Takedown Report

Weighty Decisions

By Brian Jerzak
Lakeville North senior Bryce Benhart didn’t have to wrestle his senior year. A lot of high school athletes that I have talked to in a similar situation decide not to continue to be a multi-sport athlete. They choose to focus on the sport they will be playing in college. What makes Benhart’s story even more interesting is very few high school athletes – while in similar situations – had as much at stake as the Panthers’ senior. Well before the 2018-19 high school wrestling season has started, Benhart knew he had a football scholarship to the University of Nebraska waiting for him. Despite the obvious chances he was taking, the benefits of continuing with wrestling, the opportunity to become a state champion and a brief conversation with one of Minnesota’s most successful high school wrestlers convinced Benhart to decide to get back on the mat for one more season. “I started both wrestling and football in third grade,” Benhart said. Benhart was motivated to be the best football player he could be from an early age.

“I was always a bigger kid and was always on the offensive or defensive line,” Benhart said. “My dad always told me you have the talent – don’t waste it. Do something with your talent. Use that to go somewhere big to play football. Get a college degree out of it.” Part of getting the most out of his talent included becoming the best athlete he could be, but the future wrestling state champion did not dominate on the mat early. With football always on his mind, Benhart’s father helped keep his son on the mat by showing his son how wrestling could help him on the football field. “I got beat on the first couple of years,” Benhart admitted, “but my dad pulled up a list of all the NFL players who wrestled – guys like Ray Lewis, Roddy White and all those guys that wrestled in high school. I knew wrestling would help me with football.” The more he wrestled, the more comfortable he got on the mat. He didn’t just wrestle in the winter; he got involved in freestyle and Greco. “I wanted to keep my wrestling going,” the 6’9″ Benhart said. “I preferred Greco because of all the throwing. When I was younger, I got put on a national team and went to Indiana. I ended my freestyle and Greco career after my sophomore year and being on the Minnesota national team again. After that, I stuck with off-season weight lifting.” Soon his success in Greco translated to folkstyle.

“My first two years in high school I wasn’t the greatest,” Benhart admitted. “Around my sophomore year, I started to get to know what moves worked for me and the technique I need to work on. When I started to learn to use my leverage against other people, I started winning my matches.” He started winning his matches – in part – because he learned to use his frame. “I am good at extending people and making people carry my weight,” the future Cornhusker said. “If I can take them down, they pretty much are not getting out. I was a pinner. I think I had twenty pins my senior year.” “On my feet, I am going to use an under hook to a front headlock,” Benhart continued, “or an under hook to a snatch single.”

Benhart knew big things were coming for him on the football field. “The summer before my junior year I got my first Division I offer. After the first offer, I started to get more colleges contacting me. (Recruiting) took off from there. I started visiting more places and started to get more offers. At some points, it was a stressful process. I know most people don’t get this shot, but I put a lot of pressure on myself to pick the right school and coaches for me.” As a junior, Benhart had a dominating season on the mat against almost everyone – with one notable exception – former Apple Valley four-time state champion and current Minnesota Gophers’ All-American Gable Steveson. Rest of the story at https://theguillotine.com/2019/04/weighty-decisions/?mc_cid=71d49ec247&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

April 22, 2019 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized