Donahoe focused on becoming a national champion
The last time Paul Donahoe left the mat at the NU Coliseum, he stripped off his headgear and flung it at the nearest trash can.
Nebraska’s nationally ranked 125-pound wrestler was frustrated, exasperated and angry.
He had just given a match away.
With 44 seconds left in a dual against eventual national team champion Minnesota, Donahoe led the Gophers’ Jayson Ness 6-3 and appeared to be on his way to an impressive victory last February.
But in the blink of an eye, Ness earned an escape, then scored a takedown with seven seconds left in the match to tie the score at 6-6. Ness scored a takedown just 25 seconds into the sudden-victory period to claim the win.
It’s a match that the Husker junior replays over and over in his head. Just one of many he can’t forget.
That photographic memory is what spurred Donahoe to write his name in the NU history books as a rarity — a Husker national champion with a chance to repeat.
At nationals at the Palace in Auburn Hills, Mich., Donahoe used as motivation the stinging memories of that loss to Ness and of losing a 12-3 major-decision to Oklahoma’s top-ranked Sam Hazewinkel in the final of the Big 12 Championships.
NU coach Mark Manning and former world champion Sammie Henson, who was a volunteer assistant for NU last season, stressed to Donahoe that he change his approach to the matches, especially when it came to wrestling Hazewinkel. Donahoe had to tame his go-for-broke nature, unleashing it when it is advantageous.
“Paul’s a real aggressive wrestler, and we tried to just have him contain himself the best he can in a national finals match and not go out and shoot himself out of a match or beat himself,” Manning said.
Donahoe, who grew up 30 miles from the Palace in Davison, Mich., followed the game plan to a T and added a national title to the two state titles he won in the same building.
Through the seven minutes of regulation, each wrestler had surrendered a one-point escape, leading to a sudden-victory period for the national title. Just 21 seconds in, Donahoe shot quickly, grabbed one of Hazewinkel’s legs and drove the Sooner to the mat for a 3-1 victory and just the ninth national title in Husker history.
“Against a great wrestler like Sam, you can’t afford to take bad shots and still hope to win because he’ll turn it into a score,” Donahoe said. “I knew that if I was going to take a shot — and I only took two or three in that match, only got to the leg once — it has to count.
“I know I have a real aggressive style, but I’ve learned there’s a time and place for it.”
Nearly eight months since winning the national title just a stone’s throw from his boyhood home, Donahoe is in new territory — the hunter has become the hunted.
It’s a feeling that only two other Huskers — heavyweight Tolly Thompson in 1995 and 197-pounder Brad Vering in 2000 — have ever experienced.
Like Donahoe, Thompson was a sophomore when he won his NCAA title, but Thompson finished third in each of his last two seasons.
Vering won as a junior and took seventh at nationals the following year. The Howells native, who won a silver medal this year at the World Championships, said the pressure to repeat is greatest when it comes from within.
“More than being the target is that the pressure you put on yourself,” Vering said. “You work your butt off every day in that room. You want to win so bad because you want that feeling back again because it’s the greatest feeling in the world.
“But you’re dealing with pressure you put on yourself, dealing with demons inside because you want to get back to the top of the podium.”
Vering had only one piece of advice for Donahoe as he works to repeat as national champion — enjoy the little moments.
“Enjoy every second of it, the sprints, the weight lifting, everything you think you don’t enjoy. You look back and think ‘Holy cow, that’s what made it all worth it.’”
Living in the moment may not be Donahoe’s style, though. It certainly doesn’t jibe with his single-minded focus on his passion for championships.
Senior heavyweight Jon May has seen that focus for three years as Donahoe’s teammate and says it’s what makes Donahoe a success.
“He’s one of the most confident kids I’ve ever met,” May said. “He definitely believes in himself more than anyone else does.
“You tell him you can’t do it, but he’ll go out and do it. He doesn’t like to hear the word ‘no.’”
Manning wouldn’t want it any other way.
“That’s the beauty of coaching him. He’s got a mind of his own, and all the great ones have a little edge to them and I see the potential for him to become a great wrestler,” Manning said.
“He lives in the moment, sometimes, but his mind is always going. He’s always thinking, ‘What do I have to do to be the national champion?’”
Donahoe admits that is his only goal.
“Everything in my life is wrestling,” he said. “To me, school is a distraction, in a way. Realistically, though, wrestling is on my mind 24/7. When I’m sitting in class, I’m thinking about wrestling. When I’m walking to class, I’m thinking about wrestling.
“I still have two years left, and I want to go out and work harder, focus on doing the right things so that I’m ready for March again.”
For now, Donahoe is focused on this weekend, and that means a rematch with Ness on Monday night at the National Wrestling Coaches Association All-Star Classic in Portland, Ore.
You can be certain that gut-wrenching loss in February is vividly being replayed in Donahoe’s mind.
“I think about my matches all the time, things I could have done differently,” he said. “I mean, you can think about it day in and day out, but the only thing that matters is that you go back into the room and practice harder, work harder.
“There’s still a lot of work I have to do.”
Reach Karl Vogel at 473-7432 or kvogel@journalstar.com.
Nebraska’s nationally ranked 125-pound wrestler was frustrated, exasperated and angry.
He had just given a match away.
With 44 seconds left in a dual against eventual national team champion Minnesota, Donahoe led the Gophers’ Jayson Ness 6-3 and appeared to be on his way to an impressive victory last February.
But in the blink of an eye, Ness earned an escape, then scored a takedown with seven seconds left in the match to tie the score at 6-6. Ness scored a takedown just 25 seconds into the sudden-victory period to claim the win.
It’s a match that the Husker junior replays over and over in his head. Just one of many he can’t forget.
That photographic memory is what spurred Donahoe to write his name in the NU history books as a rarity — a Husker national champion with a chance to repeat.
At nationals at the Palace in Auburn Hills, Mich., Donahoe used as motivation the stinging memories of that loss to Ness and of losing a 12-3 major-decision to Oklahoma’s top-ranked Sam Hazewinkel in the final of the Big 12 Championships.
NU coach Mark Manning and former world champion Sammie Henson, who was a volunteer assistant for NU last season, stressed to Donahoe that he change his approach to the matches, especially when it came to wrestling Hazewinkel. Donahoe had to tame his go-for-broke nature, unleashing it when it is advantageous.
“Paul’s a real aggressive wrestler, and we tried to just have him contain himself the best he can in a national finals match and not go out and shoot himself out of a match or beat himself,” Manning said.
Donahoe, who grew up 30 miles from the Palace in Davison, Mich., followed the game plan to a T and added a national title to the two state titles he won in the same building.
Through the seven minutes of regulation, each wrestler had surrendered a one-point escape, leading to a sudden-victory period for the national title. Just 21 seconds in, Donahoe shot quickly, grabbed one of Hazewinkel’s legs and drove the Sooner to the mat for a 3-1 victory and just the ninth national title in Husker history.
“Against a great wrestler like Sam, you can’t afford to take bad shots and still hope to win because he’ll turn it into a score,” Donahoe said. “I knew that if I was going to take a shot — and I only took two or three in that match, only got to the leg once — it has to count.
“I know I have a real aggressive style, but I’ve learned there’s a time and place for it.”
Nearly eight months since winning the national title just a stone’s throw from his boyhood home, Donahoe is in new territory — the hunter has become the hunted.
It’s a feeling that only two other Huskers — heavyweight Tolly Thompson in 1995 and 197-pounder Brad Vering in 2000 — have ever experienced.
Like Donahoe, Thompson was a sophomore when he won his NCAA title, but Thompson finished third in each of his last two seasons.
Vering won as a junior and took seventh at nationals the following year. The Howells native, who won a silver medal this year at the World Championships, said the pressure to repeat is greatest when it comes from within.
“More than being the target is that the pressure you put on yourself,” Vering said. “You work your butt off every day in that room. You want to win so bad because you want that feeling back again because it’s the greatest feeling in the world.
“But you’re dealing with pressure you put on yourself, dealing with demons inside because you want to get back to the top of the podium.”
Vering had only one piece of advice for Donahoe as he works to repeat as national champion — enjoy the little moments.
“Enjoy every second of it, the sprints, the weight lifting, everything you think you don’t enjoy. You look back and think ‘Holy cow, that’s what made it all worth it.’”
Living in the moment may not be Donahoe’s style, though. It certainly doesn’t jibe with his single-minded focus on his passion for championships.
Senior heavyweight Jon May has seen that focus for three years as Donahoe’s teammate and says it’s what makes Donahoe a success.
“He’s one of the most confident kids I’ve ever met,” May said. “He definitely believes in himself more than anyone else does.
“You tell him you can’t do it, but he’ll go out and do it. He doesn’t like to hear the word ‘no.’”
Manning wouldn’t want it any other way.
“That’s the beauty of coaching him. He’s got a mind of his own, and all the great ones have a little edge to them and I see the potential for him to become a great wrestler,” Manning said.
“He lives in the moment, sometimes, but his mind is always going. He’s always thinking, ‘What do I have to do to be the national champion?’”
Donahoe admits that is his only goal.
“Everything in my life is wrestling,” he said. “To me, school is a distraction, in a way. Realistically, though, wrestling is on my mind 24/7. When I’m sitting in class, I’m thinking about wrestling. When I’m walking to class, I’m thinking about wrestling.
“I still have two years left, and I want to go out and work harder, focus on doing the right things so that I’m ready for March again.”
For now, Donahoe is focused on this weekend, and that means a rematch with Ness on Monday night at the National Wrestling Coaches Association All-Star Classic in Portland, Ore.
You can be certain that gut-wrenching loss in February is vividly being replayed in Donahoe’s mind.
“I think about my matches all the time, things I could have done differently,” he said. “I mean, you can think about it day in and day out, but the only thing that matters is that you go back into the room and practice harder, work harder.
“There’s still a lot of work I have to do.”
Reach Karl Vogel at 473-7432 or kvogel@journalstar.com.
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