Trio of Pioneers sign with Oklahoma State wrestling | Sports

Sam Smith cracked a smile when he was instructed the stat, however he already knew all of it too nicely.

When he signed his official Letter of Intent with Oklahoma State on Wednesday, he grew to become the ninth member of the legendary wrestling Smiths household to affix the successful program in school athletics.

“It’s really cool to be a part of something like that,” Smith mentioned. “I give it some thought loads.

“It’s been cool. It’s been inspiring watching (family) while they were in the program. I’ve always kind of wanted to work towards that, so I’m excited for it.”

He was one of three Stillwater High wrestlers to satisfy a dream Wednesday by signing with Oklahoma State wrestling.

Sitting within the center of the trio of Pioneers was the top-rated recruit of the bunch in three-time state champion Cael Hughes, who is taken into account a prime 25 wrestler and projected to wrestle at 133 kilos – making him the potential inheritor obvious to three-time NCAA finalist Daton Fix.

“I’ve worked all my life for this, pretty much,” Hughes mentioned. “Being in Stillwater, it’s always a wrestler’s dream to wrestle for the Cowboys. So it just feels really good to finally get it signed.”

But for him, rising up in Stillwater – when his household moved round 10 years in the past as his father, Jeremy Hughes, grew to become an assistant soccer coach and assistant wrestling coach – the dream is convey an finish to the nationwide championship drought on the crew stage.

He watched former Pioneers like longtime residents Joseph Smith and Kaid Brock win state titles – each individually and as a crew – for Stillwater and carry comparable aspirations as much as the school campus.

“That’s kind of the goal for all us, is to end up there and do the same thing that we’re doing here (Stillwater High) in winning,” Hughes mentioned.

New to the Stillwater wrestling room is two-time Oklahoma state champion, AJ Heeg, who will look to win his first crew title with the two-time defending Class 6A state champions.

Heeg, who wrestled at Edmond Memorial the previous two years after shifting from Illinois, flipped his dedication from Oklahoma to Oklahoma State late within the course of. Having already moved to Stillwater earlier than making that change, he mentioned he’s completely satisfied to have the ability to get a lay of the land earlier than beginning his school profession.

“Getting to know the area, getting to know everyone on the team and all the coaches, I think it’s an advantage,” Heeg mentioned.

The trio are simply the beginning of what might be a prolonged line of prime expertise to transition from Stillwater High to Oklahoma State, with a number of multi-year state champions or state finalists who’re underclassmen throughout the program.

Though Stillwater’s third-year wrestling coach Ethan Kyle has solely identified Hughes and Heeg for a short time, being a former Cowboy wrestler himself, he has identified Sam since Kyle’s school years. Kyle has gone from being coached by John Smith at Oklahoma State, to teaching John’s son at the highschool stage.

“It is very special for me,” Kyle mentioned. “The Smiths have had a huge impact on my life, and I’m sure they will for a long time. … So it’s really special, it’s really unique and it’s fun to be a part of it.

“Makes being a coach and a teacher – working hard all the time – really pay off when you get these kinds of experiences.”

Cowboys declare three different seniors up to now

The total listing of this yr’s recruiting class hasn’t been finalized because the paperwork should make its technique to the athletic division to make it official, however a number of of these athletes did get their Letters of Intent on the primary day of the signing interval.

The most notable of the signees is Christian Carroll, who is taken into account the No. 1 pound-for-pound wrestler on this senior class. And most significantly for the Cowboy program, he’s a heavyweight – a place that the workers has struggled to safe top-tier expertise and needed to bulk up lighter wrestlers to the burden not too long ago.

Carroll had initially dedicated to Penn, however flipped to the Cowboys just some days earlier than Wednesday’s signing interval.

“He’s won a lot of matches, very competitive,” Smith mentioned of the Indiana native on Wednesday. “Everything you see about him is really good. He’s a really stable kid, very mature from the standpoint of just things he wants to do and wants to accomplish.

“It was fortunate. I think we did our homework – my staff – and in the end, had a second opportunity to get him and we did that.”

Also already inking is Bixby’s Jersey Robb, who is taken into account a prime 70 general recruit by most wrestling recruiting websites.

Robb is a two-time state champion, three-time finalist on the Oklahoma highschool state event. He is projected at a 197-pounder for the Pokes.

The Cowboy teaching workers needed to sweat into the night time for one different massive dedication.

Brayden Thompson of Illinois lastly acquired his paperwork in after dinnertime. He is taken into account a prime 5 pound-for-pound recruit who was a member of the Junior World Team. He is projected to be a candidate for 174 kilos for the Pokes.