Three years ago, Nick Purdue didn’t have it figured out.
Ohio’s coaches refer to “figuring it out” as discovering what an athlete must do to become an All-American or national champion. It means knowing the amount of work it takes to be successful.
When Purdue was former Bobcat Jacob Ison’s backup during the 2008–09 season, he didn’t have it figured out.
But Ison got injured before the Mid-American Conference Championships that season, so Purdue took his place at 174 pounds.
Purdue was in the semifinals of the tournament, where he had a chance to qualify for the NCAA Championships as a redshirt freshman.
The match was tied 3-3 as time wound down, but in the last 10 seconds of the match, Purdue was taken down. The 5-3 loss cost him the bid to the national tournament.
The disappointment of the missed opportunity spurred Purdue to change his work habits. It’s when he started to figure it out.
“I wanted it so bad,” said Purdue, a redshirt junior. “But I just wasn’t doing the right work. I wasn’t doing it the way it needed to be done, and it showed at the end of the season. That’s when I made the change.”
Today, Purdue has adopted a phrase called “working the process.” It means focusing on and giving his best to everything he does. It also means maintaining a day-to-day routine. Working the process extends to all areas of his life.
Purdue wakes up every day at 5:45 a.m. He has class when most of the wrestlers practice during the afternoon, so by 6:20, he’s in the car on the way to The Convo for a separate workout.
Before practice, Purdue bikes and jumps rope for 25 minutes. After that, he wrestles whichever teammate coach Joel Greenlee has brought in to work with him that day.
“I personally don’t like it,” Greenlee said. “Because we lose out on his leadership and all that in the practice room in the afternoon. And on the other hand, I do like it because he gets a lot of individual attention in the morning, and you figure out a lot of things.
“I know he really thrives off that.”
Purdue said stringing together good workouts is the key to improving during the season. That is why he doesn’t mess with his routine. Making the same grocery list and always getting enough sleep, for example, help him cope with the grind and practice productively.
“People talk about guys learning life lessons from wrestling,” said Purdue, who switched from 184 to 174 pounds this season. “That’s one of things I’ve learned is working the process. … I go to class. I’m ready to learn. I try to focus my mind as much as possible on the task at hand.”
Purdue was one of five Bobcats who qualified for the national tournament last season.
But his body was worn down. His shoulder was hurt. He went 1-2 in the tournament, and didn’t feel as if he competed at his highest level.
Since then, Purdue has tried to take care of his body by sticking to his routine so he always is capable of practicing hard and giving his all on the mat. Between this season and last, he’s tried to improve on every aspect of his life and his workouts.
“This year I’ve just kind of done it a little bit smarter,” Purdue said. “I’ve ate a little healthier. I’ve studied a little harder. I’ve just done everything a little bit better than I did last year.”
The results are showing. Ohio would not have won a share of the regular-season MAC title this year were it not for Purdue’s pin of Central Michigan’s Ben Bennett, a former All-American and the No. 5 174-pounder in the country.
After the match, Purdue credited working the process for his success.
“I’ve figured out what I need to do,” he said. “That’s my process, and I’m gonna continue to work it.”
nm256306@ohiou.edu
@ThePostSports
