Wrestling: Loper set for one last shot

Marty Usman checked the weather Wednesday.

It was a little snowy.

You can't blame the University of Nebraska at Kearney's top-ranked 174-pounder if he gets a little antsy this time of year. Three years ago he had qualified for the NAIA national wrestling tournament while at William Penn (Iowa), but he wound up spending the weekend in a hotel room somewhere in Iowa after the team bus was caught in a snowstorm.

“It was a little funky today,” Usman said Wednesday. “It was clear and then it started to snow. That had me worried. But it's only 2½ hours to Omaha. I'll walk it if I have to.”

Usman and the rest of the Lopers' six-man contingent were expected in Omaha late Wednesday in anticipation of the Division II national tournament Friday and Saturday at UNO's Sapp Fieldhouse.

That's a little different from 2007, when the William Penn team waited too long before making the trek from Oskaloosa to Sioux City for nationals. The bus couldn't make it through the snow, and Usman said the coach selected four wrestlers to go in the family pickup truck that was trailing the bus and doing OK in the weather. Usman and eight others stayed behind.

“We knew the weather was coming, but the bus was scheduled a day later than it should have been,” Usman said. “I had trained myself very well and I was prepared to do well. To not make the tournament due to weather .... that's unheard of, especially when we knew it was coming.”

Usman, denied his release from William Penn after redshirting his first year, was finally granted it after that season.

Usman (rhymes with JUICE-mun) was born in Benin, Nigeria. His real first name is Kamarudeen (Ka-MAR-dee-EN).

He moved with his family to Arlington, Texas, at age 5. While there, he became friends with eventual UNK two-time national champion heavyweight Tervel Dlagnev and caught the eye of a high school coach in Arlington — the brother of UNK coach Marc Bauer.

Usman heard from UNK while in high school, but was set to go to Division I Appalachian State. That opportunity fell through and he wound up at William Penn before eventually rejoining Dlagnev at UNK. Dlagnev now wrestles internationally.

Usman is making his third national tournament trip since transferring to UNK. He finished third in 2008 and second last year.

“We're very excited about his opportunity,” Bauer said. “There's a couple of tough kids in that bracket, but if he can get past them he could win a national championship.”

Usman's experience at nationals was a bit of a disappointment last year, but it wasn't weather-related.

He lost 3-2 in the final to Chadron State's Brett Hunter, who got a point for a riding time advantage of 1 minute, 6 seconds (six seconds more than the minimum). Usman had beaten Hunter three times during the season, but suffered a torn hand ligament in the third of those wins and wasn't the same afterwards.

“It was very difficult,” Usman said. “I couldn't work on top like I'm used to. I just kind of did what I had to do to get to the finals. And then knowing that six seconds is what cost me winning the match was tough.”

This year Usman (40-1) has lost only 2-0 to Nebraska's Stephen Dwyer, ranked No. 4 in Division I and a Big 12 champion. He's beaten eighth-ranked Ben Bennett of Central Michigan.

But there are Division II wrestlers ready for him. UNO's fifth-ranked Aaron Denson, runner-up at 165 last year, is a potential second-round opponent. Upper Iowa's Mitch Norton, ranked No. 2, is a potential semifinal matchup.

“It's going to be a tough road, but I'm prepared,” Usman said. “I feel better than I've felt the last two or three years. In the end, I hope it will be worth it.”

Contact the writer:

444-1027, rob.white@owh.com

« Sports - State Colleges

Share