Chad Pyke set the national record with 329 wrestling wins for Woodward Academy. Now it looks like the first to challenge his record will be his younger brother, Chandler.
Photo by Caryn Oxford
Chad Pyke, a senior at
Woodward Academy (College Park, Ga.), set a national record this year with 329 wrestling victories in four years, but it could last for just one season because his junior brother, Chandler, is only one win shy of his older sibling's record-breaking pace.
Chad Pyke told MaxPreps, "It (the record) was in the back of my mind, but I was not very focused on it. I just score as many points as I can and have fun. It means a lot, because it represents all the work I've done and I've consistently improved every year."
Interestingly, Pyke thought the record was 324 wins, but that total involved some middle school victories. The National Federation record book recognizes only statistics from grades 9-12 because many states do not allow middle school athletes to compete in varsity sports. Thus, the recognized record was 284 wins by Colton Palmer of Riverside (Durham, N.C.) from 2004-07.
He didn't break the record the easy way, either, because he often moved up a weight class just to face the strongest possible opponent.
Pyke, who lost just 18 times and won a pair of Class AAA state titles, was able to obliterate the record because of talent and a schedule that allows Georgia grapplers to compete on 20 dates — with a maximum of five matches on a single day.
The Georgia star took full advantage of the schedule because he never missed a match in four years, according to coach Pete Fritts.
"He's an iron man," Fritts praised. "Basically, he hasn't been hurt or sick. He played through some illness."
Pyke is proud of his iron man mentality, pointing out, "I definitely wrestled sick a lot of times in my career. I was always banged up, a lot of little things.,"
He began competitive wrestling as a seventh grader, following in the footsteps of his father, Charles, who wrestled at the same school. In fact, his grandfather also attended Woodward Academy, but he played football. His family lives 30 minutes from the campus.
In eighth grade football, he broke his leg and that determined his future as a wrestler.
Football's loss was wrestling's gain, according to Fritts, a high school teammate of Pyke's father.
Fritts noted, "It really turned for him in eighth grade when he started to train year-round. He wanted to be the best he possibly could be. He was good, but wasn't great. Once he started putting in the work — his work ethic is the best among guys I've coached."
Pyke believes that he was born with a strong work ethic, but "a lot of it comes from my dad, who says if you give yourself enough time and work at it, you can accomplish anything."
Reaching varsity as a freshman necessitated some major adjustments, particularly wrestling as many as five matches in one day.
Pyke explained, "The main thing I had to get used to was the strength. I had to get stronger and more confident. It's definitely very tiring and taxing on you. You have to make sure you get plenty of rest and mix up your training. You have to manage your weight very well. I don't have a specific diet, but I make sure to eat four or five meals a day — small meals."
Chad Pyke celebrates one of his titles.
Photo by Caryn Oxford
The turning point came early when he entered his first tournament (40-team field in South Carolina) unseeded, but won the 112-pound championship.
"It was pretty exciting," he said. "I knew then that I was on a level where I could compete. I definitely was sold on it at that point."
He finished his freshman year with a school-record 74 wins and placed fifth in the Class AAA state tournament at 112 pounds. He lost just seven times.
The next year he set the sophomore school record with 80 victories (six losses) and finished third in the Class AAA state tourney at 125 pounds. During that year he beat the eventual Class AAAA champ by a solid 11-1 margin.
Pyke really came into his own as a junior, compiling an 86-4 record at 138 pounds and notching his first state championship.
"That was huge," he said, "because I'd been chasing it (the title) for a long time."
What did he do to celebrate?
"I went out and ate a big dinner," he said.
Fritts pointed out that during his junior year, Pyke "had major decisions over everybody. He wrestles at a pace for six minutes (three two-minute periods) that other kids can't keep up with. We faced the toughest in triple-A last year and he just ran through it. They can (keep up) for the first minute or two. To watch it happen is pretty amazing. Those kids just want to get over with it and get off the mat."
Pyke described his relentless style when he noted, "I always try to score the next point, so I don't feel like sitting back and waiting. I'm more of a grinder and I want to be in close. I always make them wrestle for six minutes straight, because I'm in great shape."
As dominant as Pyke was as a junior, he was much more powerful as a senior.
Fritts said it colorfully: "He (as a senior) would have mauled himself (as a junior)."
Pyke looked at his vast jump as a combination of confidence and a lot of time in the weight room throughout the off season.
He kicked off his senior campaign in October by placing second at 152 pounds during a USA tournament in Iowa, calling it one of his better performances.
Despite jumping from 138 pounds as a junior to 160 pounds, he completed his superb senior year with an 89-2 record and the state championship at 160. He also had a school-record 56 pins. His only two losses were by a single point (9-8 and 5-4).
"I definitely didn't wrestle my best in both losses," Pyke admitted. "The last one I got kind of complacent. The competition at that point of the season wasn't great and I slipped up. I got angry (and buzzed through the state tournament)."
That "buzz" helped the War Eagles win their first team state championship since 1972.
Because Pyke is able to critique himself so well, he could become a coach some day.
"All the coaches I've been around are excellent and I have learned a lot," he said. "I'm pretty good at fixing my mistakes and can fix them very quickly. It (coaching) definitely has crossed my mind a little bit. My main thing is to go wherever God leads me."
However, Fritts wants it known that his young protegé is much more than an athlete.
He related, "He is in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and goes on mission trips every summer. He is a good student (3.4 GPA) and a good leader — not just a wrestler and put away in a closet."
Outside of school, Pyke said he likes to fish, scuba dive and hunt quail.
He plans to major in finance at North Carolina State University and hopes to emulate his idol, David Taylor, a junior wrestler at Penn State, when he hits the collegiate circuit.
His long-term goal was to make the U.S. Olympic team until it was announced that wrestling will be eliminated in 2020 and Pyke is adamant that the decision is wrong.
"I do not agree with it at all," he said. "It's one of the oldest and most competitive sports. The quality of the Olympics as a whole will greatly diminish."
Then he added hopefully, "I think they are going to turn it around (and keep the sport). The wrestling community will surprise everyone and unite."
Fritts added, "It's kind of like having your feet cut out from under you. It affects the world more than the United States. You don't cut that sport. It dates back 1780 B.C."
So, as Chad heads to college in the fall, he'll be watching little brother Chandler's senior season very closely. Chad had 240 wins entering his final year, while Chandler has 239. Chandler would actually be ahead of the record-pace had he not missed seven matches as a sophomore due to a shoulder injury.
Chandler, who has already won two state titles, has beaten his older brother just once in a regular match, but they often hook up in spirited practice sessions. Chandler has somewhat of an opposite style, choosing to use his speed and fakes from the outside before he closes in for the kill.
The younger Pyke has already looked at next year's schedule and realizes there are enough matches to break his brother's record.
"It would be great if I did (break the record), but as long as our family name is on it, it's okay," he said.
To which his older sibling added, "There would be no one better to break it."
