The key to great sportsmanship is literally in your head

By Team CoachList

Growing up as the son of a college basketball coach has its perks, though they are probably not the perks you think of right away. Sure, I had a great opportunity to become the best player on the team. The problem, though, was that I didn’t want to be on the team.

The fact is, basketball just wasn’t my thing. However, watching my dad coach was invaluable. From him, I learned the unique skill of understanding the psychology behind the sport. My dad was no expert psychologist, but he knew the game and his players so well that he could understand their thought processes just by observing their responses on the court.

By the time I reached middle school and discovered my love for wrestling, I already had a great understanding that good athletes aren’t only physically fit but mentally strong as well.

My wrestling mentors all came from prestigious military service and taught mental toughness right alongside sportsmanship, strength, and form. Creating the perfect storm for me to place in area finals every year throughout high school. The mental strength I developed from working with them also helped me recover and come back stronger after suffering a devastating injury during a state finals match just before my senior year. It was the caliber of injury that should have taken me off the mat for good, but – thanks to the power of mental recovery – I not only recovered physically but also came back to the mat stronger than ever.

After winning All-American and placing second in the state my senior year, I was given a golden opportunity to wrestle for National Wrestling Hall of Fame member Doug Moses. My college years continued to improve my agility as a wrestler, but it wasn’t until my skills began mixing with the lessons from my father that my career began coming together.

In 2020, after graduating with a master’s in psychology, I learned about the The World Games, which is the second largest global, multi-sport event in the world. Here, I realized a fascination and passion for sumo wrestling, which unbeknownst to me at the time didn’t just occur in Japan. Not long after, I announced to my friends and family that I was determined to qualify for the 2022 World Games. I’m sure they had their doubts, but I summoned all the mental toughness I hadn’t used since college and set out on what seemed like an impossible accomplishment.

I started training in May 20202, as soon as the gyms reopened after being forced to shut down to due to Covid. I participated in my first sumo tournament just four months later. In June of 2021, I won the US National Championships for a sport I didn’t even know existed just a year and a half earlier.

Now, as I enter the home stretch of my Ph.D in Psychology with a focus on concentration and performance, I am also on a journey with CoachList to teach others how to achieve massive success as an athlete. I’m infusing my knowledge of sports psychology with my experience as a pro wrestler to help athletes overcome physical and psychological barriers and gain confidence where they didn’t even know it existed within them.