"It's my Dad vs. your dad"-Carter Starocci opens up about intense competitive mindset after Penn State wrestling clinches Big 10 Title for second time

American wrestling champion Carter Starocci recently opened up about the intense competitive mindset after the Penn State Nittany Lions clinched the NCAA Big Ten Championships. Starocci himself earned his third Big Ten title, defeating Max McEnelly of Minnesota 8-5 in the finals.

In a conversation after the tournament, Starocci mentioned that it is not an easy task for him to treat this tournament just like any other.

"There's some guy who'd view it just as a sport. For me, it's much more than that. It's my coaching staff vs. yours, It's my training partner vs. yours, It's my Dad vs. your dad, that's kind of hard to look at," he said.

Starocci has been winning consistently at the collegiate level, even at the Big Ten Championships. After losing his debut finals in 2021, Starocci never looked back. With the lone exception of the 2024 edition (which he had to skip due to a knee injury), the 24-year-old wrestler has won the Big Ten Championships in both 2022 and 2023.

Carter Starocci is playing for the fifth and final time as a Penn State wrestler, and he aims to end his collegiate career on a high.

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Carter Starocci reveals the reason behind returning for a fifth year

Carter Starocci shares a strong message ahead of the upcoming NCAA Championships [Image Source : Getty]

When Carter Starocci decided to return to the mat for a fifth time at the NCAA Championships, his decision evoked a mixed response. However, the 24-year-old wrestler revealed that he was not satisfied with his performance and wanted to dominate his opponents.

"Even a lot of matches that I win, I’m still very angry. I want to dominate, guys. And that was a big reason I chose to come back because after last year’s NCAA tournament and the injury..." said Starocci during an episode of the 'Nickals and Dimes' podcast. [7:15 onwards]

The wrestler further added,

"I won, and everybody was like, ‘Man, I can’t believe you did that with the knee.' Everyone kept saying it. Every time someone said it, it made me more mad."

Starocci has won four consecutive gold medals at the NCAA Championships, ever since he made his debut in the 2021 edition. The 24-year-old wrestler aims to end his collegiate career with five back to back titles.