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UNIVERSITY PARK -- Penn State's NCAA runner-up Beau Bartlett and NCAA champion Greg Kerkvliet had been taking questions from reporters on wrestling media day when four-time champ Carter Starocci walked into Rec Hall's media room.
Starocci took his seat at the table, tied his shoelaces on Monday afternoon and patiently waited as his fellow seniors continued to respond to questions. It was one of the few times the spotlight wasn't on Starocci.
Then the reporters turned the spotlight on Starocci, who has moved up to 184 this season after winning four titles at 174. He's trying to become the first five-time NCAA champion in the history of the sport.
"I always have a lot going through my mind," Starocci said. "For me, there was never really any pressure. For me, I really couldn't care less about five NCAA titles, four NCAA titles. I just truly love going out there and smashing somebody.
"That's part of the reason I chose to do the all-star match (this Saturday at Penn State). I don't have to do the all-star match, but I just love wrestling. That's honestly why I chose to come back. I love the competition. I love the fight. That's kind of how I was raised. I can do it all day long."
Starocci was certainly the center of attention at the NCAA Championships this past March.
He injured his knee in the last dual meet of the season, took injury defaults in the Big Ten Championships and won the NCAA title by beating Virginia Tech's top-seeded Mekhi Lewis in the quarterfinals, Michigan's Shane Griffith in the semifinals and Ohio State's Rocco Welsh, 2-0, in the finals.
"I always knew that I was going to win," he said. "I always knew that I was tough. I always knew that I don't have to be 100 percent healthy all the time. NCAA wrestling really is not that hard. You have guys who have pretty good majors or are partying.
"For me, I've got wrestling. If you're doing anything less than me, I'm going to go out there and dominate you. And there's no way you're doing more than me because it's impossible. And if you are then your body's overtrained and I'm still going to dominate you."
Starocci wrestled in the Olympic Trials at Penn State, but when he suffered a 6-4 loss to Trent Hidlay in the challenge tournament at the Bryce Jordan Center, he defaulted out of the event. Now he's ready to go.
"I feel great," Starocci said with a laugh. "I always feel great. I get to wrestle every single day. I've got practice in a little bit, and that's the kind of stuff I look forward to. Even with this all-star match, I'm wrestling a guy (Parker Keckeisen) that was pretty dominant last year. I'm excited to show I'm the dominant one."
"With a guy like Carter, he's just a competitor," Penn State coach Cael Sanderson said. "He's not going out there to sneak by with wins, so he's always looking to the bigger picture."
Starocci, who was 17-2 last season and is 78-4 in his career, feels more comfortable after moving up to 184 pounds
"I just feel it was my natural weight," he said. "I talked to the coaches. They wanted me to go at 184 last year, but I can be stubborn at times. For me, if they tell me to do something, I kind of want to do the opposite. I don't want to be until 3 in the morning cutting weight anymore. It kind of made sense for our lineup."
Lineup is strong again
Starocci won't have four-time NCAA champ Aaron Brooks to serve as the 1-2 punch in the lineup after Brooks graduated and took the bronze in the Olympics. But the lineup will be loaded with talent again this season for Penn State, which opens the season at 1 p.m. Sunday at Rec Hall against Drexel. The NWCA All-Star Classic is 7 p.m. Saturday at Rec Hall, with Starocci, Beau Bartlett, Shayne Van Ness, Tyler Kasak and Levi Haines wrestling in it.
The Nittany Lions are coming off of winning their 11th NCAA championship in the last 13 tournaments, winning the team title by 100 points, crowning four national champs, netting eight NCAA medals and going 12-0 in the regular season.
"Every season is kind of the same for us," Sanderson said. "We're excited to see where we are and just build from there. We have a lot of great kids, great human beings. We'll just keep getting better and be at our best in the big moments."
"Our new AD, Pat Kraft, keeps finding new ways to make things better," Starocci said. "I think our coaching staff is really exploiting that. Our team last year was really dominant, and we had a lot of records. Even with losing a lot of really good guys, I think this team can be even better. The following year is going to be even better."
Others moving up in weight
Fellow NCAA champ Kerkvliet and runner-up Bartlett return to 285 and 141, respectively. Runner-up Mitchell Mesenbrink returns to the 165-pound spot. Bartlett lost to Ohio State's Jesse Mendez, 4-1, on a last-second takedown in the NCAA finals.
"Last year, I had so much confidence. It turned into arrogance a little bit," Bartlett said. "A lot of matches I don't think I cared enough to be fearless in those matches. I was so focused on not losing.
"I shouldn't lose to this guy is a terrible mindset to have, hoping I'd have a breakout moment at NCAAs. I took the shot and didn't finish it, and I think I set myself up for failure because of that arrogance. Now it's not confidence you're sensing. I think it's just freedom. I don't feel weighed down by anything."
Starocci isn't the only Nittany Lion moving up in weight. Haines, who won an NCAA title at 157, has moved all the way up to 174. The 157-pound spot will be filled by either Kasak, who has moved up from 149 after placing third at NCAAs, or Alex Facundo, who has dropped from 165.
Sophomore Braeden Davis, a Big Ten champion as freshman, has moved up to 133 from 125. He'll be at the same weight as Aaron Nagao, but Nagao is apparently dealing with an undisclosed injury.
"Actually Aaron was injured in the offseason, if you guys weren't aware of that," Sanderson said, "so he's still kind of rehabbing and getting back to full strength."
Van Ness, who finished third at the NCAAs two years ago, missed most of last season and took a medical redshirt. He returns to the 149-pound spot.
There are spots open at 125 and 197. Star freshman recruit Luke Lilledahl is at 125, but Sanderson mentioned senior Kurt McHenry as a possible starter. The 197-pound starter could be either Lucas Cochran or Josh Barr.
Wisconsin freshmen and twin brothers Connor Mirasola (197) and Cole Mirasola (285) will likely redshirt, Sanderson said.