By: Megan Saul

Editor-in-Chief

Having spent his whole life on the mat, senior Antonio Rodriguez is continuing his wrestling career next year as a Sun Devil at Arizona State University (ASU). After three outstanding years on the Los Gatos High School wrestling team, he has certainly made his mark on the program. 

Rodriguez loves wrestling for both its individual and team aspects. He shared, “The team is like a family. We get to know each other better, and we try to hang out with each other as much as we can. And the individual aspect, it’s more just on me, so I’d rather it be on me than the whole team.” While Rodriguez enjoys the sport, he mentioned the difficulties involved, particularly in cutting weight: “Having to make weight sucks, especially when we are cutting weight. I just need to work out a ton, running, and just a lot of practicing.” 

Rodriguez began wrestling at a young age, following in the footsteps of his father, who played the sport in high school. He shared, “When I was little, we made our own team. It was called Impact Wrestling. It was our own little team that my dad created. A group of five of us trained in my garage in Brentwood.” Rodriguez later moved to Los Gatos to further improve his athletic skills and education. Los Gatos’s coach, Greg Varela, has played a significant role in Rodriguez’s development over the course of eight years. During practices, Rodriguez focuses on his technique and the small details, perfecting his form and moves.

When visiting schools, Rodriguez decided he wanted to avoid the East Coast because of the cold and to attend a school with a strong program in finance, his intended major. ASU immediately drew him in. As he pointed out, “I liked the team over there because it felt like a family, and it fit my vibe a little bit more than the other schools I was looking at. I just liked it.” He is looking forward to studying within the W. P. Carey School of Business, their highly ranked business school. 

After spending time at ASU this summer, Rodriguez realized that he didn’t want to wait another year to join the team in Arizona. As a result, Rodriguez is graduating high school early and moving to ASU on Dec. 18. He exclaimed, “I can’t wait to go out there, go early, and train with the guys.” Although sad to leave his friends, he is excited to start more competitive training sooner. In addition to the ASU team, he plans to train with wrestlers from Valiant Wrestling, a competitive program in the area.

 As a Sun Devil, Rodriguez hopes to compete at the US Open for freestyle wrestling, make the world team, and eventually win the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) wrestling championship. Recently, he even launched his own merchandise with the brand MyPlayer. His collection, featuring shirts and hoodies with his name and action shots, is available until Jan. 2. Although the wrestling community will certainly notice Rodriguez’s absence from the LGHS team for the remainder of the season, he is looking forward to attending college tournaments and is ready to take down his new competitors as a Sun Devil.