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Junior grappler flying under radar
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Also by Mike Ackerstein:
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- Heisman pressures could tackle Tebow (December 10, 2007)
- Wisconsin's home streak dead at 28 (December 10, 2007)
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- Wrestlers grapple in bottom rope contest (November 10, 2006)
by Mike Ackerstein
Thursday, December 7, 2006
Flying under the radar, junior wrestler Collin Cudd is, in many ways, a personification of the UW wrestling team itself — he'd rather let his performance on the mat and in the gym do the talking.
Not the first Cudd to wrestle at UW, Collin comes from a family full of Badger wrestlers. His older brother, Brady, as well as four of his cousins, have suited up for the Badgers at one point or another, establishing a family tradition at Wisconsin.
"With my brother having wrestled here, and my cousins and five other people from (hometown) River Falls wrestling here too, I always knew I'd be a Badger," Cudd said. "It worked out for a lot of those kids, and it's worked out great for me too."
Family history aside, Cudd has made a name for himself at UW, earning NCAA tournament berths in each of the past two seasons despite a tumultuous career.
After starting last season with a promising 7-3 record, Cudd seemed poised to establish himself as one of the Big Ten's top wrestlers, but the 125-pounder struggled through the second half of the season. Cudd finished with an 11-15 record, including a poor 2-6 conference performance.
But Cudd didn't get discouraged.
Even though he was unseeded in the Big Ten tournament, the then sophomore managed two impressive upset victories to finish fifth in his weight class, ending the season on a very high note.
And although he is one of the older and more experienced wrestlers on a young Wisconsin team, Cudd admits not having much interest in playing the role of vocal leader, he'd rather do it quietly.
"I'm kind of shy, and I'm not really a big talker," Cudd said. "I think I choose to lead by example instead."
With so many freshmen and sophomores wrestling for the Badgers this season, Cudd understands it is inevitable that the younger grapplers will watch him closely, and it's his job to make sure the example he sets is a positive one.
"Being an older guy, I know some of the younger guys look up to me," he said. "I know that I have to work hard and have a good work ethic in order to set a good example for them."
His up and down wrestling career has also given Cudd the experience to set a strong example of perseverance and fortitude for younger wrestlers to follow.
"I took a lot of big steps at the end of the season, and in the off-season I was able to use that and work hard, and it's carried over to this season as well," Cudd said.
Riding momentum from the end of last year, Cudd has high hopes of building off his conference tournament performance and putting together success over a complete season this year.
Citing head coach Barry Davis' mantra of consistency, Cudd has learned that even as the schedule gets tougher, he needs to compete with the same level of intensity and hard work in order to be successful.
"You have your ups and downs in wrestling, [but] the real challenge is [maintaining] momentum throughout the season," Cudd said. "You're going to hit some bumps in the road, but you have to work through them and pick yourself back up."
So far, Cudd is off to yet another hot start, compiling a solid 10-3 record as the stretch run of the season nears.
However, this year Cudd plans to keep his momentum going, and with the wrestling program supporting him, Cudd knows it's possible.
"This is a great program, with great facilities and great coaches," Cudd said. "[And] that's helped me to keep getting better as a wrestler which will be important for the rest of this season."
