OSU Wrestling: Jax Forrest Pins on Debut, Cowboys Shutout Sooners
By Marshall Scott | Pistols Firing Blog
STILLWATER — Jax Forrest wrestled his final high school dual about a month ago, pinning his opponent in 19 seconds. After enrolling at Oklahoma State a semester early, he wrestled his first collegiate dual on Sunday, and that opponent lasted only 47 seconds.
Oklahoma State beat Oklahoma 37-0 on Sunday in Gallagher-Iba Arena, where Forrest, a “freshman” 133-pounder, pinned Oklahoma’s Carter Schmidt, weeks removed for Forrest winning Powerade, a premier high school tournament.
But Forrest isn’t — or wasn’t, rather, your run-of-the-mill high school wrestler.
Forrest made the United States’ Senior World Team this year, winning the U.S. Open and a best-of-three series against 2023 world champ and two-time NCAA champ Vito Arujau to do so. He was also the United States’ representative in the 61 kg division at the U23 World Championships, where Forrest took gold.
As he did as a high schooler, Forrest walked to the mat to Lipps Inc.’s ‘Funkytown.’ A fitting choice for the funky style Forrest employs. Not long after the opening whistle, Forrest had already scored a takedown. After a scramble led to a Schmidt escape, Forrest was back on the attack, dumping the Sooner to his back before the official slapped the mat.
The sellout crowd of 12,549 was excited when Forrest made his walk to the mat. When he got the pin, the place lost its collective mind.
As is customary, confetti fell from the GIA rafters after the pin. The young Forrest took a moment in the center of the mat, taking in his new playground.
“It was different,” said Forrest about whether the nerves of Sunday compared to wrestling at the World Championships. “This one, it’s not as nervous. It’s more just excited, so you get a little amped up. For that one (Worlds), it’s nervous because it’s against different countries, you’re in a different place.”
“The atmosphere is different, but here I was nervous, I was excited, but I was secure in whatever happened, I’m gonna get back to work tomorrow and just keep getting better. That was my first match of who knows how many, but I have a lot more opportunities to just keep wrestling and just get better.”
Taylor didn’t take a firm stance on what was next for Forrest — whether he’ll wrestle four more dates and redshirt or if he’ll be the Cowboys’ guy at 133 going forward.
Taylor left his post toward the end of Troy Spratley’s match to go back and speak with Forrest before his debut.
“I think the message was, ‘Hey, you’re gonna go score today, but you don’t have to score all at one time,’” Taylor said. “I think that’s something that he’s gotta continue working on is an element of patience. Just gotta have a little bit of patience, and I think that’s something that he’s gonna work on.”
“When you have a lot of scoring potential and stuff, there’s an element of patience just to make sure it’s set up, but that was really what it was. Just, ‘Hey, enjoy this moment. Be patient. Scoring’s gonna come, and just smile and have some fun.’ And he was pretty relaxed. I think that was a pretty special moment for him.”