Jake Patacsil: On "Top" of the Wrestling World

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This article came from Purdue's wrestling site.

 

Jake Patacsil: On "Top" Of The Wrestling World

 

 

Purdue senior Jake Patacsil just might be the nation's best wrestler on top.

 

 

 

 

Purdue senior Jake Patacsil is one of just 14 wrestlers in Purdue history to win at least 100 matches.

 

 

 

Feb. 27, 2009

 

 

 

By Tanner Lipsett, Assistant Sports Information Director, Purdue University

 

 

Imagine being covered in a seemingly endless blanket, and no matter how much you fight, struggle, turn or twist, you can't seem to get out from under it. Now, translate that sensation into a sport of pure strength, power, will and determination, and you'll have an idea of what it's like to be beneath Purdue senior wrestler Jake Patacsil on the mat.

 

At 30-6 in his final season for the Boilermakers, Patacsil has not only proven himself one of the best wrestlers in Purdue history, but arguably one of the best wrestlers in NCAA history in the top position. He is 112-37 over the past four years, becoming one of just 14 grapplers to eclipse the 100-win plateau in Purdue history. He ranks among the Boilermakers' best ever in wins (112), winning percentage (75.2%), falls (23) and reversals (48), but these are far from his most impressive statistics. Heading into the last part of his final collegiate season, he's already piled up 757 back points, which is more than 300 points better than the second highest mark in school history (current head coach Scott Hinkel had the former record with 391 from 1984-to-1987). He holds the top three single-season marks in school history as well, tallying 226 in 2007-08, 190 in 2006-07 and already has a school record 247 so far this year.

 

Back points are scored when a when the wrestler in control stretches his opponent to his back and holds their shoulders within a 45-degree angle with the mat for a minimum of two seconds. A two-second nearfall is worth two points, while if the wrestler can hold his opponent there for a full five seconds, it's worth three points. Patacsil has 131 two-point nearfalls for his career (262 points), and 165 three-point nearfalls (495 points). He averages just over five back points per match for his career, and is well ahead of that pace this season, tallying approximately 6.9 per bout in his 36 contests.

 

 

 

 

 

Possibly even more impressive is Patacsil's stingy disposition to relinquish one-point escapes. In a wrestling match at any level, at the start of the second or third period a wrestler is given his or her choice to start on top, on bottom or in a neutral standing position. Most wrestlers choose to start in the bottom position, hoping to quickly scramble to their feet and earn one point for escaping their opponent. Patacsil changes the landscape of the match drastically as he breaks the trend by selecting the top position, while his opponents often choose the neutral start in fear of his smothering ability on top. In 149 career matches, Patacsil has surrendered just 14 escapes, including just two last season, and just four so far this year (two of which were kick-outs).

 

Patacsil's strength in the top position comes mainly from the outlandish size of his hands and fingers and his ferocious grip. His massive paws are able to create a vice-like hold that seems inescapable to his opponents and set the tone for the majority of his takedowns and turns.

 

Couple his incredibly large hands and strong grip with the years of tutelage and teachings from Hinkel and generations of Purdue alumni in his family and you have a dangerous combination for the NCAA's Division I 149-pound weight class. Patacsil is a third-generation Purdue wrestler, the fourth of five family members to wrestle for the Boilermakers and the third Patacsil to compete in an NCAA Tournament for the Old Gold and Black. His grandfather, Joe Patacsil, started the legacy in the late 1940s, earning a pair of Big Ten Championships and the Boilermakers' second individual NCAA Championship in school history. Joe's sons Ted and Frank (Jake's father) continued the tradition in the late 1970s and early 1980s as Ted was a three-year starter, while Frank qualified for the national championships twice and was named Purdue's most valuable wrestler three times. Jake and younger brother Sam, a 157-pound redshirt junior for the Boilermakers, continue the Patacsil family tradition to this day, wrestling off the playbook built by their family.

 

Despite all that Patacsil has achieved so far at Purdue, there is still one major goal left: to earn NCAA All-America status and possibly win an NCAA Championship. He was unable to advance past the third consolation round in his sophomore appearance at nationals, and finished one win shy of the podium in 2008, falling to second-seeded Dustin Schlatter of Minnesota in the Round of 12. This year, he hopes to overcome all obstacles in his way and ascend the NCAA awards stand.

 

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