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NCAA WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIP

March 17, 2017

St. Louis, Missouri

THE MODERATOR: We're joined by 133-pound finalist Seth Gross of South Dakota State. We will start with an opening statement. Seth?

SETH GROSS: Going to the finals of the NCAA Tournament, glory to God. Ready to go.

Q. The ties with you and Iowa will now be brought out. Talk about what this means to you and everything you went through talk about what Chris Bono did to help you deal with this stuff?
SETH GROSS: Yeah, yeah, made mistakes what I was on the Iowa, made some bad choices, but lucky enough Coach Bono took me on and brought me in like family, helped me get things back together, got on campus at South Dakota, weighed 165, kicked me into shape, up last year, got down this year and he's pushed me in all aspects of my life to become better.

Ties with Iowa, I wouldn't say it's bad blood anymore. I made the mistakes, not them; and I don't have a right to be mad at them, but it gives me extra fire knowing it's a guy that I was supposed to be on the team with. We are familiar with each other, so there is a little bit of fire going there to win those matches.

Q. Seth, is there a sense of history and accomplishment as you go through the Big 12 Championships and now the NCAA Division I finalist for SDSU?
SETH GROSS: Yeah, first Big 12 Champ. First All-American here. It's amazing. Happy to put the team on the map. The goal is the NCAA Championship, so I will get the shot at that tomorrow, so I'm just keeping focused on that right now and doing everything right until then.

Q. Talk about not getting to wrestle him in the dual meet? Were you upset or mad?
SETH GROSS: I prepared hard, was ready for that match-up, and they figured out the day before he wasn't going, and a little upset. But gotta do your thing no matter what and wrestle hard every single match. It's what it is and had to keep learning, keep moving forward.

Q. Seth, all tournament you've been tough on top, turning people, riding them, dominating the position. Talk a little bit about your commitment to that aspect of your wrestling and why it works so well for you against high-talented athletes?
SETH GROSS: I like wrestling at a high pace and the thing I've learned if I get a takedown or get taken down, keep wrestling hard, when I get on top that's when I'm going to break guys, riding hard. Working for my turns last year I would do the same type of ride, but wasn't getting turns. But this year I focused on getting turns and I think that kinda scares guys a little more on bottom, so they're hesitant and don't try as hard to get up.

It's been awesome and really first match here I didn't get a turn on a combo, so I was disappointed on that and focused on that the next couple of matches and was able to get a turn in my last two matches against some really good guys.

Q. What do you remember basically two years ago this week when everything went down at Iowa? Contrast your feelings then to now?
SETH GROSS: Two years from this day I was in jail. I mean, it's crazy to think what God has done for me and my team has done for me, my family, and everybody that's had my back since then. Looking back that day I never thought I would be wrestling in the NCAA Finals two years from now. I thought my wrestling career was over. It's an amazing feeling. Can't thank God enough. Just trying to use the best of my opportunity, my coaches that God has given me and everybody that was rooting for me. I'm doing this for them.

THE MODERATOR: Thank you, Seth.

We are joined by 133-pound finalist from Iowa. We will start with opening remarks. Cory?

CORY CLARK: Tough match, good, hard-fought match. Wasn't pretty in my favor, but I got the "W" and I'm always just out there to wrestle hard and when I got out there I felt real loose and I felt relaxed and I felt really good.

When I'm feeling that way I'm tough to beat. I may not hit the prettiest shot or may not hit the legs in finish, but I'm tough to beat and I think that showed.

Q. Cory, you've had close matches that haven't gone in your favor this year. What's the difference tonight as you got into another close one?
CORY CLARK: Big fan of -- not a big fan of making excuses, but I sat out a good portion of the year and I'm the type of guy that with competition I feed off that and I feel progress, you know, you can see -- when you're out on the mat your weaknesses show more so than in the practice room because that's you, your competitive side wrestling out on the mat whereas in the room it's your relaxed side.

You're a different person when you're worked up and the nerves are running through you. I think -- I'm getting lost in the question but more or less I would just say, you know, repetition, getting competition, tough opponents, facing some losses, maybe even helped me out. Just little things like that keep me going and when it come to the end of the year you've really got to -- those last two weeks before the season is over you've got to figure out how you're going to peak and that's what I did. I may not peak to the Olympic champ that I want to be, but I've peaked the best I can be at this point in my life.

Q. Cory, you got a takedown in a funky position where you were able to get the edge there and the few seconds later you were in the same position. Did it surprise you that you were able to get to that again and that it ended up deciding the match?
CORY CLARK: I wind up in that position quite a bit. It's funny you say that because when I wrestled (indiscernible). He was in that leg. I wrestled down hard, make him take the backside route and I straightened my leg and wound up in that hold that I was in. Back at the hotel I was talking to Gilman and I said, isn't that crazy that I keep getting a takedown like that on guys because it's kind of a lazy takedown, as it looks. It's not easy to do, but it's kind of cheap how they are in so deep and you wind up scoring on him. You gotta think what it does to a guy mentally.

But I used do that to Gilman all the time, not all the time. But I used to get guys in the room like that, Gilman and Ramos, get that same move. And I was like, isn't it crazy I keep getting that on people and he laughed at me because I was pointing at him.

It's a move that I got in practice and you're on a big stage. You're having fun out there and sometimes things show that you guys may not have ever seen out of me, but my coaches and my teammates have seen me hit that stuff thousands of times, so much I've hit if a room that haven't shown up in a match yet.

Q. You are a guy that second time around against somebody you've been able to make adjustments if they've beaten you, it seems like the second go-round goes your way a lot better. What is it about getting your hands on somebody once that helps you make those adjustments the second round?
CORY CLARK: You know, when you open up a match a guy grabs you, does a certain thing to you. It almost alerts you, but that can almost be like harmful in a way because it's like then you're kinda like your mind is wondering on it. Like someone hits a certain shot or they grab you real hard it's like, oh, this guy is strong.

But then your mind is not on the right thing. It's on this guy is strong rather than scoring. So maybe when you feel something like the first time I wrestled Tomasello, he's surprisingly strong and when I came out there and he grabbed -- I was prepared. But when he came out there and grabbed me and he start moving it kinda shocked me a little bit. My mind was kind of working itself. Whereas today just before the whistle blew I expected that. I knew that. So when that happened, didn't do nothing to my mind. I was completely myself and I think that's a big part of what you're asking.

Q. When the official raised your arm it looked like a lot of pain. How much can you move that arm? How much has it changed your style?
CORY CLARK: First of all, one of my main goals as a competitor is to show no pain, show no emotion. So that sucks that you noticed that hurt. To be honest, we're in the national finals. It doesn't matter if you cut my arm off. Doesn't matter what kind of pain I'm in. Doesn't matter at this point. Tomorrow is what matters and I'm not going to sit here and say this hurts or this hurts, and once the tournament is over I'll be glad to sit down and tell you what hurts. Not to be an ass, but it's kinda how I feel.

Q. You've gotten yourself to this position two other times. What needs to be different tomorrow night for the outcome to be different than the last two years?
CORY CLARK: I mean every year I've thought I was capable of winning this tournament. I thought I was the best guy at my weight when I put my best self out on the mat. I think the same tonight. I think the same this year and tomorrow night if I go out and put my best self out on the mat and come out the way I want to there is no question in my mind am I going to win that match. Of course I'm going to win that match, but you never know who is going to show up and that's in your control. The last few years, maybe, I don't know, I don't really pinpoint what got the best of me. It's such slight things you can't really put a dot -- you know, say exactly what it is otherwise everyone would be winning national Championships.

So I think just staying relaxed and making sure you're ready, you're warm, you're hot, and once you got all those things figured out then you can relax. And you can relax all the way up to your match and then when you get fired up in your match and your lungs are going, you know, you're fine. Your lungs are ready, they're warm, they're hot.

I think as long as I can do that I'll be fine. I just want to perform to my best, you know. I want to compete and I want to be my best self out there and show some people what I can do.

Q. Cory, two years ago you were wrestling for a national title and your opponent tomorrow night was on your team and in a jail in Iowa.
CORY CLARK: Yeah.

Q. How crazy is it that you're going to end your career against Seth Gross, and what do you think about that match-up?
CORY CLARK: That's crazy to think about it the way you say it, but two years has gone by and I think he's matured and I think he's formed himself into what he wants to be. Back then he was a redshirt. He wasn't really wrestling for a purpose or whatever. I'm not going to sit here and say he's a screw off or he doesn't have the frame of mind I have because maybe he didn't two years ago, but I'm not going to take him lightly. I know he's aware your and wants to win this National Championship, and I know he would love to stick it up my you know what. That's my job and no one else can control how that match goes, other than me. My coaches have prepared me for it but it's all in my hands from here on out.

Q. Cory, tomorrow you have Seth Gross in the finals, tough on top, take us through what you're thinking, maybe a tight match tomorrow if it's your choice?
CORY CLARK: I'm choosing down. That's what I went my whole life. I've wrestled plenty of guys that were tough on top, Nahshon Garrett. How many guys that he tilt up and turn? I'm pretty sure last year he tilted up and turned just about everyone he wrestled. When I wrestled him I had 6, 7 escapes on him, pretty quick, too.

I'm never going to shy away from where I'm good. I'm a solid wrestler in all positions. I wrestle Dennis two times every week and he can tilt just about anybody. Me and Dennis, I'll go down, and when I get away then I go you're down. And he goes down and then we will switch and do that five times each back and forth. Just something fun to do.

I feel confident in my bottom position, and I know he's tough on top. I know he can tilt guys. I know he wants me to choose neutral. I know that's a mental edge for him maybe is his top game, but you can't forgot I'm tough on top, too, and you can't forget I'm tough on bottom, too.

THE MODERATOR: That will be all for Cory Clark of Iowa. Congratulations.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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