It is not every day that a 197-pound man goes overlooked. But after two Mid-American Conference runner-ups, Joel Weimer is catching the eyes of more than just coaches and other wrestlers.
Coming out of Springboro High School near Dayton, Weimer had only garnered the attention of Division-II schools. He was not offered scholarships to any D-I schools, but he was also not deterred.
The problem for wrestling for a school like Springboro is
it's not known for wrestling at all Weimer said. So it's hard to get recruited out of a school like that. A lot of college coaches just don't get a chance to see you wrestle.
Weimer's father, Thomas, said he had no doubt his son could succeed at the D-I level. But the one thing all agreed on was Weimer's inability to close out the end of his season. That's when he struggled through the state tournament both his junior and senior years of high school.
He had a wealth of experience at every level
Thomas said. I had a lot of people tell me the one thing about him was that he had the will to win. I just thought he got to his senior year
and he was highly ranked and he had another disappointing loss.
Weimer decided to attend Ohio for academics as a chemical engineering major and try to walk on to the wrestling team. What he accomplished in just the few short years he has been here has exceeded all expectations, including his own.
I ended up wrestling varsity at the end of my freshman year and that wasn't anything I was expecting at all
he said. I was thinking maybe three
four years into it I'd maybe see varsity. But I ended up being varsity that year and it's gone well since.
Gone well, meaning two MAC runner-ups in as many years wrestling. But what might be more unexpected is the demeanor with which the second heaviest varsity wrestler carries with him at all times.
He pretty much does keep to himself. Not all the time
but he's a chemical engineer. He's usually always studying
said teammate and roommate Jeremiah Beltran. The kid's practically a genius. He's a very
very smart
intelligent guy... He doesn't like to talk about what he's done. He doesn't want to brag about himself. It's a very good character trait to have.
Intelligent and humble - the two words a teammate used to describe a guy who now earns his college education by putting people on his back. Beltran said the reason Weimer has had success wrestling is because the dedication he puts into his personal life translates onto the mat - sentiments coach Joel Greenlee echoes.
It wasn't like he just walked in off the street
