David Taylor overwhelmed most of his high school opponents with little trouble, prompting every college to recruit him to wrestle for its program.
But as Taylor grappled with senior Bubba Jenkins at practice last week, Jenkins toyed with the freshman, laughing as he earned a takedown.
Taylor, who lost only two of his 182 high school matches, admits he hasn't scrapped with many wrestlers as strong as Jenkins, Frank Molinaro, or Cyler Sanderson. For a superstar lightweight high school wrestler, battling stronger teammates has taught Taylor to adjust to wrestling as a middleweight.
"I don't have the strength right now, but when that comes, it's not going to be as big of a surprise when I start wrestling [high-caliber] guys," Taylor said. "That's something that's going to come over time."
For now, Taylor is the gem of Penn State's recruiting class, which was already ranked in the top 10 in July before more talented freshmen joined the team. Ed Ruth, the No. 5 overall recruit in the nation, Jake Kemerer, ranked No. 7, and Luke Macchiaroli of Arizona highlight a group of eight freshmen who have the potential to lay the groundwork for a national championship runs throughout their careers.
"They're here and they love the sport," head coach Cael Sanderson said. "If you don't have guys in your program who are doing what it takes, it not only affects them, but it affects the whole group. We need that leadership and that work ethic, and we've got what we need."
Ruth won the 171-pound national title as a high school senior and is ecstatic to join this Lion program. The Harrisburg native committed to Penn State last fall, before Sanderson took over the program in April.
Ruth owns a lucky charm, but he doesn't think he is lucky. He believes he earned his place in the Lion wrestling room, and his scholarship, by working hard at Blair Academy in Blair, N.J.
"To tell you the truth, it's priceless," Ruth said. "You can't really put a price on this. There's nowhere else you'd rather be."
Assistant coach Casey Cunningham wrestled extensively with Ruth at practice last week, grappling with the prized recruit until the rest of the team left practice.
Cunningham praised Ruth's talent and his potential. Meanwhile, Ruth considers it a privilege to train in one of the most talented wrestling rooms in the nation.
"I really use him as someone you can measure yourself against," Ruth said of Cunningham. "You can't really go against somebody you can beat all the time because you'll never see where you're at."
Taylor, too, tries to scope out the best competition in the room every day, often pulling Jenkins or Molinaro onto the mat to brawl. Molinaro spends a lot of time with the freshman in practice, but enjoys Taylor's company off the mat, too. The two played video games for hours on end last weekend.
On the mat, Molinaro said Taylor has made huge improvements since the Lions' summer training cycle.
"He's got unlimited potential," Molinaro said of Taylor. "Him training with me, and me training with him, I'm going to get better and he's going to get better too. He's going to make some big jumps from high school to college, training with bigger people."
Another stud of this freshmen class, Macchiaroli, spars frequently with sophomore Quentin Wright, an All-American at last year's NCAA Championship. Assistant coach Matt Dernlan called Macchiaroli's work ethic "tremendous."
Dernlan said the Arizona native pushes himself to his limit every day and always demands success out of himself.
"Every kid I've seen with his level of work ethic has achieved some level of success, so he's doing great," Dernlan said. "If he continues to apply the same work ethic every day this year, he's going to make gains and he's going to be good."
While the freshmen have impressed their teammates and coaches with their talent, they are all quick to admit the collegiate style is much different than what they were used to in high school.
Ruth said it was a lot easier to slack off in high school, but the Penn State coaches watch the freshmen "like hawks" and punish them for not doing their push-ups and pushing themselves during drills.
"In high school, there's going to be some kids who are good and some kids who aren't as nice," Taylor said. "Here, if you're having a bad day, you're going to get beat up by everybody. You have to come in with the attitude everyday that you want to get better or it's going to be a long day."
Although nothing is finalized, the coaching staff plans to redshirt most of the freshmen to allow them more time to develop and learn. The plan for Taylor, baring injuries to other wrestlers, is to redshirt him this season, in preparation for a 2010-11 title run.
Dernlan said Taylor is weighing in at around 160 pounds right now, despite wrestling as a lightweight in high school.
Sanderson and the rest of the staff expect this freshmen class to fit in nicely with the future plans for the Nittany Lions.
"When you get into the room and you're getting beat up a little bit, it can be tough," Cunningham said. "But they've handled it, and they got through it. They're taking some lumps and now they're getting the process. They're doing great adjusting."
If the freshmen continue to adjust to wrestling collegiately, this recruiting class could lay the foundation for restoring the Penn State wrestling tradition.
"They're some of the very best kids in the country, in my opinion," Sanderson said. "We're going to provide them with everything they need and they know exactly what it takes to win a national championship."
