Oklahoma State University Athletics
Carrying On a Family Tradition
October 23, 2013 | Cowboy Wrestling
Oct. 23, 2013
By Taylor Miller
Oklahoma State wrestler Chris Perry comes from a family stacked with winning tradition. He has not only grown up around wrestling but has also been surrounded by some of the sport's most decorated athletes.
Those who know the sport are probably very familiar with Perry's family. His uncle John Smith is entering his 23rd year as the head coach of the storied Oklahoma State wrestling program and is considered one of the greatest American wrestlers with six world championships to his name, including two Olympic titles. Another uncle, Pat Smith, was the first wrestler to earn four NCAA individual titles and is only one of three to have done so. Lee Roy and Mark Smith, also Perry's uncles, have three All-American finishes each. His brother, Mark Perry, Jr., is a two-time national champ, and his father, Mark, is a two-time All-American.
During his time at OSU, Chris has come into his own and continued to build onto that tradition. Entering his senior year, Perry is a three-time Big 12 champion, two-time All-American and the 2013 national champion at 174 pounds.
Coming from such a prominent wrestling family, Perry said that he feels no pressure to live up to the family name.
"I enjoy having family members who have achieved so much in the sport," Perry said. "It's something that you can either embrace or it's something that you can let take you down. I just love the sport so much that I just have fun with what I do. I work to be my own person and wrestle for who I am."
Having legendary John Smith as a coach and uncle is a plus in achieving that.
"I've benefitted from it massively," Perry said. "I've picked up a lot from him. He's the best coach in the country, in my opinion. I've learned to grow up in many ways, and I've learned a lot about life outside of wrestling. He's a great coach and he puts people on the right path to success."
According to Coach Smith, Perry has done more than just develop as a wrestler.
"I think he's truly grown as a person. Off the mat as an individual, he's pretty responsible," Smith said. "There's a lot more maturity there in his personal faith and how he interacts with people. I've seen a big difference since the time he came in. He really cares about his team and wants to see them do well. He takes responsibility as a leader. Those are things that I'm not sure he could've done early on in his career. Great leaders do for others, and that's a perfect way to describe Chris."
During the 2013 season, Perry compiled an impressive 36-2 overall record and spent most of the year as the No. 1 wrestler at 174 pounds en route to his third Big 12 title and first national championship.
Some might think that a defending national champ should have no problem repeating in his success, but that's not the way Perry sees it.
"Everybody is back at my weight. It wasn't an easy NCAA tournament for me so that will be a challenge," Perry said. "I just have to stay focused and grind it out all season. Championships don't come easy."
Perry did spend some time over the summer getting an edge on the competition by competing in international tournaments in Armenia and Poland. The senior earned bronze medals at both events.
"I saw some really tough competition out there," Perry said. "I got the chance to wrestle some of the best guys in the world. It made me better by being around it and competing against it. I went up a weight class, and I'm normally 10 pounds lighter than those guys. They were a lot bigger, but just getting the opportunity to learn from those guys made me a lot better."
Perry admits that while earning a NCAA individual title has been more than rewarding for all his hard work, he still isn't satisfied. The cherry on top of great collegiate career for Perry would be a team national title.
"A big goal this year is to win a team title," he said. "We were right there last year, and I think if we take that step and push each other, we can come out on top. We have the guys that are willing to work, and I think we can do it."
As he looks to add more accolades to his name for the 2013-14 season, Perry said he is also already focused on his post-collegiate wrestling career, which seems to follow in the footsteps of his Uncle John.
"Now that I have achieved that national title, I would say that I've set my goals even higher," Perry said. "I want to possibly be the best guy in the world. I want to be competing in Rio in 2016. I think that if that's my goal and I work toward that, then another national title is going to come my way."
