By Madeline Savoie
For Max Schneider, winning state for wrestling this year was merely checking off the last item on his high school to-do list. His win at state was expected after his past years’ records. Now with high school drawing to a close, Schneider has a whole new list to write.
Schneider is currently considering five Division I schools including, California Polytechnic State University, University of Nebraska, University of Illinois, Penn State, and Purdue. Cal Poly, on the central coast of California, is his top choice as he is looking forward to moving out of the midwest. Though the schools’ wrestling ranking has factored into his decision for college, Schneider and his parents have also been factoring in cost, academics, and overall pros and cons of the schools.
“Wrestling is not going to be my entire future,” Schneider said.
He explained there is no professional wrestling career for him after college. Unless, of course, he decides on an Olympic run.
“I plan to stop wrestling in my late 20’s, and life is just…an unknown after that. Is the world going to blow up? Who knows?!“ Schneider laughed. “I guess I’ll become a normal person and go find a job or something.”
Schneider’s parents have pushed him athletically, but they also always encouraged him to do well in school. They knew he needed academics to fall back on. He is currently interested in studying business or computer science in college.
Though Schneider is looking forward to leaving people who only know him by his name, he admits high school has left a great impact on him.
At Lane, Schneider learned how to be a part of a team; a quality that many years practicing Judo did not instill in him. With the wrestling team at the forefront of his competitive mind, his biggest regret was not placing in state with the team his junior year.
His biggest accomplishment, other than his two state titles, is overcoming a brutal shoulder injury.
“Getting injured is one thing, but a overcoming a serious injury is different,” Schneider said.
His shoulder injury affected him not only physically but also psychologically.
“I started thinking, ‘Will I be able to wrestle in college? Will I ever be able to wrestle again?’” he said.
It was a threatening concern for Schneider at the time, who was motivated to wrestle.
“My injury was like a big dark cloud over my head,” he said.
His injury made him realize he was more impatient than he thought. Four months of rehab was required before working out again, and six months before wrestling. Though, Schneider could not bench himself for that long, he cut his rehab time almost in half. Schneider was working out after two months and wrestling in competitions after four.
Pushing his limit proved to be a regret after a relapsed shoulder injury five months after his initial recovery. Instead of getting a suggested full shoulder reconstruction surgery, Schneider opted for rehab again. He learned to be patient with himself in order to have lasting results.
With injuries far behind him, Schneider powered through his last season with confidence. At his last competition he was focused and ready. He said he was not nervous; a strange feeling for him and his usual nerve-wracked self before every other match.
“I got nervous in quarter finals, but I was determined at the very end,” he said.
The realization that his high school career was over was surreal and allowed him to walk into competition with a cool, clear mindset. His final state championship win in the 152 pound weight class was the perfect high note to end his last high school season.
While away at college, Schneider plans to visit Lane over break to check up on the team’s championship legacy.
