Wrestling season is starting up again and the Pumas appear to be ready with a slew of returning starters. However, many of these returners will not be able to train with the rest of the team for an undetermined amount of time.

Several wrestlers double as football players and as the football playoff season comes around so do tryouts for wrestling. The problem is that many of those varsity wrestlers are not able to attend try-outs as they are committed to the varsity football team during the playoff season.

Coach Darren Johnson said, “A lot of our varsity are playing football so they will be delayed coming into wrestling. But that makes us proud and happy because we care about the school.”

Some of these dual athletes include Senior Travis Calloway and Junior Justin Clatterbuck. Both made it to state last year and Calloway even made it to the podium after reaching sixth in the state.

As far as the football situation, Clatterbuck stated, “I think Coach Johnson is really understanding because he knows how good football is doing. He makes it an easy transition from football to wrestling.”

In total, five varsity regulars for wrestling missed tryouts and will continue to miss practices until after the playoff run in football.

Along with Clatterbuck and Calloway, there are other wrestlers who have made it the state playoffs. Regulars like Vincent Corral, who advanced last year, and Connor Boyd, who has advanced twice, hope to have a shot at a state title this year.

Calloway added, “We are pretty young but we will have state qualifiers. We are always pretty strong in wrestling here (at Perry).”

The Pumas wrestle in Division 1 Section 3. Other teams in their section include Desert Mountain, Dobson, and Hamilton. Although early in the season, there are high hopes for the boys as they prepare to dominate the competition.