When Cole McCarthy steps onto the mat for the first time at Friday's 4A regional meet at Morse Burley Gym he will have a big target on his back.
The Carson junior has been nothing short of superb this season, chalking up a 26-2 (22 pins) record, both losses coming at the prestigious Tournament of Champions in Reno when he suffered a shoulder injury in one of the matches. He was unbeaten in Sierra League duals and won three tournament titles in along the way.
After placing third at last year's regionals and fourth at state, McCarthy believes he has a realistic shot at improving both finishes. He is the top Sierra League seed entering this weekend's event, and the man to beat in the eyes of many.
The three wrestlers who stand in McCarthy's way are Douglas' Logan Ames, Galena's Nick Oliver and Spanish Springs' Joei Jones, who is expected to drop down from 132. McCarthy pinned Ames in their only regular-season meeting.
"I wrestled Oliver a couple of times last year, but didn't wrestle him this year," McCarthy said. "I think it goes both ways. You can't get too cocky because anything can happen in a match.
"From what I can tell, I have a pretty good shot at getting to the finals. It would be good for both me and the team if I do."
And winning state?
"It would be huge," McCarthy said. "That's been a dream of mine for a couple of years. I have a lot of family and friends going to Vegas for the state meet, and it would be nice to win in front of them. It would be something to look back on and tell your kids about.
"I feel I've been wrestling really well. I've beaten a lot of tough wrestlers at the California tournaments I've been to. I haven't had a bad tournament yet."
Tim McCarthy, Cole's dad and coach, said that his son has improved immensely over the years.
"He's definitely become a pinner," coach McCarthy said. "You go to a tournament, and you'll see guys get takedowns and near falls and let their guy up and then start the cycle all over again. Cole just likes to get it over with as soon as possible. He's good at sticking people.
"He says he does it to conserve energy. I like that. He likes to save the energy for the next mach."
To get as many pins as he has, McCarthy has to be pretty good on his feet to get those takedowns which lead to pins. The 126-pounder is so good technically, if opponents make mistakes, they could fall victim to a Cherokee or a Tootsie Roll which are two of McCarthy's signature moves.
McCarthy credits some of his success to a camp he attended, along with teammate Nico Garcia, in Missouri last summer.
"It was five days, all of them working on our feet," he said. "I think I've always been pretty good on my feet. I'm also able to use my quickness, too."
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This undoubtedly will be McCarthy's last year at 126. He admits that he had a tougher time maintaining weight compared to last year when he wrestled at the same weight.
The Carson star admits that he hasn't had to do anything drastic to make weight this year, adding that he'd be in huge problem with his mother if he did.
"I'd like to see him move up a few weight classes for next year," coach McCarthy said. "I'd like to see him get as big as possible.
"I hate it when kids are already planning what they are going to do for next year. I tell the kids to eat when the season is over; see what happens when the next season starts."
With Austin Brown graduating, it would leave McCarthy and Nicholas Lani to handle the 132 and 138-pound classes.
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Tim McCarthy has been around wrestling his entire life. The sport is in his blood, so it's not surprising that Cole has followed in his footsteps.
Cole McCarthy's introduction to wrestling came with the Bulldogs at age 5, and it wasn't pretty.
"I hated it," the younger McCarthy said. "I didn't want to be there. It was tough. I don't like to lose, but I wasn't very good so I did lose a lot.
"I wanted to be like my dad, so that kept me going. I knew he liked wrestling a lot."
Coach McCarthy admitted that his son wasn't the typical 5-year-old when he was thrust onto the mats for the first time, and he knows that Cole started the sport because of him.
"A lot of little kids are rambunctious and like to roll around and be physical." the elder McCarthy said. "Cole had more of a docile personality. He didn't like it rough. I knew we weren't going to spend time going to tournaments with him.
"He always went with me to different tournaments when he was younger. He's been around the sport a lot."
It wasn't until McCarthy entered fifth grade that he started to enjoy and appreciate the sport a little more.
"I started going to my dad's practices (at Carson) with Willy McDonald (now at Manogue)," the Carson junior said. "Willy and I would pair up and work out with the high school kids."
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The McCarthys aren't the only coach-son duo at Carson.
Bruce Barnes coached his son, Brian, for four years in basketball. Shane Quilling, Carson's linebacker coach, has worked with his son Chance for the past few years.
It's not an easy job, and anybody that tells you it is, isn't telling the whole truth.
"It can be very difficult," coach McCarthy said. "I'm definitely in a situation where I don't pull any punches with him.
"I make sure I don't show any favoritism. If anything you go more the other way and are harder on him. We've had a "Stud of the Week Award", and I don't think he's received that yet."
It's not to say that coach McCarthy isn't proud of what his son has accomplished, but he's always been careful not to feature his son at the expense of other members of the team. And that's sometimes hard to do considering he is one of the most talented wrestlers in the region.
