When coaches gather Friday evening to set the seeds for Saturday’s Southern Conference wrestling tournament, it’s unlikely that Niko Brown will be seeded No. 1.
Staff Photo by Jenna Walker/Chattanooga Times Free Press
Jake Young, left, grabs Niko Brown, right, during wrestling practice Tuesday at the McKenzie Arena in Chattanooga. UTC’s wrestling team is attending the Southern Conference Wrestling Tournament on Saturday in Boone, N.C.That’s fine by the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga’s 197-pounder. He can’t help but think about last year’s tournament when he was 11-15 overall but the league’s top seed because of his 4-0 conference record.
“I don’t ever work out without thinking about it,” he said. “I guess I got the big head because I was the No. 1 seed and thought I’d run through [the tournament]. I was up 4-1 in my first match and let the guy go. He got a cradle and pinned me. I broke. I could’ve come back and at least finished third. I didn’t. I let the team down.”
Brown is better for the experience, however. He has leaped to an 18-8 record and a 4-1 mark in conference matches this season.
“He is probably the most improved kid on the team,” Mocs coach Heath Eslinger said. “He has been a lot more consistent in his matches, and that consistency has translated into a lot more wins. He’s wrestling with a lot more confidence, which is the absolute key to success at this level.”