In each of the last two high school wrestling seasons, Christian Colucci found himself in the same exact location, on the outside, looking in.
“I was sitting in the stands [at Atlantic City’s Boardwalk Hall] and watching the finals [of the NJSIAA state tournament],” Colucci said. “I knew in my heart right then that this was not going to happen again. I was so close twice. I was going to do everything in my power to make sure it wouldn’t happen again. It was a lot of motivation.”
So Colucci decided to take a different approach.
“I always had a very good work ethic,” Colucci explained. “But I knew then that I needed help. I thought I could do it all by myself, but I found out the hard way that it didn’t work. I had to listen to other people’s advice.”
One of those people was Christian’s own father, Dean, who was a New York State wrestling champion in 1979 at Xaverian High School in Brooklyn, the same high school that produced Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer Chris Mullin. The two attended Xaverian at the same time (Dean Colucci is two years older) and are both members of the Xaverian Athletic Hall of Fame.
“My dad told me that I should start writing down my goals every day in a journal,” Colucci said. “I should write down everything that I wanted to do.”
It was April of 2014 that Colucci started writing in his journal. One of the first entries in Colucci’s journal was the college that he wanted to attend.
“I wrote that I wanted to get to Lehigh,” Colucci said.
Another of his first entries had to do with his wrestling career.
“I wrote that I wanted to become a state champion,” Colucci said.
Those were pretty lofty goals, but Colucci was extremely determined to make sure that they both became reality.
As for his college choice, Colucci was sold on Lehigh – and nothing else.
“I just wanted to be there,” Colucci said. “People always talk about the first time they step on a campus and the feeling they get. Well, I knew it was the place to be. I said, ‘Wow, if I could ever get a chance to go here that would be great.’ I met the coaching staff and some people and it solidified that it was where I wanted to be. I felt right at home. I just felt I needed to do whatever it took to get there. I wanted to be there so badly.”
So Colucci first applied to Lehigh. He was rejected. He applied again. Same result.
“I applied five times,” Colucci said.
Simply put, Colucci was not going to relinquish his dream. The same came to wrestling.
“I learned about sports psychologists Gene and Jeff Zanetti’s ‘Wrestling Mindset,’ ” Colucci said.
The Zanetti brothers created Wrestling Mindset, which is a program devised to have wrestlers maintain the proper mental focus and approach. The two have worked with several wrestling clubs, as well as the Rutgers and University of Pennsylvania wrestling teams.
“I talked to them over the phone,” Colucci said. “I had to put my mind to my goal and that nothing should be able to stop me. So I changed my work ethic. I concentrated on getting better grades and doing my homework. I studied harder. I was ready to do anything that was going to help me reach my goals.”
Last September, Colucci wrote in his journal that “I had to become a better person.”
So Colucci also got more involved with community activities as well. He just became a more well-rounded individual. And every day, there would be a new addition to the journal, one that was a personal journal, another involving workouts.
“I showed from April 11 through March 8, I did this or that in a workout,” Colucci said. “Anything that was going to help me achieve my goal, I wrote it down.”
By the time the wrestling season began in earnest in late November, Colucci felt he was ready.
“I felt that going into the season, I had to set the tone and show everyone that I was going to win the state title,” Colucci said. “No one was going to touch me. I set the tone. This was my year. It was no one else’s year.”
St. Peter’s Prep head coach Anthony Verdi, who had previously guided James Fox (2011) and Lenny Richardson (2012) to NJSIAA state championships, knew that Colucci had the makings of a champion.
“He did everything he had to do in his mind to win a state championship,” Verdi said. “He waited 12 months for his goal. He wrestles all year round. The preparation was there for him. He made his decision that he was going to win the state championship. I thought he was going to be able to do it based on his ability and his dedication. It came down to him having the mentality.”
Sure enough, Colucci did exactly what was expected. He rolled through the regular season without a loss in the state of New Jersey, only dropping two decisions at the brutally competitive Beast of the East tournament in Delaware in early December and another in a meet in Minnesota during Christmas break.
But Colucci remained untouchable during his season in New Jersey, rolling to another NJSIAA District 16 championship (his third), a Region 4 championship (also his third) and finally, the grand prize, the 220-pound overall state title.
Colucci won the state title by defeating Marc McDonald of West Essex, 3-0, in the championship round, completing his season with a stellar 35-3 record and 112 wins for his career at Prep.
With the win, Colucci became the third Prep wrestler and only the seventh in Hudson County history to win the state crown.
For his efforts, Colucci has been selected as The Hudson Reporter Athlete of the Week for the past week.
“I thought all year long he had a chance,” Verdi said. “Barring any setbacks, any injuries, I thought he was very loose and very focused. I can’t compare the three, because they’ve all been special. Each one has been exciting for me as a coach, but they’re all different. It’s never going to get boring.”
Colucci is proud that he will join Fox and Richardson on the wall of the Prep wrestling room. Fox and Richardson’s wrestling singlet adorn the wall for all to see.
“Seeing those singlets on the wall inspired me,” Colucci said. “They showed it was possible to become a state champ. Those are the crown jewels of the wrestling room. To know I will always be up there with them is amazing. It really feels amazing. I don’t think I’ve stopped smiling since I won. Every picture of me has the biggest smile. Everyone else has a straight face on the podium and I’m smiling. It’s like the biggest weight has been lifted off my shoulders. I achieved something I wanted so badly.”
As for his other goal, well, persistence does pay off, because on his sixth try, Colucci received acceptance to Lehigh – even before he won the state championship. It’s a true success story, capped with what Christian Colucci always wanted – a state championship. – Jim Hague
Jim Hague can be reached at OGSMAR@aol.com.