Nebraska's Jordan Burroughs ready to make run at Hodge Trophy, 2nd NCAA title

Nebraska's Jordan Burroughs wins the 2009 NCAA title at 157 pounds in St. Louis. Larry Slater photo.

Listen to Jordan Burroughs during a post-match interview and this is what you will see.

A polite, soft-spoken young man who says he is nervous when dealing with the news media and admits his interviews are boring.

Step inside the Nebraska wrestling room and you will see an entirely different personality.

Burroughs often is the life of the party, joking around, talking smack, and seemingly always having a comment for his Husker teammates and coaches.

"I try to stay reserved in the interviews and be respectful to everyone," Burroughs said. "When I'm around the guys, it's a lot different. I just love to have fun. I love to loosen the mood. The season is a long grind. You need to have a little fun."

Just in case anyone in the Husker room didn't know Burroughs is the only Nebraska wrestler to finish a season unbeaten, he will remind them.

"I will bring that up," Burroughs said with a laugh. "I will joke around about it, but my teammates will give it right back to me."

The flashy, fun-loving personality Burroughs has around his teammates matches the dynamic style he wrestles with when he steps on the mat.

Burroughs won the NCAA title at 157 pounds in 2009, becoming the first Husker to finish a season unbeaten after winning all 35 times he stepped on the mat.

Third as a sophomore at 149, Burroughs starts this season as an overwhelming choice to repeat as champion at 157 in 2010. Burroughs is 5-0 this season. The NCAAs will be just down the road from Lincoln in nearby Omaha in 2010.

"I know everyone is coming after me, but I am working even harder and I'm even hungrier this year," he said. "Last year, my goal was to win an NCAA title. This year, my goal is to win all my matches by bonus points and win the Hodge Trophy."

There had been speculation that Burroughs may bump up to 165 this season, but he started this year at 157.

"Yeah, I hear all the talk on the message boards," Burroughs said. "I think it's funny, and I just sit back and laugh about it."

The 5-foot-8 Burroughs, who has a lethal double-leg shot, said he's grown to around 170. He never lifted weights until he entered college.

Burroughs calls himself a late bloomer in wrestling. He was not heavily recruited coming out Sicklerville, N.J., and followed high school teammate and best friend Vince Jones to Nebraska.

Burroughs won a New Jersey state title and won High School Nationals as a senior, but received a rude introduction to college wrestling.

Nebraska coach Mark Manning said Burroughs lost his first wrestle-off, 13-7 to a walk-on at 141 pounds. Motivated by that setback, he eventually jumped into the Husker lineup as a true freshman at 149.

Burroughs went 16-14 and fell short of placing at nationals. He made significant improvement as a sophomore, placing third in a tough 149 class.

He then bumped up to 157 last year and won a loaded class that included two past NCAA champions.

As good as he is in wrestling, Burroughs said it's not his favorite sport. He loves football, and his favorite player is Brandon Marshall of his beloved Denver Broncos.

Burroughs is a regular during Sunday afternoon pick-up football games at the Nebraska rec center. Athletes from the wrestling, basketball and track teams gather. There is no tackling allowed, but Burroughs said the games are still very competitive.

"Nobody can cover me," Burroughs said with a laugh. "I line up at wide receiver and just run a fly pattern straight down the field. I've had a few touchdown catches. I always joke with our coaches that my fifth year here I want to play football for the Huskers."

Burroughs played football as a high school freshman.

"I was a 103-pound running back," he said with a laugh. "I was so small that I just sat on the bench."

Burroughs made the U.S. Junior World Team in wrestling in 2008 and plans to jump into freestyle full-time after the college season at 74 kg/163 lbs.

Among the wrestlers he beat last year in college was Minnesota's Dustin Schlatter, who made the 2009 World Team.

"Freestyle is catered to a style like mine where I wrestle on my feet a lot," Burroughs said. "My goal is to be on the 2012 Olympic Team. Hopefully, I can wrestle in the next two World Championships as well."

Manning, one of the U.S. World Team coaches in 2009, loves what Burroughs can bring to the next level.

"Jordan's only going to get better," Manning said. "He's not a finished product by any means. He has tremendous potential."

Burroughs, who turned 21 in July, knows competing at wrestling's top level is a realistic goal now.

"I went to Junior Worlds last year and I trained at the Olympic Training Center," he said. "I wrestled a lot of the top guys, like (Olympian) Doug Schwab, and did pretty well."

Burroughs is looking to become Nebraska's first two-time NCAA champion. If he does, he likely will be modest about it in his post-match interview.

But he may do a little barking to his buddies.

"When Jordan's around the guys, he's a jokester. He's very funny," Manning said. "But he's really a very humble kid. He's worked very hard and he's come a long way. He's been great to have in our program.