2023 NCAA WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIP

March 17, 2023

Matt Ramos

Purdue

BOK Center

Semifinals Media Conference

THE MODERATOR: Matt Ramos, Purdue, congratulations.

MATT RAMOS: Thank you. It's a dream for me. The job is not done yet. I trust in everything in my ability and growing up at Purdue, there were like 100 matches leading up to this tournament, especially so there is no other comparison to any other tournament. So being calm and trusting and trusting in those beliefs goes a long way.

Q. (No microphone.)

MATT RAMOS: -- dangerous positions on my feet, and I trust my ability and sometimes you've got to let it fly and just not really think. So I went for that. And I felt the pop-through, and I knew it was going to be good in the end, but just trusting in that belief and able to execute all your attacks.

Q. Matt, you did that to leave in a dual. Unfortunately you lost that. What did you learn from that loss to help you with this?

MATT RAMOS: I think it ties into being a three-time national champion. There are a lot of things going on especially wrestling against him, watching film from my coaches to learn and grow from it. There is a new game plan for each match to adapt and grow as an athlete. From that first match, just being able to keep the pace rolling I think is huge.

That's it.

Q. First place winner in the Tony Ersland. You had a late reversal in the quarter finals. Was that on your mind at all to get on the podium in the quarter final match?

MATT RAMOS: What was that?

Q. In the quarter final, you had a late reversal. You are the first place winner in the Tony Ersland era, was that on your mind at all?

MATT RAMOS: One thing that's been on my mind this whole tournament, it's been a repetitive pattern would be to wrestle through all the positions. And I said in a previous interview that it's that belief and that "why" and I think toward the end of those periods when I'm really tired and have to push through a new wall, I have to decide, do I want to be an All-American, do I want to be a national champ.

In the last second before the quarter finals, I had to trust in what I believed in, do I want to be a national champ, do I want to trust that situation to take me there. And I had to keep pushing on. And from that moment on, I'm ready to be a national champ.

Q. I heard you say on your way in say let's go Boilermaker Nation. Can you tell us more about the culture at Purdue wrestling, the coaches and the guys?

MATT RAMOS: I will start with the coaching staff. They're the most amazing, supportive coaches that any guy could ask for. They watch film with you and they -- (Away from mic.) I think that's huge to build a relationship to want to be with those guys all the time and -- (Away from mic.)

Let's work on this, let's do the extra time to work on it. I really value that at Purdue with the coaches especially because they got your back no matter what. Even if it's school, after school, I see the guys I graduated, they're asking them what's your plan, they're wrestlers for life. It's a team. It's a family. I know I've said that before on other teams, but this is no joke, Purdue is a family. And we are so close together. I wouldn't want to be anywhere else. This is my home.

Q. Was there a particular place in the crowd you were looking at or somebody you wanted to celebrate with that helped you get here?

MATT RAMOS: My family, my dad, my mom, (Away from mic.) And he's like, I'm going to (Away from mic.) From

11:00 p.m. from Illinois to here, and I was always watching them wave. And I'm like, gotta keep it calm. It's serious, but you gotta live in the moment. And I see them up there in the middle of the match, and they're very important to me.

Q. (No microphone.)

MATT RAMOS: (Away from mic.) 25, I'm like, 130, so it's not that big of a deal and I have seen Spencer Lee's matches going up. I'm like -- I'm going to -- I'm like, the -- in the sport of wrestling, so it's unreal and I'm very excited that I get to wrestle one of the best wrestlers on the planet and to be able to beat him, too. It feels unreal.

THE MODERATOR: Thanks, Matt.