Biglerville’s Levi Haines has a fair explanation for why Penn State’s wrestling program has been nearly automatic in churning out champions. Haines has a better idea than most because he has the same motivations and a mentality for the sport where results are the furthest thing from his mind.
Just like coach Cael Sanderson and some of the biggest names to have come through the Lions program, Haines has a real love for wrestling, but perhaps more importantly, the grind to excel at it. Haines isn’t driven by achievement because he knows glory doesn’t happen without competing against himself in practice and mastering the process.
That level of preparation has become a bigger and bigger part of who Haines is as a wrestler, and who he plans to be after committing to Penn State this week. Haines was Sanderson’s first verbal commitment in the 2022 recruiting class.
“I think he’s definitely matured and he does a good job of keeping things in perspective,” Haines’ dad and high school coach, Ken Haines, said. “He doesn’t put too much emphasis on wins and losses and that kind of thing. He doesn’t let the sport define who he is.”
With that as a starting point, wrestling in big matches can feel like more of an opportunity and less of a burden or a source of stress.
Sanderson has many gifts as a coach, but the ability to find, harness and develop that mentality might be his best. The fact his wrestlers went 4-for-4 in the NCAA finals last season was just further proof of how rare that skill is.
“I think they just all love to wrestle and they don’t let those things affect them,” Haines said. “It’s just another wrestling match to those guys. They’re going out and doing what they love, and that’s all I think it is to them. They don’t make it some big thing. They just go out and compete because they love to compete.”
Haines has achievements that speak for themselves. He is a state champ and a three-time state finalist who has embraced high expectations from Day 1 of his prep career. This offseason, Haines made the United States Cadet World Team and qualified to compete in Budapest, Hungary, in July.
Haines was projected as a future star as a nationally ranked freshman at 106 pounds, and he hasn’t stopped getting better since then. Above all else, THAT is what Penn State saw in him and why Haines gave his commitment to the Lions this week.
Yes, there were more highly regarded wrestlers or guys with more titles, but Haines shows all the signs of a kid who simply won’t stop improving. Considering his 100-5 career record and the fact he’s 3-for-3 reaching the state finals makes the idea of limitless improvement all the more exciting.
“I think there’s going to be a lot of like-minded guys in the room with me that are out there chasing national titles,” Haines said. “It’s going to be an awesome atmosphere to become the best wrestler I can be.”
Speaking of growth, Haines’ progression from a physical standpoint might be even more intriguing. He has jumped up 20 pounds in each of his two previous offseasons, from 106 to 126 and 145, and is currently walking around at 160 pounds after making the Cadet World Team at 71 kilograms.
Flo Wrestling projected Haines as a 157 or 165-pounder at the next level, but it’s fair to wonder if those guys are thinking big enough. The idea of weight wasn’t a big talking point between Haines and the Penn State staff, but he said two bigger numbers were part of those conversations.
“I’m not sure where I’m going to end up in college,” Haines said. “I really don’t know, but I would imagine it would be in the upper weight classes. I’m not dead-set. Some of the weight classes being tossed around were 174 or 184. We’ll just see what the future brings. I usually grow, on average, about 20 pounds a year, so we’ll just see what happens.”
Haines’ rise up the Biglerville lineup has been seamless to this point, albeit a little surprising to Ken Haines.
“At one point in time, we were concerned about him being a small 106-pounder,” he said. “I don’t think we have to worry about that anymore.”
There are big things in wrestling and small things in wrestling, and pigeon-holing prospects into specific weights doesn’t appear to be high on Sanderson’s list. Instead, he is focused on more important subjects with Haines between now and when he arrives on campus.
The idea is, Haines has the right tools for the job and the attitude and passion to go with it. Penn State can work with that no matter how much he weighs.
“It was talked about, but it’s definitely not a factor they really focus on,” Haines said of his weight. “They recruit guys that love to wrestle and they feel very confident they can develop guys that love to wrestle.”