| Saturday, Nov 14 | |||
| SPORT | OPP/EVENT | TIME | COVERAGE |
| W | vs Stanford | 10:00 AM | |
| W | vs Northern Iowa | 12:00 PM | |
| W | at Northwestern | 3:00 PM | |
| Friday, Nov 20 | |||
| SPORT | OPP/EVENT | TIME | COVERAGE |
| W | at Missouri | 7:00 PM | |
| Sunday, Nov 22 | |||
| SPORT | OPP/EVENT | TIME | COVERAGE |
| W | at Missouri Open | All Day | |
| Friday, Dec 4 | |||
| SPORT | OPP/EVENT | TIME | COVERAGE |
| W | vs Session I | 9:00 AM | |
Feb. 15, 2008
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Most of us are familiar with the old adage, "It's no fun growing old by yourself," but it's usually not a thought we'd apply to a college senior. However, Purdue wrestling's Sean Schmaltz is the lone senior on this year's squad and the only wrestler remaining in an original class of 13. Despite this, Schmaltz has truly enjoyed leading this youthful Boilermaker squad to one of their best seasons in recent memory, and hopefully an exciting postseason. At 23 years old, Schmaltz is the only Boilermaker wrestler who was alive when New Coke made its short-lived appearance, the Nintendo Entertainment System first hit stores and blockbuster movies such as Ghostbusters, Footloose, Indiana Jones and The Temple of Doom and The Karate Kid debuted. Half of his teammates cannot get into a casino or buy alcohol, while 39% of them have been voting for less than a year. Simply put, the Purdue roster consists of 13 freshmen, nine sophomores, five juniors and Schmaltz. "It's nice to be one of the older guys on the team because I have an opportunity to use my experience to help out the rest of the guys," said Schmaltz. "It's given me a chance to develop leadership skills which I'll be able to carry with me the rest of my life. However, if you told me five years ago that I'd be the only one left, I wouldn't have believed it." Most of Schmaltz's collegiate wrestling career has been dictated by circumstance. As a true freshman, he was thrust into the lineup at 125 pounds, and bumped to 133 pounds as a sophomore to fill in for an academically ineligible teammate. Finally getting to take his redshirt season in 2005-06, Schmaltz was able to stabilize his weight and acclimate himself to collegiate wrestling. "I've tried to look at it all as a positive because of the experience I got as a freshman and sophomore," said Schmaltz. "The wins and losses didn't always go my way, but it was a chance to wrestle at the collegiate level right away."
He continued, "It was great to finally settle things down as a junior. Luckily the coaching staff granted me a redshirt year, and I had a great chance to work on my technique and refine my skills." Returning to action in 2006, Schmaltz found himself in a backup role to a nationally-ranked teammate to start the season. However, the situation quickly changed for Schmaltz as he returned to the starting lineup after the second meet of the year. He quickly made the most of the opportunity, posting an impressive fourth-place showing at the Reno Tournament of Champions, and went on to have a solid season with a career-best 14 wins. In his last collegiate season, Schmaltz is finally wrestling on his own accord, but not without a bump in the road. After the season-opening Eastern Michigan Open, Schmaltz suffered a concussion, which kept him out of the Boilermakers' lineup for more than a month. "It was a big setback having to miss some of the bigger tournaments and matches in the beginning of the year," said Schmaltz. "It was great to be pushed by my teammates when I returned, specifically Matt Hemry, and it gave me an opportunity to realize I only have a short time left. I'm not positive when it happened, but I definitely refocused myself and got ready for the rest of my college career." Returning to action just before the New Year, Schmaltz has built a solid 10-9 record on the year, and recently scored the biggest win of his career to lead the Boilermakers to an 18-16 upset of 17th-ranked archrival Indiana University. Schmaltz picked up a hard-fought 2-1 double-overtime victory over 12th-ranked junior Andrae Hernandez, giving Schmaltz his 10th win of the season and first win in Big Ten Dual competition. "Schmaltz has provided valuable leadership to our young team through his actions on and off the mat," said first-year Purdue head coach, and longtime assistant, Scott Hinkel. "He has overcome several obstacles to be in this position as the lone senior out of a class that was stacked with talent and numbers. We appreciate all he has done and look forward to a successful post season." Schmaltz's leadership hasn't gone unnoticed among his fellow lightweights, as the Boilermakers don't have a wrestler above sophomore standing at 125, 133 or 141 pounds. "Sean has been a huge part of our team this season, especially in the second half," said Boilermakers' freshman 125-pound starter Akif Eren. "As I train, drill and wrestle with him in most practices, he's been a huge help to me personally, getting me ready for matches, working off the weight with me and giving me advice on the guys I'm going to wrestle. He will be missed next season, not only as a leader, but as a friend." A native of Franklin, Ind., Schmaltz is an organizational leadership and supervision major and anticipated earned his bachelor's degree this June. With plans to pursue a career in business, he is very thankful for the opportunities and experiences he's gotten with the Purdue wrestling team. While he's very happy with his current situation and career, he has a few last goals to achieve. In the final month of the season, Schmaltz will look to have a solid showing at the 2008 Big Ten Tournament and qualify for his first career NCAA Tournament. With his "elderly" experience and "old school" grit, he just may be able to achieve that goal.
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