Criminal justice sophomore John Hood was always an avid wrestler in high school.
He remembers fondly the brotherhood formed through the sport and the hours spent crafting his moves.
So when Hood got to MSU, he fell right into place with MSU Club Wrestling
“I really loved wrestling throughout high school and wanted to keep going,” Hood said. “I understand college is a time where school is priority. It’s not as high on my list as school, but it’s something I like to do to stay in shape, meet new people and keep up with the sport I love.”
The club meets every Monday and Wednesday at 8:30 p.m. at IM Sports-West. They encourage anyone to join no matter the skill level. The members of the club are understanding and willing to work with newcomers to introduce them to the basic skills.
“Newcomers, we (teach) the basics and go through things very slowly work with them because it’s a very technical sport and a very difficult sport to master,” Hood said. “If they have any questions or trouble we are here for them. We understand any errors they might make and we are very accommodating.”
Actuarial science junior Andrew Fialka said the goal of wrestling is to take your opponent down to the mat and pin his shoulders down.
“My favorite (technique) is the double leg take down,” Fialka said. “It’s like a football tackle. To pin him to the mat you have to get both shoulders down, cross-faced cradle, then that’s where you maneuver the opponent’s arm and leg into your grip and you flip him on to his back.”
The members practice techniques like these to perform during their dual-meets and tournaments.
This past year the wrestling club has had five tournaments and they are looking at six tournaments this year.
Hood believes club wrestlers can benefit because being a part of the club exposes them to wrestling, allows them to meet a lot of new people and make new friends which they could have for the rest of their lives.
“It’s not just working out or wrestling its learning to overcome obstacles, it teaches you life long lessons,” Hood said.
MSU Club Wrestling aspires to make it to nationals which will be held in Texas this year, but they understand it takes a lot of hard work.
“It takes a lot of determination, heart and will to win,” Hood said. You have to want to work hard you can’t just go out there and expect to win a match because you want to. Nationals is going to push a lot of teammates to really have to work hard and give 110 percent all the time both in competition and at practice. I like to see our teammates giving it their all.”
