, or like Don't Stop the Music.

SPEAKER_01 2:02:19

Oh, yeah. Don't stop the music. I could see that with yeah.

SPEAKER_02 2:02:24

Well, yeah, hey, if if one pops in your head, I'm gonna go back and listen the last 10-15 minutes. So you if one pops in your head, you uh you let me know on the podcast. But Kellen, it's been it's this has been awesome. I appreciate you, man. I'm gonna be tuning out. T's got some more time with you, but I can't wait to uh watch it at the next level, bud. Sounds good.

SPEAKER_04 2:02:41

Thank you. I really appreciate it, and thanks for having me on the podcast.

SPEAKER_02 2:02:45

You bet.

SPEAKER_01 2:02:46

Sounds good. Thanks, Kevin. Yep. All right, Kellen. I just got basically three questions left for you. So thank thanks for bearing with us. I was a little uh when you asked uh how long we were gonna be going for yesterday, I was like, oh, what's the like the time commitment at? And now I'm like, I don't think.

SPEAKER_04 2:03:02

No, yeah, I was just a little nervous.

SPEAKER_01 2:03:04

Uh yeah.

SPEAKER_04 2:03:06

My uh cousins, uh like one of my one of the extended families on my mom's side is moving out to Alaska. So and they're they're moving tomorrow. So like tonight we have like dinner and stuff with them and hanging out with them. So I'm actually at my grandparents' house right now.

SPEAKER_01 2:03:18

Oh my god, I'm so sorry, Kellen.

SPEAKER_04 2:03:20

I've no, don't be sorry, don't be sorry. I've I've spent a ton of time with them, and like I'm gonna be spending more time with them after. So it's all good. Don't don't feel bad at all.

SPEAKER_01 2:03:29

Okay, I guess you know, you just you you start talking wrestling and you lose track of time.

SPEAKER_04 2:03:33

I'm no exactly. Like it's completely up to me. Like, I could have kept all the answers short, but no, yeah. Once once we started talking, it's hard not to kind of get into it. And I've been really enjoying this. I really appreciate it.

SPEAKER_01 2:03:44

So uh Steve brought it up already. Uh uh, yeah, you're gonna be wrestling at Michigan. Do you just wanna you can take us through real quick, like one to two minutes, take us through your college recruiting process, and then what uh what led you to end up choosing Michigan?

SPEAKER_04 2:04:00

Yeah, so uh at first I ended up committing to Oklahoma State, but then just kind of like through uh kind of talks and reconsidering everything. Um ended up going with Michigan, and really it's just the community that's there, like all the guys on the team are great. Like I I love all my future teammates. Uh they're great guys already. And then also uh the recruiting class that I'm in is really good. Um and obviously like Hawking being there is a really, really great factor, uh really great uh benefit of it. Um we're gonna be rooming together, so got a got a really cool roommate already. Don't have to worry about living with some person that is yeah, random or whatever. Um but also the coaching staff I really like. Um Coach Burmet and all the guys on the on the staff are really good. And and their RTC program is really good around my weight, uh, like Real Woods. He's been I wrestle with him almost every single time that I've gone out to Michigan already, and like amazing practice partner. I mean, it goes really hard, so it's it's gonna be a tough practice, but like I've learned so much from him already. Um, like technique and then also like just the mental side of things. He's he's helped me a lot with um just being more confident in myself and uh again like feeling better with like being mean on the mat and uh making it more of like a fight a little bit, uh just being a little bit scrappier. Um but yeah, it's just kind of like a great situation, and then that's not even talking about the facilities. The facilities are great. Um, they have an amazing restroom that I really like. Uh their weight training rooms are amazing, and um it's also a Midwest state. Uh, I mean, I love the Midwest, I love Wisconsin. Um, so it's really nice to kind of stay in the Midwest and stay somewhat close to home. Um, so yeah.

SPEAKER_01 2:05:41

Uh is it oh yeah, it's probably quicker to drive like down south to Chicago and all that, like quicker to go through the UP or whatnot, but no, okay, yeah, especially with where you live, that makes sense. Yeah, yeah, but it's it's kind of surreal to think like I don't want to say little Kellen Woolbur, but just like I mean, we've followed you now since you were like 15. Like Kellen Woolburt is wrestling with Rayal Woods now.

SPEAKER_04 2:06:04

Like, yeah, no, it's surreal for me too. Like, it's it's crazy to think about like when we when like we'd first be wrestling and like it come to like going live in practice, it's like I'm like wide-eyed, like I'm I'm wrestling real woods right now. Like, what am I doing? Like, this can't be happening, and then it's like uh, but again, just kind of like confidence, kind of building up my confidence and feeling more comfortable wrestling those bigger name guys. Uh, definitely helps a lot.

SPEAKER_01 2:06:30

As it be, yeah, as it becomes like your new reality, like it'll just be like just your in your environment that you're in. All right, goals for the future, Kellen. It can be uh NCAA goals, career goals, like what you want to do with wrestling beyond college. That just yeah, hit us with your goals, buddy.

SPEAKER_04 2:06:48

Yeah. Um, I mean, I want to be a four-time uh national champion. Um, I want to win four national titles for the University of Michigan, and I want to win the Big Ten four times, and I want to prove that I can be just as dominant on the college scene as I was on the high school scene. Um, and then I want to I don't want to wrestle like too long after college. I think the way like it kind of lines up, I was looking at it uh with like Olympic years. Um, I think there's an Olympic year after my third year of wrestling, I think, third or second in college, which I'll try to make the team there. Um, but like I'm not too worried if I make that team. But then with like the five-year roles, there'll be another Olympic year, either like one or two years right after college. And so, like, if I make the Olympic team and I win gold that year, I'll probably be done and call the career there. Um, if not, then I'll probably do one more. And so I'll be wrestling like five or six years after college. Um, and then at that point, I at the moment I really want to coach. Um, I've done a lot of coaching uh these past two years, and um there was uh one camp that I coached for the Okanawak, like the Okanawak Youth Club. And these these two kids showed up, they were brothers, and um the younger one uh and like the older one, they were both really the younger one specifically was like a really good listener and like would take criticism really well. And like whenever like I'm walking around after showing the technique when I'd show like a little uh tweak to what he was doing, uh he'd listen really well and kind of like apply it. Um and the older brother did a really good job too, but uh the younger brother I'd say was a little bit more focused throughout it. Um, but like their dad sent me a text uh like afterwards and just kind of like saying like thank you, and like kids like it's a pretty long text, and like I don't really want to read it right now, but uh yeah, I just like it's a feel-good message.

SPEAKER_01 2:08:38

Save that by the way, because yeah, it's a really good thing to look back at.

SPEAKER_04 2:08:42

I'm a screenshot of it, and uh, yeah, it's that's probably like uh one of the most like fulfilling moments in my wrestling career, like of all. Um and so like I've really like grown to appreciate like the coaching and like how much I can impact others um and help them with like the gift that I have. Um and so I want to get into coaching because of that afterwards. Um, but if not, I'm studying to be like a civil engineer, and there's uh there's a pro master's program called like construction engineering management, I think. And so I want to go a little bit more on the construction side of things than engineering um if I don't coach. Um, but yeah, those are it's kind of like all the goals that I have. Um, and then I want to end up when I'm old, I want to end up like my grandparents, like the house that I'm at right now. Um they have like 20, like eight grandkids or something like that. Like I have 20 some uh cousins. Um and so I want to end up like them with just like a huge family. Um, but I mean we'll see what happens.

SPEAKER_01 2:09:41

Yeah, you and uh you and the sibling got some work to do at some point.

SPEAKER_04 2:09:46

Exactly. So I mean, my my mom has five siblings, I have five siblings. Uh I think my grandma and grandpa both have like five or six siblings.

SPEAKER_01 2:09:57

So just grandma and grandpa, they are they like could not be happier with their life.

SPEAKER_04 2:10:03

Oh yeah, it's it's a great it's awesome. Just like seeing them and how they are, like as as like a I don't know, dynamic and like with our big family, like it's just if there's one thing that I could guarantee in the future, it's to end up like them with like a huge family that's just like really close knit and stuff. Um, I mean like we took family photos and like up north at this family camp that we go to, and we took one where it's like it's my grandparents sitting in the middle and like all the cousins are around them, and like we're missing maybe two or maybe like one or two cousins, but it's just like there's these 20 kids from ages like in the months to 22, and it's like we're I'm really blessed with the family that I have, and I hope that I'm continuing to be blessed with the family that I could have in the future.

SPEAKER_01 2:10:52

So love it. And last question for you, Kellen. I'm looking forward to this one. Do you have uh you could give any piece of it? It doesn't need to be one piece. Whatever advice you have for younger wrestlers, now's the time to share it. And think of this in the perspective like if you had to give advice to a younger Kellen Woolbert, what would you say?

SPEAKER_04 2:11:14

Um, I'd say to really fall in love with the sport. Um, I feel like all of my growth and success has stemmed from the love of the sport. Obviously, like there's a lot of other things that play into it. Like, just because you love the sport doesn't necessarily mean that you're gonna be the best. Um, but I'd say really cultivate a love for the sport and then also be willing to do like the extra work. Um, I mean, there's like a saying that like not every lion that hunts kills it, kills a prey, but not every but every lion that kills a prey hunts. So it's like not necessarily everybody who works their tail off is gonna end up at the top, but everybody who ends up at the top is gonna work their tail off. So it's like if you want to give yourself the best shot at winning, there's no guarantee to win in the future. Like the future is not determined. Um, so there's no guarantee that. You're gonna be at the top of the podium at the end of it. But if you want to give yourself the best shot at being at the top, you have to work really, really hard. And so just qu and it's it's a lot easier to work really hard at something that you love than something that you feel like you're forced to do. So if you cultivate a love for the sport, it becomes a lot easier to work really hard, which then gives you a a way better chance at becoming good and succeeding.

SPEAKER_01 2:12:23

Did you have that planned out or something beforehand? Because that was perfect. Like that.

SPEAKER_04 2:12:29

No, I mean, I feel like uh I've been getting better. I've been getting better. I mean, if you look at my like interviews and like stuff that I did uh freshman year was really bad. Oh, I'd love to see some before and afters. There's some really bad ones. Like the the interview after the Fargo that I won, that interview is really bad. Um, just like my answers are well. To be fair, that interview after Fargo, the interviewer asked me like the same question like three times in a row, and I got really confused. Because like, I don't know, I think it was about like Greco or something. He was like, You won folk style national, you won freestyle nationals, are you gonna wrestle Greco? And I was like, I've never wrestled Greco. He's like, That's crazy because Wisconsin's really good at Greco. Have you ever wrestled with Greco? Do you ever think you will? And I'm like, no, I've never wrestled with Greco, so I'm not gonna wrestle Greco. And then he like just asked it like three times, but um, that interview was not good. And then like I just know like freshman year the and like sophomore year, the interviews were great, and even last year, but I've been asked like about advice a decent amount of time, so I've been trying to try to think about it a little bit, but I did not have that planned or written down.

SPEAKER_01 2:13:31

But well, you knocked it out of the park, brother. And yeah, I'd say you did a good job on this interview, but like we we just talked, it was just a conversation more than anything.

SPEAKER_04 2:13:41

Yeah, it felt more like a conversation, so it's definitely a lot easier.

SPEAKER_01 2:13:44

It's been awesome hanging out with you and Chad. You are uh the record has been broken twice in a row now. You are officially the longest uh four-timer possible that we've had. You beat Hawk. I I didn't know when I told you Hawking went two hours. I'm like, I hope he doesn't feel pressure or anything. I'm like, maybe he took it personally.

SPEAKER_04 2:14:03

No, no, I I really didn't. I I was really expecting it to just be like an hour, hour and a half, but then like, yeah, I mean I felt like I just kind of like had not that I had to, but like I wanted to go into it, uh, like the details of some of the stuff. Cause I mean, what's the point? You watch an interview of someone's career, and then they like just give these really basic and like shallow answers. Not necessarily shallow, but like not very deep answers. It's like, well, I don't really yeah.

SPEAKER_01 2:14:28

Well, I'm so glad you did. And I'll be uh I tell Steve before almost every episode, like, hey, let's just go an hour tonight. And if you look at our list of episodes, there's not many podcasts that are just an hour. So yeah, no, that's fair. I'm glad you let it fly on the mic, just like you do on the map, man. Uh Kellen, we'll talk for a little bit after I sign us off here, too, for some housekeeping things, but that is it for this conversation. I wanna I wanna thank you for uh for everything you've done for Wisconsin Wrestling. And uh there's gonna be like Paul Bunyan-esque stories about you like 10, 20 years down the road that I'll I'll gladly be sharing. I'll say he was down by 10 in the state finals matches for the year and he came back and won. You've left people plenty of stories to tell. You've left a great legacy in Oconnamawalk and the state in general, and uh just from Steve and I, like I was going through this, like Steve and I have been so blessed to like be there for like a lot of your big matches, and you know, I don't know. I'm so glad we got to cross paths as many times as we did, and we got to kind of bring it all to a head tonight. So Me too. I really appreciate everything, and it's been great. Well, yeah, we gotta let you get to your family here, Mr. Wolvert. So uh that is it, everybody. Thanks for tuning in. Hopefully, in next week, we have a Mrs. Whiting on to cap off the three, four timers from this year. U until next time, we will catch you on the flip side.