TRUE WARRIORS
Nationally-ranked Gulosh and Simpson represent those with bigger battles ahead
The seven minutes that Nathan Gulosh spends during a collegiate wrestling match at the Naval Academy is nothing compared to the countless moments he spends thinking about other battles occurring thousands of miles away from his home in Annapolis, Md.
“One of the more difficult aspects, and this comes with all the military academies, is that a lot of the guys on our team go into the Marine Corps,” said Gulosh, a 141-pound senior and Marine squad leader at the Naval Academy. “With the conflict in Iraq and Afghanistan, it becomes a different dynamic.
“As important as wrestling is, I’d be lying if I didn’t say the conflict going on over there wasn’t in the back of my mind on a daily basis. I say to myself that I need to be doing as much as I can militarily as athletically as I can. I need to be a sponge and soak all that stuff in b
ecause the stakes of the game we’re playing over there is a lot different than on the wrestling mat here.”Phillip Simpson, a two-time All-American and senior cadet from the United States Military Academy, feels the same way in West Point, N.Y.
“I have a semester left and am enjoying myself wrestling and being on a team,” said the third-ranked 149-pounder. “But it’s exciting knowing that within four months I will be out there in the Army and actually get to apply all the stuff that I’ve learned.”
And Simpson believes the parallels between wrestling and his military service will make the adjustment easier.
“Right now we are at war and war is like a (wrestling) match,” said Simpson. “You do all your practicing and training and going to Iraq is like going to a competition. It is no longer a practice. All the time and energy you put into it is paying off.”
By the time both Gulosh and Simpson graduate as Second Lieutenants in the Marines and Army, respectively, they believe their training on the mat will pay off in a more dangerous faraway location.
“I don’t think a lot of other sports or the common person today understands what it is to push themselves to the limit,” said the 10th-ranked Gulosh, a native of Stow, Ohio. “That’s what makes wrestling unique and what I love about it. Not only is it physically demanding, but it’s the mental side, the mental toughness that wrestling creates that makes for a great military officer.”“When you go out there, it’s mano-a-mano and when you cut weight it’s an individual thing. But ultimately, you form a team with guys who have similar goals,” said Simpson, a native of Nashville, Tenn., whose future will in the Infantry as well as perhaps the Army Rangers. “A Ranger’s mentality is strong and they can handle a lot of physical requirements. Wrestlers have that competitive edge and have been through so much.”
Both Gulosh (68-36 as of Jan. 19 in his fourth season on varsity) and Simpson (115-18) have gone through quite a bit during their careers. In a sense, they have become the poster boys for their respective programs, which are both nationally-ranked for the first time in over a decade.
“I think (Nathan) came here to go to the Naval Academy but he had goals to be a good wrestler, too,” said Navy coach Bruce Burnett, who pointed out that Gulosh led the Brigade in former President Reagan’s funeral. “He’s gotten his stripes at the Academy and is a leader in the halls as well. That takes a commitment.”
“Phillip’s in line to become Army’s all-time winningest wrestler and first three-time NCAA All-American. When people think of Army wrestling, people think of Phillip,” said Army coach Chuck Barbee, who also has another nationally-ranked wrestler in Luke Calvert, rated 12th at 184. “Hopefully our entire team will be poster boys for the Army program.”
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