Chandler Chapman '19 Recruiting Profile

    I was involved in many sports when I was younger, including baseball, football, and basketball. I picked up on some of them and practiced when I had to, but none of them really fulfilled my desires as a kid. Watching WWE always was an enjoyable hobby for me as a kid, until I hit middle school. While in middle school, my 7th grade geography teacher changed my outlook on sports and got me interested in "real" wrestling. He was the middle school wrestling coach at the time and it seemed like everyday, while teaching, he would throw in a side comment about how hard wrestling was. I decided to try to prove him wrong and went to the first practice a few week later.  The day after the first practice was one of the worst days of my life. I was sore, tired, and my body felt beat knowing that I had to go back and do it again.

    Now, 5 years later and still wrestling, I can say that it was the best decision of my life to join that middle school wrestling team. There hasn't been a specific obstacle that had to be dealt with, but if I'm faced with one in the future, I will certainly deal with it. I've learned so much about myself. Wrestling helped me better understand my body and how hard I can push it, and how ninety percent of it is just in my head. The skill that will separate me the most in college is my ability to pick things up very easy. This skill is helpful in the classroom and the wrestling room. Academically, wrestling has taught me to be disciplined and not take shortcuts. Which in turn, has resulted in me being on the honor roll every year. This academically successful lifestyle that wrestling has gifted me will continue throughout college. My goals for college are to graduate with a diploma that satisfies me the most, while getting outstanding grades in the courses I take.