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October 26, 2009
Timber Creek's Donovan Green Dominates On The Mat
Timber Creek
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Timber Creek's Green Dominates On The Mat
The senior proved why he is one of the top wrestlers in the state and the nation this weekend making him our Spotlight Athlete.
Donovan Green is commonly referred to as Tiny, but the senior is anything but. He is a wrecking ball on the mat at over 275 pounds.
“My favorite thing about wrestling is the one on one aspect and to have the ability to dominate an opponent and get my hand raised in victory. I started as a young 14 year old freshman and made Varsity my sophomore year. I was amazed at how tough wrestling was and the mental and physical toughness that it took. I won districts, went on to place 3rd at regionals, and made states at 15. I think that it was then that I fell in love with the sport. It pushes your strength and conditioning to its limits."
This weekend, Green and several other Central Floridians headed up to Greensboro, North Carolina for the Super 32 Challenge, one of the nation’s toughest preseason tournaments. The senior finished second, but that didn’t satisfy him.
"It's impressive, but it wasn't what I was shooting for It is an honor to finish second, but when you’re a wrestler second place is the first loser. I always go for the win and am not happy unless I get the gold, or in this case the belt. It was great seeing the nation’s best wrestlers in action including the guys from the area. I love representing Orlando and helping younger wrestlers get better."
He attributes his success to a slew of great coaches that have helped him along his journey.
"Luckily, I have had great coaches during the last few years, My head coach Mike Weems has been my leader for four years now, but I can’t forget all of the help that I've had from coaches such as Balasis, Belcher, JD Robbins, as well as coaches like Gomrad from Winter Springs and Coaches Tribit and Bird from Osceola. I attribute much of my success to my work ethic, coaching, and all of my offseason work with Freestyle and Greco. My highpoint this summer as well as my career has been my second at Fargo which is the largest prep event in the nation if not the world."
He says it is an honor to represent Central Florida and his school Timber Creek. The Wolves got 19th last year in the 3A tournament and the senior has some lofty goals for the upcoming season.
" My goal is simple, go out and win the state title. I have qualified for states the past two years and didn’t take it serious enough. I failed to place because of a lack of focus and I don’t want to make any excuses."
The Wolves star wrestler is currently ranked nationally and says he doesn’t mind having the bulls-eye on his back.
“I'm happy that people feel confident in my ability, I actually enjoy having the target on my back. I believe that nobody trains harder than I do, nor wants the state title as much as I do. With the coaching that I've had I strongly believe that I can win. Coach Weems has prepared me and I feel that in a way I let them down last year after entering states with a record of 40-1 and leaving at 41-3. Most people would be proud of that. However, I feel I should’ve done better. I was a favorite last year but I feel that I lacked the focus to finish. This year is different, I know it will be.”
For anyone looking to get into the sport he offers this advice.
“My advice to those who wish to get into wrestling is simple. Don’t quit! It gets better and better. It makes you tougher mentally and physically.”
Green plans to take that mental toughness and physicality into the college realm. He has taken an unofficial visit to the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga and official visits to the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Virginia.
Five Things You May Not Know About Green
1. He hates ketchup, mustard, and mayo.
2. He loves the Washington Redskins.
3. He loves his family and is loyal to his friends.
4. He loves underwater basket weaving competitions.
5. He can quote the entire Anchorman movie with Will Ferrell.
Previous Spotlight Athletes
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