Another Belleville Braunagel has a shot to bring a state wrestling title to Althoff
The youngest of four brothers, Joe Braunagel practically grew up wearing a singlet, head gear and a pair of wrestling shoes.
The Althoff junior also wears a recognizable name wherever he goes to compete. For the in the better part of the five or six years, no family in the state has had more success on the high school wrestling mat than the Belleville Braunagels.
Since the 2012-13 season, the Braunagel quartet of Jarrid, Danny, Zac and Joe have combined to win 11 medals at the IHSA Class 1A State Wrestling Tournament.
Beginning Friday at the Vandalia Sectional, Joe will attempt to take another step toward his second medal and perhaps his first state title.
Ranked third in the 182-pound weight class in the Illinois Wrestling Coaches and Officials Association Class 1A poll, Braunagel faces a tough road in a division which featured top-ranked Micah Downs of Tolono Uniity and No. 5 ranked Matt Kerr of Monticello.
But like his brothers, Joe Braunagel welcomes the challenge of going up against the best.
“Downs actually got beat last week at regional and Zac and Danny were the first ones to text me,’’ Braunagel said. “It’s like they tell me though, ‘don’t even think about my goal of winning the state championship.’ Right now my main goal is my first match at sectionals and that will be against Micah Downs.
“You can’t win a state title at the sectional, but you can lose it. My focus right now is on Micah Downs.”
Sixth in the Class 1A 170-pound weight class a year ago, Braunagel enters the sectional this week with a record of 30-4 with 16 pins.
His brothers have been his best teachers, he says. Oldest brother Jarrid was a four-time IHSA state placewinner who went on to a good college career at McKendree University. Twin brothers Danny and Zac combined to win four state titles (two each) and six state medals in all. They are currently freshman at the University of Illinois and are both ranked in the top 15 nationally by InterMat Wrestling.
But being the little brother had its ups and downs.
“One of the downs is that everybody kind of looks at you as kind of being behind Jarrid, Zac and Danny,’’ Braunagel said. “ But the good side of that is that I got to learn from all of them, so it’s possible my future could be brighter than all of them. But I would never say that.
“Their goal is to make Olympic and world teams and my goal is to make world teams just like them. But when we wrestled, they never gave me one point. They made me earn it.’’
Braunagel has not lost to a Class 1A wrestler all season. The highlight of his year so far was a fifth place finish the Dvorak Tournament in Machesney Park, which is considered the top regular season wrestling tournament in the state and one of the best in the nation.
He wrestles with a style that combines all he’s learned individually from his three brothers.
“My style is a combination of all three of my brothers. I’m long and lanky like Jarrid, I hand fight and I’m mean like Zac, and when I get my pace going, I’m like Danny,’’ Braunagel said. “So I’m a little bit like all three of them. I’m not complaining a bit. It’s worked out great.’’
Danny said he is proud of what his little brother has accomplished both on and off the mat.
“Every time I see him he is growing up and maturing more and more both physically and mentally,” Danny said. “He’s finally starting to make smarter decisions on the mat and taking less risks. He’s being smarter with his training and focusing on the details.
“I am so proud of the leaps he has made in his wrestling but more importantly as a man. He is making less excuses and taking more responsibility for himself. He is going to turn some heads at sectionals and state. “
The IHSA individual state wrestling tournament will be held at State Farm Center on the campus of the University of Illinois in Champaign.
