Oklahoma State University Athletics
Dieringer and Smith Preview 2016 NCAA Championships
March 16, 2016 | Cowboy Wrestling
Practice and press conference photo album
NEW YORK – Oklahoma State wrestling coach John Smith and two-time NCAA champion Alex Dieringer met with the media on Thursday afternoon in a pre-championship press conference held at Madison Square Garden. Below are their comments:
Alex Dieringer
On finishing his career in Madison Square Garden
"It's my senior year. So it's going to be cool to go out like this. It's obviously the most historic place, arena in the world. So it's pretty cool. And I'm going for my third title. And I'm just going to try to go out with a big bang."
On if he feels pressure to win a third NCAA title
"No, not really. I'm pretty relaxed wrestler. I don't feel too much pressure. I always stay pretty relaxed. But yeah, I like to go out there for the fans. A lot of it is for the fans. For wrestling, it makes it more exciting for the fans if you go out there and try to score points, and I think it promotes wrestling a lot more. That's one reason I like to do that.Also I don't like to go out there and win a close match. I like to go out there and score a lot of points. If I don't get bonus points I'm not happy with myself. I think that's the only reason why I do do it. Because if I don't get bonus points I'm not pleased at all and I go back to the room and work on it."
On where he stands in OSU's history books
"Hopefully one of the greatest. I heard that coach said I would be top five. That was pretty cool to hear."
On wrestling in Times Square last summer
"It was one of the coolest experiences I've ever been in, to be able to wrestle outside in Times Square was awesome, and now wrestling in Madison Square Garden, it's going to be a very cool experience. I'm used to the big stage. I've been doing it since I was a little kid. So it's all the same thing to me. It's all just another match and I try to be pretty calm about it."
On the Hodge Trophy race
"You know, I think a couple of guys up here deserve it, too, but we all have some pretty, really good seasons. Obviously if you get a Hodge Trophy you win a national title. But then again you're also getting bonus points not only for yourself but for the team. And that's what I look for. I'm always looking for bonus points and just like these guys up here. Makes it more exciting for yourself and for the fans."
John Smith
On the opportunity to wrestle in New York City
"It's exciting. We've had a couple of days here. And of course some of the student-athletes, first experience in New York City. So for that reason it's been good. And gym looks great. The facility looks great. So let's hope we have a great tournament."
On Joe Smith's first-round match vs. Jake Ryan
"I wish it could have been a different draw, you know. But it is what it is. And I probably won't be in his corner, I don't know. It's kind of like how I feel in the morning or how he feels. Tough match and Joseph knows it's a tough match, so we'll take it from there."
On how he has dealt with the lineup changes throughout the year
"You just handle them each week. It's been a challenging year. We've had things I've never experienced as experienced as a coach. After 25 years you think you've seen it all and all of a sudden you get rattled. Seemed like for about three or four straight weeks we were rattled as a team. So we wrestled 23 different guys this year. Started in the lineup. And that's pretty unusual. You just feel fortunate that you're in a position. We had several kids from Stillwater High School that really made a difference in our depth. So it's good to be here and still being considered a team that can win. At one time during the year I didn't know about it. So just real pleased that a lot of individuals stepped up at a time when it was real important for them to step up. So you don't do, you don't come here and all of a sudden you're part of part of the team that can win unless you have some individuals really stepping up for you and that's what happened for us."
NEW YORK – Oklahoma State wrestling coach John Smith and two-time NCAA champion Alex Dieringer met with the media on Thursday afternoon in a pre-championship press conference held at Madison Square Garden. Below are their comments:
Alex Dieringer
On finishing his career in Madison Square Garden
"It's my senior year. So it's going to be cool to go out like this. It's obviously the most historic place, arena in the world. So it's pretty cool. And I'm going for my third title. And I'm just going to try to go out with a big bang."
On if he feels pressure to win a third NCAA title
"No, not really. I'm pretty relaxed wrestler. I don't feel too much pressure. I always stay pretty relaxed. But yeah, I like to go out there for the fans. A lot of it is for the fans. For wrestling, it makes it more exciting for the fans if you go out there and try to score points, and I think it promotes wrestling a lot more. That's one reason I like to do that.Also I don't like to go out there and win a close match. I like to go out there and score a lot of points. If I don't get bonus points I'm not happy with myself. I think that's the only reason why I do do it. Because if I don't get bonus points I'm not pleased at all and I go back to the room and work on it."
On where he stands in OSU's history books
"Hopefully one of the greatest. I heard that coach said I would be top five. That was pretty cool to hear."
On wrestling in Times Square last summer
"It was one of the coolest experiences I've ever been in, to be able to wrestle outside in Times Square was awesome, and now wrestling in Madison Square Garden, it's going to be a very cool experience. I'm used to the big stage. I've been doing it since I was a little kid. So it's all the same thing to me. It's all just another match and I try to be pretty calm about it."
On the Hodge Trophy race
"You know, I think a couple of guys up here deserve it, too, but we all have some pretty, really good seasons. Obviously if you get a Hodge Trophy you win a national title. But then again you're also getting bonus points not only for yourself but for the team. And that's what I look for. I'm always looking for bonus points and just like these guys up here. Makes it more exciting for yourself and for the fans."
John Smith
On the opportunity to wrestle in New York City
"It's exciting. We've had a couple of days here. And of course some of the student-athletes, first experience in New York City. So for that reason it's been good. And gym looks great. The facility looks great. So let's hope we have a great tournament."
On Joe Smith's first-round match vs. Jake Ryan
"I wish it could have been a different draw, you know. But it is what it is. And I probably won't be in his corner, I don't know. It's kind of like how I feel in the morning or how he feels. Tough match and Joseph knows it's a tough match, so we'll take it from there."
On how he has dealt with the lineup changes throughout the year
"You just handle them each week. It's been a challenging year. We've had things I've never experienced as experienced as a coach. After 25 years you think you've seen it all and all of a sudden you get rattled. Seemed like for about three or four straight weeks we were rattled as a team. So we wrestled 23 different guys this year. Started in the lineup. And that's pretty unusual. You just feel fortunate that you're in a position. We had several kids from Stillwater High School that really made a difference in our depth. So it's good to be here and still being considered a team that can win. At one time during the year I didn't know about it. So just real pleased that a lot of individuals stepped up at a time when it was real important for them to step up. So you don't do, you don't come here and all of a sudden you're part of part of the team that can win unless you have some individuals really stepping up for you and that's what happened for us."
Players Mentioned
/ Cowboy Wrestling
/ Cowboy Wrestling
Tuesday, July 07
Friday, June 05
Friday, May 29
Wednesday, May 27
