During his freshman year at Christiansburg High School, Andy Smith created a PowerPoint presentation explaining how he wanted to wrestle at Virginia Tech.
He thought it was a long shot, but he decided to make his presentation about wrestling at VT anyway.
"Wrestling in college was just kind of a dream for me," Smith said. "At that time, if you would've told me [I'd wrestle at VT], I would've been like 'No way.'"
That was five All-Americans awards and one state championship ago for Smith, who's steadily developed into one of the top collegiate wrestlers in the country at 197 pounds.
The redshirt sophomore has not only fulfilled his dream of wrestling for the Hokies — he's become one of the top wrestlers in the program.
Smith owns an impressive 11-4 record this season as Tech's starter at 197, but no win was more remarkable than his 3-2 upset victory over No. 6 Isaac Trumble against No. 5 NC State Friday night.
Entering the bout ranked No. 26 in the country, Smith was viewed as a heavy underdog against Trumble. The top-10 ranking didn't scare Smith, but during the week leading up to the bout, the coaching staff encouraged him to wrestle with a chip on his shoulder.
"I just did not believe there was a way I'd lose that match Friday night," Smith said.
Smith's confidence in himself was on full display against Trumble. Trailing 1-0 at the end of the second period, he chose bottom at the beginning of the third. Many believed he would go neutral — including Trumble — and try to snag a potential match-winning takedown.
"Even [Trumble] thought I was going on my feet, too, when I went to line up down and he lined up on the starting feet line," Smith said. "I was like, 'Oh, I'm not scared of you.'
"I was looking up at the clock and I saw I was down 1-0, and I was like 'I can get out.' We'd been working on stuff all week with this guy and I felt him [get] tired. Once I get people tired, I've just got an edge there. So I felt like I was going to be able to get off bottom there."
Smith broke through Trumble's grasp and worked up to his feet, tying the match at one with only 1:22 left in the bout. Half a minute later, Trumble shot on Smith and grabbed his left leg — that's when Smith went to work.
With Trumble glued to him, Smith hooked his right arm around Trumble's left leg while pushing his head to the mat.
"That all goes back to muscle memory," Smith said. "I feel like I'm pretty good from where people will take a bad shot and I'll try to run down that corner almost every time, usually. Maybe not in the beginning of the match, but late in matches when guys get tired, I feel like it's a position I can capitalize on."
Smith's experience served him well Friday night. As he ran around the left side of Trumble, he was able to break his leg free and snag the NC State wrestler's legs to score the bout-winning takedown with 26 seconds left to wrestle.
Pounding his chest in front of a raucous record-setting crowd in Cassell Coliseum as time ran out, Smith earned the biggest victory of his collegiate career fewer than 10 miles where he grew up.
"It definitely was [a full-circle moment]," Smith said. "My senior night in high school was actually here at Cassell. It's definitely way cooler now, but it definitely felt full circle.
"I was like, 'Man, like three or four years ago, I was here in high school, and now I'm here as a college athlete here at Virginia Tech.'"
The win extended Virginia Tech's lead over NC State to five, 16-11, with only one match left, essentially icing the dual for the Hokies.
Friday night was just a stepping stone for both the program and Smith in the grand scheme of things, however. Both have bigger goals for the rest of the year.
"I definitely think I'm able to win ACCs this year," Smith said. "All-American is definitely up there [as one of my goals]. I feel like I'm right there to jump levels and I'm just going to keep chasing that."
As for Smith's legacy at Virginia Tech, he wants to serve as an example for those who might not believe they can achieve their dreams.
"I feel like when people look at me, I want them to see where I started, where I got to and be like, 'Dang, anything is possible.'"
Gallery: (1-20-2023) WRE: NC State Match
