Mike PucilloIn an article in The Lantern, the student newspaper at Ohio State, Mike Pucillo says, "I was at home looking at some old pictures from when I was young, and in those pictures, I had an Ohio State singlet on."
"Everyone wants to be a Buckeye."
Despite a sparkling prep career at Walsh Jesuit High School in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio -- concluding with a state title his senior year -- Mike Pucillo apparently escaped the attention of Ohio State. However, his lifelong dream was not to be denied. After a year at Hofstra, Mike now finds himself wearing the scarlet and grey of the Buckeyes.
From Cleveland to Columbus via the Long Island Expressway
As a high school senior, Mike had looked at a number of schools -- "Purdue, Hofstra, Old Dominion" -- before signing with Hofstra, where he redshirted his first year.
"I was struggling with being so far from home," says Mike, born in Columbia Station, Ohio southwest of Cleveland, where he went to kindergarten with Ohio State teammate Lance Palmer. "I was having a tough time adapting to the school and the area."
He quickly adds, "I had no problem with the wrestling program or the coaches. Tom Ryan's a great guy."
Tom RyanIn April 2006, Tom Ryan was named head coach of the Ohio State wrestling program… which opened the door for Mike Pucillo to follow his coach's lead and transfer from Hofstra to the Big Ten school in Columbus, and realize his childhood wish of being a Buckeye.
When asked about the 184-pounder that followed him to Ohio State, Coach Ryan says, "He is passionate about wrestling, and Ohio State wrestling. He is a true 'Buckeye.'"
Before becoming a Buckeye …
That mat passion started early for Mike Pucillo. "Dad got me into the sport when I was in kindergarten or first grade," says Mike. "He had been a wrestler. He was my first coach."
"Growing up, I wrestled at the Y(MCA) program that was a feeder to various schools. I could have ended up at Strongsville or St. Ed's or Walsh. I really liked the atmosphere of Walsh, I made the decision to go there when I was in sixth grade."
"I couldn't have asked for a better coach than Bill Barger," says Mike of his coach at the Catholic high school just outside Akron. "He's an all-around great guy. More than just a coach, but a great mentor as well."
"Coach Barger is a great motivator. He can pump you up and convince you that you're capable of achieving any goal."
While at Walsh, Mike Pucillo earned a trip to the Ohio high school state tournament all four years. His freshman year, he placed sixth. His sophomore and junior years, he was a runner-up. It was in his senior year that he claimed the ultimate prize -- a state title at 189 pounds.
Being a two-time finalist helped prepare Mike for his title shot as a senior. "It helped that I had been in that situation before. It reduced some of the pressure. However, I kept thinking, ‘What if I'm a runner-up three years in a row?' I went out and did my best, and it worked out for me."
When asked to name his high school career highlights, Mike immediately mentions winning the Walsh Ironman as a junior. "Not many guys can say they've done that … It was an incredible thrill to win that event in my home gym, in front of all my friends." A moment or two later, he adds, "Winning the Beast of the East as a senior was special, too. That had been a goal of mine since I was in eighth grade."
Mike PucilloWhile Mike Pucillo was a redshirt freshman at Hofstra, he did get some valuable collegiate mat experience. One highlight of his first year in college wrestling was winning the 184-pound title at the Cleveland State Open.
Pucillo part of big changes for the Buckeyes
When Mike Pucillo transferred to Ohio State, he came into a program that was in "turn-around" mode after a period of struggles. In recent years, there had been much talk in the wrestling community that many great prep wrestlers in Ohio -- one of the hotbeds for high school wrestling in the US -- had left the state upon graduation to continue their college careers elsewhere.
In 2006, after nearly a decade at Hofstra, Tom Ryan took the head coaching position for the Buckeyes. A two-time Big Ten champ and twice NCAA All-American at the University of Iowa under coach Dan Gable in the early 1990's, Coach Ryan brought impressive credentials to Ohio State. While at Hofstra, Tom Ryan guided 65 wrestlers to NCAA championship appearances; eleven earned All-American honors.
Tom Ryan made some major changes upon arriving in Columbus. He hired a new coaching staff, bringing in Lou Roselli, as well as Ohio natives Joe Heskett (like Mike, a graduate of Walsh Jesuit High School) and Tommy Rowlands. Before the season started, he went on a tour that took him to the four corners of Ohio to major high school wrestling programs such as St Edward and Archbishop Moeller, bringing the news of the "new" Buckeyes to major media markets across the state.
The new Buckeyes seem to be turning things around. This year, Ohio State completed its regular season with an 8-6 record -- the first winning season since 2002-2003 -- and a 4-4 mark against Big Ten competition. By contrast, in 2005-2006, the Buckeyes were 5-13 in dual-meet competition, losing all eight Big Ten conference duals.
Coach Tom Ryan gives Mike Pucillo some of the credit for the Buckeyes' newfound success: "Mike's a quality young man who is a 'difference-maker' in the Ohio State program."
Hello, Columbus … hello success
How did this freshman transfer assume the role as a "difference-maker"? Mike Pucillo became Ohio State's starter at 184 after senior Alex Picazo was sidelined with a broken hand at the beginning of the season … and he hasn't looked back. During the 2006-07 season, Mike has had a near-perfect record, with his only regular-season loss coming to Northwestern's Jake Herbert, ranked No. 1 in the nation in that weight class.
Mike's career as a Buckeye got off to a tremendous start at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. His first three wins at the early December event included two major decisions and a pin. In the semifinals, the then-eighth-ranked Ohio Stater got a 3-1 win over fourth-ranked Raymond Jordan of Missouri. Then, in the finals, Mike defeated Michigan's Tyrel Todd, ranked third in the country at the time, by the score of 12-6. Thanks to this performance, Mike Pucillo was named Big Ten Wrestler of the Week on December 4.
Tommy RowlandsMike Pucillo has beaten six of the top twenty 184-pounders in Division I. In addition to defeating Missouri's Jordan and Michigan's Todd two times each, Mike has won matches against Indiana's Marc Bennett, Iowa's Phil Keddy, Illinois' John Dergo, and Columbia's Justin Barent.
However, Mike had a disappointing 2007 Big Ten tournament. Seeded third behind Northwestern's Herbert and Minnesota's Roger Kish, the Buckeye 184-pounder opened the conference championships with a 9-3 victory over Phil Bomberger of Penn State, followed by a 4-0 shutout of Michigan State's Joe Williams. However, in the quarterfinals, Mike was pinned by 2006 NCAA finalist Kish at 1:33, and had to forfeit his consolation matches because of injury, ultimately placing sixth… but earning the opportunity to compete at the 2007 NCAA's.
Style points
When asked to describe his wrestling style, Mike Pucillo chuckled and said, "I'm not giving out any secrets" but immediately added, "I really don't think I have a set style. I focus on maintaining good position at all times, and strive to keep the match under my control."
Mike also talked about how "growing into" a 184-pounder has helped him too. "I've not always been this big. As a high school freshman, I wrestled 125. By junior year, I was a '52, then jumped up to '89 senior year … I think that being once small, helped me be more mobile, more agile, quicker than some guys."
Tommy Rowlands, two-time NCAA heavyweight champ for Ohio State who has returned to his alma mater as an assistant coach, says this about Mike Pucillo's way of wrestling: "He's very basic, hard to get out of position. A great handfighter. He makes very few mistakes."
A bright future for this Buckeye
Mike Pucillo is a communications major at Ohio State. Right now, he's open-minded as to possible career options. "There are great career opportunities with my major," says the Buckeye freshman sensation. "However, I would like to be a wrestling coach, ultimately in Division I … I like the competition, staying in the sport. I'd like to help out, share some of what I've learned from my coaches."
Mike PucilloFor Mike Pucillo, graduation is a number of years away. In the meantime, his coaches are very enthusiastic about his future. Assistant coach Tommy Rowlands asserts: "Mike will contend for an NCAA title all four years, continue to be a pillar for this program, and hopefully will hang up some titles, both individually, and as a team."
In summing up his analysis of his 184-pound star, head coach Tom Ryan says, "We are very fortunate to have Mike in this program."
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