The club wrestling team meets for a practice in their usual studio location on the fifth floor of the gym. It’s a small group. Of the seven regular members, five are present today. The floor of the room is covered in traditional blue wrestling mats, well-scuffed from hours of mock matches.

These guys mean business. They split into pairs, and after three quick taps on the ground, each immediately explodes in an attempt to pin his partner. Bodies are flipped and twisted, rolled into positions I didn’t think possible. Just as quickly, there is an escape, and each wrestler reacts like lightening to prepare for the next move. They wrestle with music blasting, ranging from Metallica to someone crooning “Last Christmas.” Needless to say, it’s intense.

Rico Rodriguez, ES ’10, the team’s captain, sets up practices like these five days a week, Monday through Friday. But he emphasizes that while the sport is intense, he understands that the wrestlers might have other priorities. “The big benefit of how the team is set up and how practice is set up [is that] if you miss a couple practices, it’s not a big deal. I want people to plan their wrestling around their academics. I came here to be a student before anything else.”

That’s not to say that the team doesn’t take itself seriously. With only a handful of members, Rodriguez says that this year, with only seven members, looks to be better than most years when there are 10 to 15 wrestlers, because all who participate this year come with experience. Of the five athletes interviewed, all had wrestled in high school and many of them had excelled. “If you don’t know what you’re doing, it’s like being put in a blender. The level of skill is so high and we have a high level of work ethic as well. We’re sufficiently self motivated,” said Justin Wright, BK ’10.

And though the season doesn’t start up until next semester, the team knows that competition will be tough. Said Rodriguez, “The NCWA [National Collegiate Wrestling Association] is a really competitive conference. I came in my sophomore year from lightweight crew (I had done both in high school) and I was not expecting the level of competition that’s there.”

The team often finds itself up against wrestlers who might have gone varsity, but due to the lack of access to colleges with a program, are wrestling at the club level instead. Rodriguez described the competition as “a bunch of kids who are really good at wrestling who didn’t have the scores to play at the college level.” Teammate Matt Ramirez, BR ’12, affirmed, stating that at his last tournament he had come up against a wrestler who had won three state championships, but for some reason was still wrestling at the club level. Against teams with great talent and greater numbers, Yale wrestling cannot make much headway. “We can’t place because of numbers,” said Conner Youngblood, DC ’12, but added, “We’re competitive in our weight classes.”

But do Yale’s wrestlers wish that they could be wrestling at the varsity level? The answer is a resounding no. Ramirez explained, “This is college; I want to go out on the weekends. If I were varsity, I wouldn’t be able to do that.” Rodriguez agreed: “I wouldn’t be working a job. I wouldn’t be doing anything.” Wright emphasized the level of time commitment that would be necessary, and how he wasn’t really looking for that. “There’s an opportunity cost, cutting weight, practice everyday, it’s great. But if you want to take five classes, and do other extracurriculars, I just wouldn’t have time.”

And the lack of a coach? Is that support and guidance missed? Surprisingly, again the answer is no. The athletes pride themselves on their ability to guide and train themselves individually and as a team. “We all have different styles, we all bring something to the table,” said Ramirez. “We don’t really need a coach. We all played in high school and we know what we’re doing.”

Those who have heard of the team’s 10,000 dollar yearly endowment might assume that wrestling without a coach is just an excuse for the guys to spend the money however they want. But it doesn’t work that way. Rodriguez explained, “We have a pool of funds that we apply to each time we need funds. We have to request a week in advance. We’re pretty frugal as a team: We spent maybe two grand last year, mostly on tournament fees including food and transport.” Ramirez emphasized the amount of food it takes to run the team. “We all say we aren’t going to cut weight, then we think ‘Why not?’ and decide we will, so we’re hungry after tournaments. We pig out.”

Ironically, some of the team’s most logical requests for money have been repeatedly turned down. Year after year, the team has requested funds to buy gear—things like shoes, headgear, and wrestling uniforms—that would help the team to feel more like a cohesive unit. And year after year, they get turned down. Rodriguez believes that new gear would also help the team to expand its ranks. “Gear will give us more of a presence on campus. There are kids I see walking around with wrestling T-shirts from high school that just don’t know about the team.”

The team is definitely willing to welcome new members. From what I observed, the club team offers a great, low-key atmosphere for a group of guys to come together and wrestle for fun while at the same time building lasting friendships. All those interviewed stated that they regularly see one another off the mat, and that they love being on the club team. So if you’re one of those guys (or girls) who wrestled in high school, shoot Rodriguez an email and get in on the action.