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Kendall Coleman - Dreams Require Patience

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Anyone who has followed Bloodround knows that I’m a huge Kendall Coleman fan. Since I first saw him compete in the Purdue’s Black and Gold singlet at 157 pounds, I was amazed with his talent and ability. He fearlessly unleashed all of the athletic tools in a devastating double leg, and is able to use his savvy and technique with a nasty slide by when people try to tie up with him. Then there is the admittedly narcissistic piece where we have the same initials, which might just be the best initials in wrestling (more on that at a later date). He quickly made a name for himself on the National scene with some big wins and competing with the best in the Big 10. My initial thoughts on doing this interview were mostly around some of the struggles with recovering from his injury sustained in the NCAA tournament last year, and what the road to recovery has been like. However, my research quickly reminded me just how patient Kendall has had to be to reach his dreams through no fault of his own. In the course of this interview, I learned just how patient he has been through this process, how diligent he has been in his recovery, and I’m very confident that we are far from seeing the best of Kendall Coleman this year and beyond. I hope you learn the same.

Kevin Claunch: Alright, I am joined here by Kendall Coleman, Purdue wrestler 157 pounds, thank you very much for joining me today.

Kendall Coleman: Thank you for having me.

So, I kind of gave you a heads up on the front end on what I wanted to cover, and then I was doing a little bit of research to have a more clear outline and goal for this. What I had noticed initially, and what I wanted to talk about was coming back from the injury and what that was like and some of the rehab stuff, but it occurred to me that it isn’t just the injury that you’ve had to patient and work through, it was COVID your Freshman year and everything like that, so let me give a quick timeline. Freshman year you come out of the gates and immediately I’m like “this dude’s awesome, he’s just hitting slide by’s on dudes or double legging them to their butt”. So 29-8, outstanding freshman for the team, ranked as high as 5th in the nation, Big Ten finals, 6 seed at NCAAs, and then COVID hits. Walk through some of the thoughts and what was going through your mind at that time.

You know, it was definitely very unfortunate and during my first season as well. Being a redshirt freshman you’re like “wow, I’m making it to Nationals, and have an opportunity to All American”, and then you get to think about that a lot and you start to hear news about COVID coming, and how might that affect us, and then that kind of puts a damper on your mood, and then them canceling NCAAs was tough for me as well as our team and the Seniors that didn’t really know if they’d get another opportunity to come back and wrestle, but our coach made sure that we knew that it didn’t really change anything. That the best was still going to come from it and to always have our goals in mind. So that’s where I tried to focus a lot and it was a little easier for me knowing that I was a redshirt freshman, so I’d get plenty more opportunities to accomplish what my goals were, but I can’t say the same for other people. Just remaining focused was a big thing for me.

It was such a tough time for everyone, and especially with it being such short notice. Wasn’t it right after Big Tens?

Yeah, we were getting ready to leave. I think it was the day before we were going to leave for Nationals when we found out.

I honestly drove home from work and listened to Everybody Hurts by REM, I was so bummed. So then last year happens, it’s the condensed season, we get some wrestling, you’re 12-4 going into the tournament as the 9 seed, and then you get hurt in the second round of the tournament. When that happens it’s a different kind of hurt than the year before. It’s obviously the physical pain, but then there’s the emotional and long road to look at from there. In the moment do you remember what your feeling when that happened?

I was just broken down. I wasn’t even able to finish the match and I had to be carried off to the training room. I knew there wasn’t any way for me to compete, I couldn’t even bend or straighten my leg completely, so I knew in that moment that it was over. I have a good support system so I wasn’t down for too long. My parents came and talked with me and coach talked to me and I knew that a lot would come from this and that it wasn’t the end of my journey. In the moment I was pretty hurt though, knowing that another year was gone and I didn’t get to accomplish my goals again.

I’m asking this because as a human being I think it would be very tough to not do this, but do you ever look at the bracket after the fact and think “man, I could have beaten that guy” or “I would have loved to get my hands on Deakin again”.

Yeah, all the time.

Okay, that’s what I figured, it’s human nature I suppose. So road to recovery, you have a great support system and coaches around you, so what were the messages coming from the coaches and trainers at that time? *Side note, check out some of Kendall Coleman’s best takedowns below*

After talking to the Doctors and everyone I knew that the injury shouldn’t affect me long term. I did 6 months of rehab and didn’t get surgery, so it was just giving my knee time to heal and that I should be able to work back to 100%. So I focused on my rehab, make sure I’m doing all the right things, and staying focused. Rehab was something that I knew I had to do to get back to the point that I was. Focused on that for 6 months, and it was a long 6 months off the mat. I wasn’t doing any drilling until maybe 5 and a half months in, but again, it was just patience and knowing that I’d get back to how I was before so I wasn’t worried about that.

So you didn’t get back on the mat until shortly before this season started?

Yeah, school started and then we went home for a little bit, and then once we came back that was when I was able to start going live and things like that.

So the whole time you’re rehabbing and doing all those things, it’s one thing to hear from coaches and trainers, but then there’s the conversation and message that you have with yourself in your head. So what are some of the things you were telling yourself throughout the process?

I know what I’m capable of and how I compete when I’m at my best, so knowing that is what I’m shooting to get back to and making sure I’m going to rehab, trying to get better, trying to get stronger, so treating that like practice. Those were the things I focused on during my time out because those were the only things I could do.

So thoughts on you coming back this year. It’s been great seeing you back on the mat this season, and you haven’t lost a step, which is even more amazing now knowing that you just recently got back on the mat. What have been your thoughts so far on this season and your performance to this point?

So far I still feel myself more so getting in shape. It comes with the wrestling season, and people at the end of the season are in better shape than the beginning anyway. It’s just a journey getting those matches and reps in, and I feel like I’ve competed well so far this season. I think there are some losses that I could have done some things different in, but all in all I’m not too disappointed in how I’m competing, but there’s always room for improvement. 

You’ve had some good matches and gotten your hands on some of the toughest people in the country. You really look like you’re rounding into shape here for sure. Goals finishing out the year, what are some of the things you’d like to accomplish this season and before you’re career ends.

Definitely National Champ/All American. It’s something that I know that I’m capable of, and I would like to accomplish that before I graduate and leave Purdue. Just wrestling to the best of my capabilities will help me reach those goals, and also going out there and having more fun with it and wrestling more free. Sometimes I get a little timid, so having as much fun with it and enjoying it and becoming a student in the sport.

It’s certainly something I can see. Initially you’d be hitting doubles and slide byes, but now you’re setting up your shots a little differently and rounding out the style. That being said, it’s been a blast watching you to this point and we look forward to watching you reach these goals.

I always try to get connected with people who I enjoy watching. Whether its the diversity in their attacks, their grit on the mat, their unrelenting styles, I want to talk to people about what they’re doing and how it works for them. In this instance, Kendall’s style is the thing that draws you in, but his longer than usual journey is what really had me interested. What I learned during this conversation was that Kendall is a very thoughtful guy. My concern going in was that trauma of dealing with such a tough injury was going to be tough for him to talk about, but he has really worked through those issues and seems completely dialed into this plan and it’s eventual success. In a weird way, the COVID year almost prepared him to have to go through a longer wait to reach those goals, but Kendall is undeterred, completely focused, and remains convinced that the best is yet to come. I am also convinced and looking forward to what lies ahead. Detroit, where Dreams come true.