Get To Know the Sooners: Stephen Buchanan

At Oklahoma, we want our fans to connect with our student-athletes on and off the mat. As a result, we'll be doing a "Get to Know Our Sooner Wrestlers" segment in our newsletters. In this edition, you'll get to know All-American transfer Stephen Buchanan.

Question: What's your background off the mat? Where are you from? Tell us about your family.

Answer: I didn't come from a lot, at all. We have a huge family, and I am one of 11 kids. We all grew up in Greenwood, Wisconsin, for the most part but we ended up going to school in Loyal, Wisconsin.

Q: How did you get into wrestling?

A: My two older brothers were terrible at basketball despite us all being pretty tall. So, one day, my dad had enough and said, "we're going to be a wrestling family now," and the rest is history.

Q: What about wrestling makes you love the sport?
A: Wrestling is an incredibly challenging sport. Often times, you can wrestle will and still not be rewarded with trophies and accolades. But the training that wrestling gives you will provide you with a mindset and discipline that will allow you to overcome any challenge thrown at you in life.

Q: When did you really start to take wrestling seriously and realize you could be pretty good?
A: I started actually wrestling seriously in the 6th grade and from that point on I became a two-time state champion in high school and now a two-time All-American and Big 12 champion in college.

Q: You transferred to Oklahoma from Wyoming. What led to that decision?

A: The biggest reason was the opportunity to follow Coach (Teyon) Ware. I know the success he had at OU and that Norman was a place that could set me up to be the best version of myself. I already knew some of the guys from an FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) camp, so that played a role too.

Q: What are you enjoying the most so far about wrestling for Coach Kish and his staff?
A: I love it so far. I enjoy that they're picking out the little things in my game that I need to work on to reach the level I want to reach. You have to do all the little things right if you want to win a national championship.

Q: What can OU fans expect when they see you on the mat?

A: I'm a competitor. Period. Win or lose, I'm not going to ever quit. I don't have that in me, so OU fans should always expect to see a fight from me. I've been told that I'm exciting to watch because I score a lot of points for a big guy. I'm going to take a lot of shots and stay aggressive because I'm always going for bonus points for my team.

Q: What are your goals for the upcoming season?
A: My goals are to be an undefeated Big 12 and national champion. That's always my goal.

Q: Why should fans be excited about this new era of OU Wrestling?

A: This team is completely different from last year. We have all the pieces put into place to be really, really good. I really believe that we've grown into a team that will have an opportunity to shock the nation.

Q: Alright, Stephen, now for some rapid-fire fun questions. Favorite Norman restaurant?