Metro East Sun

The wrestling season is little more than a month old, and Freddie Rodriguez already has amassed several honors.

Rodriguez, a senior on the Southern Illinois-Edwardsville (SIUE) wrestling team, spent the month of November beating everyone he faced and recently earned the Southern Conference Wrestler of the Month Award.

“I think I’m doing well,” Rodriguez told the Metro East Sun. “No matter what level you are, there is always things to be worked on.”

Freddie Rodriguez | SIUE

According to www.siuecougars.com, Rodriguez, who wrestles at 125 pounds, had an 8-0 record in November. That run included winning his division at the Grand View Open and the Joe Parisi Open, the latter of which earned him the SoCon Wrestler of the Week honor. 

That came in the wake of Rodriguez being named to the Preseason All-SoCon Team.

"Freddie works extremely hard in the room and in competition,” SIUE Head Coach Jeremy Spates told the Metro East Sun. “The bigger the atmosphere, the more he feeds off of it. He knows the harder he works, the better the results will be, and he is willing to do what it takes."

Rodriguez proved his mettle in the spotlight last season by winning two matches at the NCAA Division I Championships in Madison Square Garden in New York. That showing – the first Cougar to claim two national-meet wins since the program moved to Division I – capped a 17-3 season. He also won the SoCon title in his division and had three falls, four technical falls and three major-decision wins.

Rodriguez, a native of Lansing, Michigan, began his wrestling journey at the age of 5, when he and his brother went with their father to a high school honor-roll meet. Their father asked whether they wanted to give wrestling a try, and Rodriguez “really never looked back on it,” he said. His earliest memories were going with his family to tournaments every Saturday and Sunday.

“No matter the weather, we were always wrestling and traveling on weekends,” he said.

Rodriguez became a three-time state champion at Lansing Everett High School. He then went to the University of Oklahoma to continue his wrestling career, but said it did not work out there.

Rodriguez moved on to Iowa Lakes Community College and claimed the National Junior College Athletic Association championship in 2015. After that, he came to Edwardsville to join the Cougars program.

“The fact that I could really be a part of something that is being rebuilt is awesome, be one of the guys who really help get the ball rolling in the right direction for SIUE’s wrestling team,” Rodriguez said.

As for his goals this season, Rodriguez said he has his sights set on another SoCon title and an NCAA championship, with plans to wrestle freestyle after this season and attempt to make a University World Team.