Richmond's Skatzka looks to join elite company

If you plan on following along this season as Richmond's Devin Skatzka seeks his fourth individual wrestling state championship — something only 18 other high school wrestlers in the state have done — then make sure to enjoy it, because he plans to.

"It's just a big opportunity," Skatzka said. "Wrestling with pressure on your back and with nerves is going to make you worse. Going out there and having fun and just competing, that's when you do your best."

Skatzka's senior season begins when the Richmond A team heads to Defiance, Ohio, for a tournament on Dec. 19 and 20. The Blue Devils enter the year ranked No. 2 in Division 3, and No. 5 in the statewide rankings. Skatzka is ranked No. 1 in the state in Division 3 at 160 pounds, No. 2 in the weight regardless of division, No. 10 in the country at the weight, and No. 68 in the country's pound-for-pound rankings.

He's a blue-chip recruit who has signed to wrestle at Indiana University, and he has a list of accolades — a pair of All-American FloNational finishes join the three state titles on his resume — that can rival most any wrestler in the country.

Skatzka knows this, and while he would never tell you all of that without some serious prying on your part, he embraces what he is, what he's done and what he could possibly do at the Palace of Auburn Hills on March 7 when the book is closed on the high school wrestling season and his Richmond wrestling career.

"It will be more of excitement (than relief)," Skatzka said of possibly winning a fourth title. "It's kind of a dream of mine to get that. I remember watching (St. Johns) Taylor Massa and (Davison's) Brent Metcalf and all those kids do it, and it's super cool getting the standing ovation and all of that.

"I don't even know what that would be like. I'm excited."

When asked by members of the media, Skatzka has never shied away from talking about making history. Even as early as the moments after he won his second title as a sophomore, he allowed himself to imagine those standing ovations and what they would be like for him in 2015.

At home, though, the conversation rarely, if ever, comes up.

"We talk about making sure you're doing the right things and to have good character," said Dennis Skatzka, Devin's father and the assistant Richmond wrestling coach. "To get him to talk about it, it's almost prying. It's hard to drag that conversation out of him. We talk about what we've got going on during the day, like hunting and church and what our schedule pertains to. When he does want to talk about it, it's about the particulars of a match or of that competition, but it never really comes up in conversation."

At home is also where Skatzka learned to not let outside pressure get to him and to embrace the fun that comes with being an athlete.

"Since he's been little, he's done real well and been blessed with talent," Dennis Skatzka said. "We've always stressed competing versus winning and losing. Of no credit of mine, but Devin epitomizes that. He's a kid that goes out there, and the bigger the match, the more fun he has with it.

"He truly wants people to come see him, watch him, and he wants to entertain."

Richmond coach Brandon Day feels Dennis has had a lot more to do with it than he admits.

"I think Dennis was such a basket case as an athlete worrying about things — and I made the state tournament three times and never placed, you overanalyze things — and what Dennis lacked as an athlete, he's made up for as a father," Day said. "Those are conversations he had with Devin when Devin was 10, 11, 12 years old.

"Enjoy the talent you have, enjoy the sport. That's why you're here, you're here to glorify your ability and to enjoy it. Not to sit there at night and freak out about it and let your stomach get tied up in knots, but to enjoy all the hard work and everything, and to enjoy the process. And Devin does that."

Early success

Skatzka began wrestling at 5 years old, and almost immediately started winning big. In 2007, he won an AAU World Championship, and before he entered high school he had been traveling to different parts of the country to wrestle in major tournaments.

Day knew he was getting a good wrestler before he had him, and he learned just how good the summer immediately before.

"When he was in eighth grade, in the summer before his freshman year, Justin (Russo, a state runner-up as a senior) and Brian Henke (a state champion as a junior) had just graduated, and we had a camp here and we worked out," Day said. "Brian could still get him pretty good, and Justin could get him, but he was right there.

"I knew right there, this is going to be a special thing to have in our lineup. I knew Garett (Edwards, a state champion in 2012) could win it, and I watched (Skatzka) go with Garett, and Garett was struggling with him. I knew he could have a chance to (win multiple titles)."

There were other moments during Skatzka's freshman season that clued Day into exactly what he had, as well. In his first tournament, Day said Skatzka defeated Canton's Alec Pantaleo, who was a state runner-up in Division 1 the year before.

In the team state finals, as Richmond defeated Dundee to win its third straight Division 3 state championship, Skatzka bumped up to 140 pounds and pinned Brody Whitman — a junior who was highly ranked and went on to finish fourth in the state the next weekend — in the first period.

"When he just got after him, turned him and pinned him, I was like, 'Devin's on fire right now; watch out,'" Day said.

The win against Whitman came a week after Skatzka suffered his first — and only — postseason loss, a 13-6 setback against Leslie's Zehlin Storr in the regional final. At that point, Skatzka wasn't thinking about four titles, as winning the one right in front of him appeared to be a longshot.

He and Storr met again in the state finals, with Skatzka winning 5-4 on a late takedown. As the official raised his hand in victory, Skatzka had a look of genuine shock on his face, something that hasn't happened since. He also had a new idea in his head about what he could possibly accomplish.

"Right after I won it my freshman year," Skatzka said of when he figured winning four titles was a possibility. "Losing to Zehlin Storr in the regional, I didn't really think I had a chance to win it right then, my freshman year. But once I got that off my back, I knew it was possible."

Skatzka finished his freshman season with a record of 47-8, a fantastic mark against Richmond's beast of a schedule.

As a sophomore, he was 52-2, and while his road to a second state title included a pair of close decisions in the quarterfinals (10-6 against Matt Somers of Swan Valley) and semifinals (6-2 against R.J. Smith of Yale), his 145-pound finals match was a dominant 8-0 win against longtime nemesis Jordon Bennett of Lake Odessa Lakewood.

His junior season record was 40-3, with all three losses coming against nationally-ranked wrestlers. His state tournament performance, however, was among the most dominant in MHSAA history.

Now at 152, Skatzka pinned all four of his opponents in the first period, including Manchester's Eric Coval in the finals, who was unbeaten heading into the match. His total mat time for the weekend was 3 minutes, 42 seconds. Only Jeremiah Tobias of Manchester (3:30 in 2000) has been faster in sweeping through a state tournament since at least 1990.

"Because it looks so easy for him, I talk to parents all the time and they're like, 'He just does this and this,' but it's hard work," Day said. "It's been hard work for a long time that makes it look so easy. But it's definitely not something he takes for granted. It's a special thing, and I'm happy to be a part of it."

Joining the elite

Day said that he has allowed himself to enjoy watching Skatzka — and other members of the Richmond team — more in recent years, not only in competition, but also in practice. Seeing Skatzka not only dominate his competition, but also helping out younger wrestlers, brings a smile to his face.

"Five years ago, I might have been all stressed out about, 'We gotta do this and this to win a state title,'" Day said. "Now, I just enjoy the kids, and how hard they work, especially Devin, because what he's doing is amazing."

While Skatzka appears to be the favorite to win his fourth title before his season even begins, it's obviously not a certainty. What is, though, is his place among the best in Richmond's history, and the best in the Blue Water Area's history — and that's at the very top.

"All the kids are special, but you can't deny three state championships and going for a fourth one," Day said. "Kenny (Thomas, a 2002 Richmond graduate, three-time state finalist and four-time placer) was kind of the guy from his freshman year on. Devin was in a great situation where he had unbelievable workout partners. I'm not saying Kenny didn't, but Devin had guys like Nate Henke — Devin was first (in the state) and Nate was third (in Skatzka's freshman year). Garett was the champ at a weight above him. So you had those guys every day going with each other.

"But just his athleticism, that's the thing that maybe set Devin ahead of those other guys."

Thomas is OK with Skatzka ascending to the top.

"Coach Skatzka, his dad, he was my (assistant) coach, and he was a guy that brought me to the next level," Thomas said. "I've known Devin since he was a wee lad, real small, so I'm glad for him. When I see a guy like Devin coming in and breaking records, that's awesome. My day has come and gone, so now it's time for somebody new to come in and take my place."

The athleticism Day mentioned may also be what has stopped Skatzka from climbing even higher in the national rankings, in a roundabout way.

In an era of sport specialization, Skatzka has remained a three-sport athlete. He was a First-Team All-State selection this past fall in football, and named Macomb County Co-Player of the Year as he rushed for more than 1,600 yards and 30-plus touchdowns on a Richmond team that went 10-2 and won a district title.

He's run track in each of the last two years, and plans to play baseball in the spring.

It may have hurt his national rankings, as he simply can't attend some of the country's biggest meets which are held during the fall, and he may enter the season with more rust than others, but it has everyone excited about what could come in the future.

"Other sports are just something I enjoy doing," Skatzka said. "It's not working toward something in those sports — it's cool to be All-State and all that — but wrestling is what I'm going to college to do. The other sports are just for fun, I guess.

"It's always been like that, even in middle school. I remember I would always wrestle Jacob Cooper from Springport, he was a two-time state champ, and I would always lose to him in the first tournament, but toward the end of the year I would be able to knock him off. Those kids who wrestle year-round, at the beginning of the year have an advantage. I think that's where, in college, I'm really going to be able to show what I can do focusing on one sport."

Day feels that Skatzka's status as a three-sport athlete would make him unique among four-time state champions, especially some of the more recent ones.

"He played the first half of 90 percent of his high school football games, if he would have played the whole game, he probably rushes for close to 3,000 yards," Day said. "He's a special kid. You get the right mix of mom and dad having great genetics, then the work ethic, and being surrounded by kids who have the same goals — (Richmond senior Evan) Kratt signing for baseball, having guys like Brady (LaFore) and (Dillon) McInerney and Jordan (Adams) around him.

"He's a competitor. He's going to play baseball in the spring, and if it's the bottom of the seventh inning, I want him on first base trying to steal a base for me."

What would also make Skatzka somewhat unique among four-timers is the weights he has won at. Only three of the previous 18 four-time champions won their first title at a weight higher than Skatzka's freshman title at 135 pounds. Fourteen of the 18 won their first title at 125 or below.

Of course, debating Skatzka's place among those he could possibly join gets away from simply enjoying what he's doing. And that, after all, is what everyone around him plans to do this season, no matter how it ends.

"I've always tried to sit back and enjoy it," Dennis Skatzka said. "Enjoying his friends and the other wrestlers on the team and being a part of that. Ever since he was a little kid, our family time has been with my daughters at a softball field or him at a wrestling meet. We spend an entire day each week — and not that it's different than any other family — but that's our family time.

"I've definitely considered (this is his final year), and made a point of recognizing that and enjoying it."

Contact Paul Costanzo at (810) 989-6251 or pcostanzo@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @PaulCostanzo.