• 2 years ago
iowa wrestling
Transcript
00:00 It was something. It was an experience. I mean, I've rostered in big crowds before, but it's
00:05 It's different when you got a thousand people cheering for you than against you
00:08 So it was just it was a great. It was just an awesome experience
00:12 It was great to perform the way I did, you know, obviously
00:15 I think I could have put some more points on the scoreboard, you know
00:17 I like to light it up a little bit, but um, you know, I think they also love the dramatics, too
00:21 So, you know, this is a show and I like to put it on. Okay, who's the gentleman that you hugged when you came on the floor?
00:27 It's my dad. I mean we've been doing this journey for Wow
00:30 Since fourth grade year. I think I want to say so it's just been
00:34 Surreal how far I've come where I've come from, you know, I'm from at the end of the day
00:38 I'm from you know, a small town in Georgia, Albany, Georgia, you know born and raised and on the shoes that I was wearing
00:43 And the meat, you know, it said two to nine. That's my area code, you know
00:47 So I come from humble beginnings and you know
00:49 It's cool to be where I'm at now and perform the way I am performing, you know
00:54 I plan on just continuously doing that and making the hometown proud
00:56 Phil
00:59 Could you describe the emotions or the feeling when you're pumping up the crowd after you won?
01:05 Well, you know when you came bounding off the mat. Yeah
01:08 Yeah, absolutely. Like I said at the end of the day, I'm a performer, you know, and everyone that's in those stands, you know
01:14 Everyone that's cheering for me, you know, even the people that aren't cheering for me, you know
01:17 I like to put on a show and those are the fans. Those are the people I want to go for
01:21 Those are the people I'm gonna put on a show for you know in the day
01:24 That's that's what I like to do, you know
01:25 So that was just going through my head because they you guys come to watch these meets because we're performers, you know
01:31 And what we like to do is put on a show
01:33 So we put on a show and at the end of the day I put on a show and I'm glad everyone enjoyed it
01:37 Everyone was still cheering for me at the end of the day. So, you know, I'm just no
01:41 I think the an easy word to use right now, especially with Thanksgiving coming up is gratitude
01:46 So yeah, just thankful for the fans for my coaches for my teammates
01:51 everybody who's played a
01:53 Even a small role in this, you know next chapter of my life and all the chapters before as well
01:58 So we don't need to remind you what's been happening here with the wrestlers around here
02:01 I knew your role until you are new to this type of thing
02:04 But what do you what role do you feel like you have to get everybody's mind, right?
02:08 Yeah, I mean Tom says next break our top Tom Brand says next guy up
02:13 So, you know, I'm gonna embrace that whatever that guy says, I'm gonna embrace it 110%
02:17 So if he says next guy up then excuse my language, but
02:20 Dag, damn it next guy up, you know
02:23 tried to find a better word to use besides, you know, damn it, but
02:26 So yeah, you know he says next guy up
02:29 I'm gonna embrace that and you know, and this is one of those situations where it was next guy up, you know
02:34 Right now we don't have you know, one of the best guys in the room for me Nelson brands, but I
02:39 we got wishful thinking and
02:42 You know, I think hopefully everything goes well and you know, we'll get that guy back and you know, if not, you know
02:48 So be it but at the end of the day, I still got that guy in the room. He's a great partner
02:52 He's a great just human being in general
02:54 So it's just it's just great having an all-american in the room that happened to be at
02:59 174 a guy that I like sometimes beats the piss out of me, you know, it's just it's great to have that guy in the room
03:05 So, I mean, why not even if I am the guy or not the guy why not be grateful and just be glad that I got
03:11 A body like that, you know, so
03:13 I
03:16 Mean it's kind of been planted in my head all week
03:20 It's been one of those things like hey you want this match? I'm like hell. Yeah, I want this match
03:24 You know like Travis Whitlake passed all-american, you know, no slouch at all
03:28 And you know, I wanted I wanted it, you know
03:30 I wanted to put on a show for the home crowd and you know, I wanted to you know
03:34 Tom or Terry said that you know
03:37 We need to put this time to this this match this duel was to put the world on notice
03:42 I'm here at 174 pounds. I'm not backing down from anything. I'm ready for it all. Let's do it
03:50 You're from Georgia. You brought that up, right, but you transferred to Iowa City. So this was kind of your home, you know last year
03:56 What was it like to get you know win in front of some hometown people here? It's real man. It's real dream come true
04:02 You know, you got a lot of kids who are in the stands now
04:05 You know, they've been Hawkeyes fans since you know this big, you know
04:09 It's it's crazy and just to be a part of that culture culture a part of that history, you know
04:15 It's just it's crazy
04:16 You know
04:16 I never really I guess my home team when I was younger and growing up and starting wrestling was Mizzou because I have family ties
04:22 There you know, my dad went there
04:24 Jane Cox my cousin he went there, you know, so my grandma lives there literally lives right down the street from the University
04:29 So, you know my roots are you know, my roots are there, you know
04:33 So I can kind of sort of embrace that a little bit just having that, you know
04:36 like hometown school you'd love to root for and
04:39 You know, I'm just like I said, I'm glad and proud to be a part of that history a part of this culture, you know
04:46 So well, I had your way. What would your plans be for the rest of the season?
04:50 you know, you have some matches that you can have and still keep your red shirt, but
04:55 You know as far as you're concerned. Do you want to be there the full season? I
05:01 Want to be a national champ
05:02 So whatever that route looks like if not this year next year
05:05 If not next year than the year after that if not the year after that then the year after that, you know
05:10 So it's just that that's the goal. I want to be a four-timer, you know, and I want to I want to do big things by
05:16 Time I'm done in this sport, you know
05:17 But at the end of the day wherever the coaches tell me to do I'm gonna do you know
05:20 I'm a who's helped you the most during this whole process this past year
05:23 I don't even think there's anyone I could pinpoint just because everyone has just been so
05:29 Pivotal just through this whole like year, you know thing that I've been here for you know
05:34 I've been I moved to Iowa City last year's all of you guys know and just you know
05:39 It's it's hard to say. Oh this guy did the most this guy did the most like no
05:42 It's just been a group effort to make Gabe Arnold the absolute best human being he could possibly be forget wrestling
05:49 You know at the end of the day, this is just a sport. I do this because I love it
05:52 I do this because I get the opportunity to do it, you know and just you know
05:56 That's all that matters at the end of the day if I'm not a good person then all this goes to waste
06:00 Walk us through what you saw on that take down there. I
06:03 Mean, I'm a I'm a guy that I don't I say that I don't like to feel things out
06:09 But sometimes it's just nature of the beast just how things go sometimes
06:11 But you know, I saw the angle and I was like I was feeling it feeling it feeling it and I was like bang
06:18 Let's get it. So I got to that foot. He started to drag out a little bit
06:21 I was like, come on just kept the foot on the mat came up put him down
06:24 You know, I know he was a rolly guy
06:26 I knew he wanted to try to get me off his legs as much as possible. But you know
06:30 Put him in the ground hammer it down
06:33 I have my mom my dad. I
06:40 Had my grandmother so that was an awesome experience to have her there just
06:47 She's another one of those, you know, she's she's someone else that's been she's been around wrestling, you know
06:53 Since my dad has started and she's just super crazy wrestling fan and she's awesome
06:57 Jennifer Arnold is just if you don't know her now
07:00 You're probably gonna hear in the stands because she'll be screaming for me
07:04 So however much longer the coaches allow me to wrestle in front of a home crowd
07:07 I'm pretty sure you'll be hearing her so you'll know her name by time. I'm done with my four five years
07:12 Yeah, my grandmother came from Missouri my parents both live in Iowa City live literally I don't know 12 minutes away from here
07:20 So yeah
07:22 Thank you
07:24 Thank you.
07:24 (door closing)