University of Minnesota Athletics
Players Mentioned
Meet the Freshman: Vance VomBaur
11/11/2021 5:42:00 PM | Wrestling
With the season just about to get underway we have finally made it to the final "Meet the Freshman" feature for the incoming Class of 2021. This week's featured freshman is two-time Colorado state champion and Top-100 recruit in the nation Vance VomBaur.
GopherSports: Why did you choose the University of Minnesota?
VomBaur: A lot of it had to do with the coaches. A lot of injuries kept me from competing so I never was able to showcase my potential, but I felt like the coaches here at Minnesota believed in me like I believe in myself. That's probably the biggest reason why, but they promised me that they are going to help me get to my full potential.
GS: Talk about your relationship with the rest of the freshman class, because based on what's on social media, you guys have already developed a close relationship?
VomBaur: Yeah, it's crazy. We all came from all over the country and I didn't know a single person on campus, and now all seven of us are best friends. We live together, eat together, sleep together, and when you're making all of these sacrifices in the room with each other, whether it be my class or the rest of the guys, it's really a bonding experience.
GS: Expanding on that and looking forward to the future with your recruiting class, what excites you about the future of this team?
VomBaur: I'm really excited actually, I think our lineup this year is one of our best. I'm grateful that Gable Steveson came back this year to help our program, but just at every weight I think we're really solid all the way around. We have a lot of guys that come in and do the extra work and it's good to see that everyone on the team wants to win.
GS: Leading up to the season with our first tournament in a few days, who are some of the guys that you have worked with in the practice room to get better?
VomBaur: Aaron Nagao for sure. I feel like he's helped me a lot, especially in top-bottom. I consider myself pretty good at top-bottom and he's even better than me so I always like going with him. I like working with Coach Becker as well, he's been helping me a lot, but there have been a lot of guys, Marcos Polanco, Brent Jones, Jake Bergeland, all those guys.
GS: For those who haven't gotten to watch you compete, describe your wrestling style and your approach to each match?
VomBaur: Well I believe that I can win in any and every single match when I step out there. The coaches believe that too, but it comes from me first and foremost. I've always had a powerful mind and I'm able to slow any style down. I always want to change the match to go my way so that I'm always in the match no matter who I wrestle.
GS: Coming off your high school career, whether it be the success you've had or the adversity that you've had to overcome due to the injuries, how do you think that has helped you heading into your career?
VomBaur: Well I think high school was a great preparation for me because I had some amazing partners. Will VomBaur (Air Force) and Dominic Serrano (Nebraska), those guys were my workout partners. It was always us three in the room, and iron sharpens iron so I had two Division-I commits that I would wrestle every single day. With the injuries, I had two six-month injuries back-to-back, but when I was able to wrestle in the summer tournaments or at the state tournament, I was able to put it together.
GS: As you're preparing for your first college season, what have been some of the adjustments that you've had to make at the college level.
VomBaur: Definitely that hand-fighting, it's at a completely different level. I never had problems with hand-fighting in high school but when I got here I was getting tossed around, so I really had to focus on position and hand-fighting, so I'm working on using my hand and hands and being in the right position before I get into shots and scrambles.
GS: Finally, you have an incredible amount of self-belief in yourself so what are you looking to achieve in your college career before it's all set and done.
VomBaur: If I wrestle to my potential, I believe that I can be on the podium all four years and eventually become a national champion, but I'm a ways away from that and there's a lot of extra work to put in, but when I visualize where I want to be, that's where I see myself.