As the team’s heavyweight, senior Tyler Deuel’s matches always come at meet’s end, usually with the Binghamton wrestling team’s outcome on the line. And for the 270-pound captain with a team-best 21-4 record this season, his position as headliner couldn’t be more fitting.
“I have an ability to step up for the team,” Deuel said. “In dual meet situations I’m usually the last one to wrestle. To me, just the ability to be able to overcome those pressure situations and usually come out on top, I feel like that’s a strong quality that I have.”
After ending his junior season with a sixth-place finish at the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA) Championships last year, Deuel returned for his final season as a man on a mission.
So far during his final journey as a Bearcat, the senior has been ranked the No. 22 heavyweight in Division I wrestling this year — the second-highest in the EIWA — becoming the leader and the anchor of a young Binghamton team.
“Being a leader is just really going out there and setting a high standard for the rest of the team to try and measure up to,” Deuel said. “So I feel like I need to perform. I need to put points on the board, I need to be consistently winning matches, beating good opponents and I would like to see my teammates aspire to do the same — or even aspire to be better.”
Be better on, and off, the mat. When he’s not hitting the books, the 2013 America East Helping Hands Award winner suits up for Binghamton in a different way. By serving as president of Binghamton’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, Deuel raises money for the Adopt-A-Family and St. Baldrick’s charities, with which he has been involved since his freshman year. With his team, he has volunteered with the Special Olympics of New York, Southern Tier Region as well as with area schools as a student mentor.
“It’s definitely good in getting the Binghamton name out there,” Deuel said.
“It builds strong character, too,” Deuel added. “I think I get something out of it through helping other people — it turns me into someone that I want to be.”
And at this point in the season, who doesn’t want to be Tyler Deuel? Last Friday night, after his 18-0 win by technical fall to finish Buffalo, 24-12, the heavyweight was swarmed by a group of youth wrestlers hoping to get his “autograph.” But to find Deuel’s motivation, look no further than the side of the mat.
“The guy that I look up to the most is my coach,” Deuel said of BU head coach Matt Dernlan. “He has a lot of strong leadership qualities. He sets a good example whether that’s on the mat or just in life in general.”
Beginning his Binghamton career under the guidance of former head coach Pat Popolizio, Deuel was on board when Dernlan took the reigns of the wrestling program in 2012. And while the former Penn State assistant brought with him a philosophy Deuel had never seen before, it was one that he quickly adopted.
“Everything that he does is designed for you to compete at the highest level,” Deuel said. “So to me, it’s a no brainer to follow a guy like that.”
With a reputation as a “silent giant,” Deuel’s lead-by-example mindset has earned the following of everyone around him as well.
“We always talk about how everything’s tied together, he aspires for social excellence, academic excellence,” Dernlan said.
“He’s one of those guys that I wish I could have five more years with,” Dernlan continued. “He’s really invested and jumped in with both feet … He’s still trying to get better, even at this stage in his career.”
This includes the heavyweight hitting the wrestling room in the morning instead of the team’s scheduled afternoon practices, to accommodate his post-graduate schedule. Despite being listed as a senior, the fourth-year student is currently pursuing his MBA at BU after having completed his bachelor’s degree in sociology in three years.
To get an idea of how that sizes up with his peers, only 84 percent of Division I athletes completed their bachelor’s degree in four years in 2013.
Next up for Binghamton is a pair of dual meets on the road against Bucknell and Bloomsburg this weekend to close the regular season. For Deuel, the biggest challenge of his senior season is coming up on Friday in Bucknell senior Joe Stolfi — the No. 16 heavyweight in the nation as well as the top heavyweight in the EIWA. Facing Stolfi, the Bearcat that has always striven to “be better” has a shot to walk into the EIWA tournament next month as the best.
And it’s about time.
“I look at the calendar and I’ve got about a month left in my season,” Deuel said. “So to me, it’s just the final go-around. I have to make everything a reality so I can finish my career on a high note.”