Kilgore looking forward to a long, successful career in wrestling

Dustin Kilgore battles with Jake Varner in the 97 kg finals of the 2014 World Team Trials in Madison, Wis. Photo by Tony Rotundo, Wrestlers are Warriors.


It was never a question, to wrestle or not to wrestle. For 2014 World Team Trials runner-up Dustin Kilgore, it was a for sure thing.


“Honestly when I was little, I kind of wanted to do baseball and wrestling. To this day, I’ve never done another sport, it was only wrestling. And wrestling kind of took over,” said Kilgore.


With a father who had wrestled throughout his younger years and an uncle who won a state championship for Kilgore’s alma mater, Berea High School in Berea, Ohio, Kilgore found a simple path to follow when choosing a sport to participate in.


“I became very dedicated to the sport. Honestly, I didn’t have time to do any other activities or sports. I was pretty good from the start, so I decided that this is what I want to do. I enjoyed a lot of it. I met so many people through the sport, made a lot of relationships, and met a lot of friends. Honestly, I wouldn’t change it for anything,” said Kilgore.


Throughout high school, he began to foster not only a love for the sport, but an understanding of how tough it could truly be.


“You understand from a young age that not a lot of people are going to do this. I’ve seen it many times, just people quitting here and there. It’s a tough sport; you have to understand that it’s going to happen. The number of people that do make it become your closest friends. You see them every day, you’re eating with them, and you’re training with them. I really enjoyed the high school aspect of wrestling, and I didn’t know what to expect in college,” said Kilgore.


Filled with interest, and a bit of apprehension, he went into his senior season and caught a glimpse of what collegiate wrestling was about by attending the NCAA championships that year. After that, wrestling in college was a no-brainer.


“It really wasn’t until my senior year of high school that I went to watch the NCAA finals. I remember watching Jake Herbert win his first national title. I think Coleman Scott was there and had pinned his guy in the finals. Just seeing that, just seeing that huge crowd and stadium, it was really quite an amazing sight to see. From there on, I told myself that I wanted to be a national champion, that this was what I wanted to do,” said Kilgore.


He chose to attend Kent State for its close proximity to his hometown and its small community atmosphere. Kilgore went on to take a redshirt with Kent State’s wrestling program during his first year of college. He soon discovered that college life was not so big and bad after all.


“College, those are some of the best years of your life. When you get some time off, maybe you get to go to the movies, play video games, and just hang out.Honestly everyone that you become friends with in wrestling, it’s in the community, they pretty much become your family,” said Kilgore.


Despite the fun that life at Kent State provided, it did not mask the fact that its wrestling program needed a serious pick me up.


“We’ve had many, many great wrestlers, but we kind of hit a dry spell for about 15 to 20 years where we didn’t have any All-Americans. A huge factor was our new head coach, Jim Andrassy, and along with the staff, Josh Moore and Matt Hill. They really wanted to change the program around and develop it, so in my freshman year we had a few All-Americans. From there, everything just changed and turned around for the better,” said Kilgore.


With a new coaching staff and new energy in the program, the Golden Flashes began to see natural success. In time, he found out how rewarding it could be to be a successful collegiate athlete.


“For me as a wrestler, I was stubborn. I always wanted to set records, maybe for most pins, or most wins. Being a three-time All-American, I was always looking to reach that next pedestal, that next goal. My senior year, I was 44-1. I lost my last match, but I had a stubborn attitude. Even if I was sick, I wanted to be out there wrestling with my teammates. I just wanted to help put points on the board,” said Kilgore.


He was not only one of the most successful wrestlers at Kent State history, but he was one of the school’s greatest athletes, regardless of sport. Not only was he the first of their program to reach 100 career victories during his junior season, but he was also their first to win an NCAA individual championship in 2011.


“It was an amazing feeling. I can remember in the interview after my final match I was just speechless. I was so overwhelmed with joy. Honestly, it's my best memory of wrestling,” said Kilgore.


Kilgore spent a year on redshirt from Kent State, training full-time at the U.S. Olympic Training Center. After graduation, he returned to the OTC to pursue his Olympic dreams.


Fast forward to 2015, at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Kilgore is feeling stronger than ever. He attributes his current gains in strength and technique to the coaches who he trains with every day.


“I think having the great coaches that we do right now, with having Zeke before and Coach Burnett now, I think their super technical coaching is great. I love it. For me, one of the biggest things I’d like to work on is technique, and that is possible with these coaches,” said Kilgore.


Not only does he believe that there is terrific opportunity under his coaches instruction, but his coaches see a vast amount of potential in him. Freestyle Resident Coach Brandon Slay said Kilgore’s performance speaks for itself.


“Dustin has improved tremendously through his experience with us here at the Olympic Training Center. After he became the first NCAA individual champion at Kent State and took a redshirt with us, he began to make major strides with his freestyle abilities,” said Slay.


As a two-time member of the National Team (2011 & 2014), he has proven his potential to be an Olympic-caliber wrestler. Kilgore has also shown that he is an outstanding person outside of wrestling as well.


“He has extra hard work ethic, with a desire and ability to give full effort at all times. Dustin is also a ‘clean liver’-that is, we don’t have to worry about him making bad decisions outside of our reach as coaches. His strengths as an athlete and a person are truly encouraging for our freestyle coaching staff here at the OTC,” said Slay.


Despite the fact that he says there is room for improvement, he does not doubt that the pieces will all fall together when they are needed.


“Better technique and conditioning, it’ll all be there in time, when it needs to be. It always has been,” said Kilgore.


With the new year ahead of him, Kilgore is focusing on the upcoming season, as well as the Olympic year in 2016.


“Right now, I’m feeling pretty good. There are times where you just have to push through, because when it comes down to it, the Olympics, the World Championships, it’s five matches to win. It isn’t easy,” said Kilgore.


He placed second to Olympic champion Jake Varner at the 2014 World Team Trials, and is working daily to move up to the top spot at his weight.


Currently, his technique and drive to succeed are the dominating thoughts on his mind. He stays grateful, having the opportunity to learn from and train with the best. And he certainly is not leaving the sport any time soon.


“I’m looking into college coaching when I’m done,” said Kilgore. “I’ve been wrestling for so long. I feel like it would be so hard to just leave and pick up somewhere completely different. The way I look at it, right now, wrestling is my career. It is something I’ve done since I was seven years old, and I’ve loved it ever since then.”