Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboy Wrestling Meets With Media Ahead of Bedlam
December 08, 2021 | Cowboy Wrestling
STILLWATER – Ahead of Oklahoma State's dual with No. 17 Oklahoma at the Lloyd Noble Center on Sunday, head coach John Smith and heavyweight Luke Surber met with the media. Here is some of what they had to say:
Head Coach John Smith
On heavyweight Luke Surber managing his weight:
"He's done a nice job. What people don't realize is it's just as hard maintaining weight. It's a challenge eating four and five meals a day and snacks in between. Those guys, if they miss lunch or fall asleep for lunch and show up for practice, they're liable to have a weight change of 15 pounds. It's pretty amazing. He's done a good job of keeping his weight up."
On his team's development through the first six weeks of the season:
"First priority is making sure we take care of ourselves and our grades. As we prepare for Bedlam, you need to get better. You started in November, on a normal year, you started in early November and here you are in the middle of December, you have to get better in six weeks. And if you don't, you're in trouble. And for us, I think we have gotten better. There were some concerns early on about a few of them while we were tested on the road, both at Standford and Minnesota, but I thought we really grew as we wrestled our bout here against Drexel. I need to see an even better team this Sunday."
On his evaluation of Oklahoma:
"Good team. Look at the team, you've got a bunch of guys that, if some of them break through, they're going to be very competitive in a tournament setting. It's basically the same team they had last year, probably better at a couple of the weights. I think it's a competitive team. Last year we won 24-10 I believe there, with some tight matches. I think it could end up being a dog fight for some of these matches. I think there are going to be some hard wins. Not at just one weight, but maybe three or four of them, maybe five, six. So, we need to make sure we're ready and I think OU, knowing they're not ranked real high, I think that they're probably the most competitive team we'll wrestle to this point. That's including Minnesota."
On which Bedlam match he's looking forward to:
"There's some tough matches that I know we're going to get to see. I think their 197-pounder is as good as anyone. I was impressed with him last year. I haven't seen him wrestle this year yet. I'll probably see a few films before the match, but really impressive. I think that's the key match. Is there going to be other tough ones? Oh yeah. I think we have several guys on both teams right now where we have some rankings that's going to change, meaning that we're not top-15, we need to be in the top six. We can be that good. I think they have some of those as well. The dual looks to be competitive. I just don't see a lot of matches that are lopsided."
On the history of Bedlam wrestling:
"It was the first real rivalry, I think, in wrestling, dating back to 1920. So, as they gathered steam in those '20s, it became something that maybe became the first rivalry in college wrestling. I don't want to take anything away from anyone. Some of those schools out east started before us. For us, it was definitely the beginning of something and maybe all of our sports, and it hasn't ended. There have been some wild matches with Bedlam. I mean wild. I've been part of them since I was eight or nine years old, watching them, going to Norman, coming to Gallagher Hall. It was the highlight of the year going to two Bedlam matches every year for a long time."
Heavyweight Luke Surber
On his relationship with Oklahoma heavyweight Josh Heindselman:
"I went on trips with him, and we were roommates on trips to Junior duals and stuff like that. I know him pretty well. It's pretty crazy, honestly. I was wrestling a lot lighter back then, so I didn't think we would ever wrestle, but here we are."
If there is a difference wrestling heavier guys:
"There is and it comes with strategies. You can't just go out there and shoot, shoot, shoot underneath these big guys because they will wear you out. I'm trying to stay focused on what I need to do. When I shoot, I need to score. I can't get caught underneath those guys."
Head Coach John Smith
On heavyweight Luke Surber managing his weight:
"He's done a nice job. What people don't realize is it's just as hard maintaining weight. It's a challenge eating four and five meals a day and snacks in between. Those guys, if they miss lunch or fall asleep for lunch and show up for practice, they're liable to have a weight change of 15 pounds. It's pretty amazing. He's done a good job of keeping his weight up."
On his team's development through the first six weeks of the season:
"First priority is making sure we take care of ourselves and our grades. As we prepare for Bedlam, you need to get better. You started in November, on a normal year, you started in early November and here you are in the middle of December, you have to get better in six weeks. And if you don't, you're in trouble. And for us, I think we have gotten better. There were some concerns early on about a few of them while we were tested on the road, both at Standford and Minnesota, but I thought we really grew as we wrestled our bout here against Drexel. I need to see an even better team this Sunday."
On his evaluation of Oklahoma:
"Good team. Look at the team, you've got a bunch of guys that, if some of them break through, they're going to be very competitive in a tournament setting. It's basically the same team they had last year, probably better at a couple of the weights. I think it's a competitive team. Last year we won 24-10 I believe there, with some tight matches. I think it could end up being a dog fight for some of these matches. I think there are going to be some hard wins. Not at just one weight, but maybe three or four of them, maybe five, six. So, we need to make sure we're ready and I think OU, knowing they're not ranked real high, I think that they're probably the most competitive team we'll wrestle to this point. That's including Minnesota."
On which Bedlam match he's looking forward to:
"There's some tough matches that I know we're going to get to see. I think their 197-pounder is as good as anyone. I was impressed with him last year. I haven't seen him wrestle this year yet. I'll probably see a few films before the match, but really impressive. I think that's the key match. Is there going to be other tough ones? Oh yeah. I think we have several guys on both teams right now where we have some rankings that's going to change, meaning that we're not top-15, we need to be in the top six. We can be that good. I think they have some of those as well. The dual looks to be competitive. I just don't see a lot of matches that are lopsided."
On the history of Bedlam wrestling:
"It was the first real rivalry, I think, in wrestling, dating back to 1920. So, as they gathered steam in those '20s, it became something that maybe became the first rivalry in college wrestling. I don't want to take anything away from anyone. Some of those schools out east started before us. For us, it was definitely the beginning of something and maybe all of our sports, and it hasn't ended. There have been some wild matches with Bedlam. I mean wild. I've been part of them since I was eight or nine years old, watching them, going to Norman, coming to Gallagher Hall. It was the highlight of the year going to two Bedlam matches every year for a long time."
Heavyweight Luke Surber
On his relationship with Oklahoma heavyweight Josh Heindselman:
"I went on trips with him, and we were roommates on trips to Junior duals and stuff like that. I know him pretty well. It's pretty crazy, honestly. I was wrestling a lot lighter back then, so I didn't think we would ever wrestle, but here we are."
If there is a difference wrestling heavier guys:
"There is and it comes with strategies. You can't just go out there and shoot, shoot, shoot underneath these big guys because they will wear you out. I'm trying to stay focused on what I need to do. When I shoot, I need to score. I can't get caught underneath those guys."
Players Mentioned
/ Cowboy Wrestling
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