Waylon Lowe

[TDArtist]

Hey,

 

First, thanks to Coach Blair for Waylon's post. I talked to Waylon Sunday night, and he told me about the tournament. He was actually winning 8-4 late in the match and gave up a reversal in the closing seconds, so (and I can say this as a former coach, present fan, and friend) the match wasn't as close as the score shows.

 

Waylon will be one of the first people to admit that his senior year at Jefferson County was less than rosy for either of us, both on and off the mat. It's a wonder that we didn't kill each other. One of the things that really made me sad was that for the last two years of his high school career it was my contention that he was one of, if not the best, wrestlers in Tennessee, but that he never showed it in the state finals ( which unfortunately was when he had his biggest audience). For all his physical gifts there was a mentality that he couldn't assume in pressure situations. Many of us worried about his future and prayed that he would become the person he could be.

 

I knew early on that Findlay was the right place for him. His grades improved and his mental approach to wrestling had to have gotten better, because if they hadn't he woudn't have been capable of his achievements. I finally saw him wrestle this past November, and what I had thought was true. He had changed. He took longer getting into matches, but he finished like a madman. Whenever I spoke to him, especially this year, he was so confident.

 

But the way he approached this season really cemented things in my mind. Instead of staying at 149 (which would probably have killed him) or going 157 and having an easier road to a third title, he chose to go up two weight classes and take on another two timer. It says much to many of us. How many of us would choose the path of most resistance? I questioned the sanity of it, but I don't think Waylon ever did. It never seemed like it was going to be a problem, even after the loss in the regionals. We talked about that match too, and the finals result shows that he learned. He undertook a Herculean labor and overcame.

 

But while these accomplisments are monumental, inspirational, educational, and praiseworthy, the one that I'm most excited about is that he'll be getting his degree in May. That is the cake. I never actually saw him wrestle in college, but I'll be aggravated if I miss his graduation.

 

In the Spring of 1995, Scott Fandetti and Todd Richardson, two Jeff County wrestlers who had been helping with the middle school program, brought this kid up to me and told me how good he was going to be one day. That particular day he didn't know two moves, but won on sheer guts and power. I hope Scott's up in heaven somewhere looking down on all this and wondering if he thought he'd be that right. It's been a circuitous and sometimes convoluted trip, but it can definitely be chalked up as a successful one.

 

I'm proud of the kid. There were times when he made my life pure agony, but I can't seem to remember too much of that right now. All I can remember is how much better my life has been because of him.

 

Congratulations boy.

 

Jeff Price