Two years ago, Chris Pendleton earned the 2000 California State Championship and was named the outstanding wrestler of the tournament. Today, the sophomore is undefeated in 17 matches and wrestles for the No.1 team in the country.
Pendleton is still considered to be one of the best wrestlers in the country at his age, but one thing has changed over the years.
When Pendleton arrived at Oklahoma State he added an extra 30 pounds of strength to his frame. Pendleton battled in the 145-pound division in high school and now weighs in at 174 pounds.
“I had to use technique a lot growing up, because I never really was a big wrestler,” Pendleton said. “I was a small kid, my freshmen year I wrestled at 103 pounds.”
Not being physically overpowering forced Pendleton to focus on his technique if he wanted to be successful. The effort paid off — Cowboy coach John Smith labels Pendleton as one of his greatest technicians.
“By technician I mean he is solid in with his skill, he executes well and he is successful in all the positions in wrestling,” Smith said.
Pendleton is off to an incredible start, he has knocked off each of the No. 3, 4, and 5 ranked 174-pound opponents twice to give him a 7-0 record against Top 10 opponents. However, Pendleton said he will not be satisfied with two more months of training before the NCAA Championship tournament arrives.
“I need to improve my intensity and being able to go a complete match and not make the little mistakes that are allowing me to win by only one or two points,” Pendleton said. “I need to start beating people by bigger margins.”
Pendleton said he has matured a lot since arriving in Stillwater and that he has learned something from each of his teammates.
“I have learned a great work ethic from Tyrone Lewis, mental toughness from Johnny Thompson and ‘don’t stop’ from Shane Roller,” Pendleton said. “And no matter what situation or what move you are having trouble with — someone is going to know what to do.”
During Pendleton’s freshmen year, senior Ty Wilcox suffered a knee injury and that forced Pendleton into the starting line-up, where he posted a 15-7 record. Following a short freshmen season, Pendleton redshirted his 2001-02 season and went 13-2 while wrestling in open tournaments for the Cowboys.
“I was in a good position,” Pendleton said. “When most freshmen take their redshirt year, they haven’t been to the NCAA tournament before. But I had and knew what I needed to do to be able to win it next year. I a little bit more focus over that year.”
Last week, Pendleton accepted his invitation to the 37th annual National Wrestling Coaches Association All-Star Classic, which takes place Feb. 3 at the University of Delaware. Pendleton will face West Virginia’s No. 1-ranked Greg Jones in the All-Star Classic.
“It is something I have been looking forward to for a while now,” Pendleton said. “Because you want to be the No. 1 guy.”
Drew Hill can be reached
via e-mail at
dhill@ocolly.com
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