Leaving a legacy
Star wrestler Shumate wants to help build culture at Coffman
A two-time Division I state champion, senior Seth Shumate already has joined 2017 graduate Dom Demas as one of Dublin Coffman’s greatest wrestlers.
For Shumate, though, leaving a legacy goes beyond wins and losses.
“I’m just trying to leave a culture for Coffman that will be here for a while even after I’m gone,” he said. “This year is less (about) winning on my end and more about how can I get my team to win a state title and leave that hardworking culture here, so that in future years they can have that same success.”
The Shamrocks had an individual win a state title for the first time in 1991 when senior Jeff Benjamin captured the championship at 119 pounds, but didn’t win another until Demas finished first at 138 in 2015. Demas settled for a state runner-up finish at 145 in 2016 but closed his prep career with the state title at 145 in 2017.
Demas finished with a 180-13 record, while Shumate entered this season with a career mark of 123-2.
Shumate missed time during last year’s regular season with a knee injury and finished 30-1, with his only loss coming by injury default.
He returned to action late in the regular season last winter and competed despite what was determined to be a torn meniscus and torn MCL.
Following offseason surgery, he wasn’t cleared to compete again until early July, two weeks before the U.S. Marine Corps Junior Nationals in Fargo, North Dakota.
In the championship match of the Junior Men’s Freestyle at 195, Shumate was trailing 8-3 against Aurora’s Dylan Fishback when he got pinned.
“This year is less (about) winning on my end and more about how can I get my team to win a state title and leave that hard-working culture here, so that in future years they can have that same success.” Seth Shumate Coffman senior
While Shumate signed with Ohio State in November, Fishback won last year's Division II state championship at 195 and has committed to North Carolina State.
The injuries forced Shumate to adjust his wrestling style throughout last year's state tournament as well as when he returned for nationals.
“I tore my meniscus and had to get it shaved down, and my MCL was also torn,” he said. “I kind of just took it up to my coaches and asked them what they thought was best for me, and they just switched up a little bit of my wrestling so I prevented most of (the action in matches) from hitting that knee, more of just exploding through their upper body with high-level shots instead of penetration steps and stuff like that.
“I only got to train for two weeks before (junior nationals) because I didn't get cleared from my doctor until Fargo camp. I'm feeling all right. I've still got an ankle problem, but it's more mental now.”
After competing at 195 in the postseason throughout his prep career, Shumate is now at 190 after the adjustment in weight classes that took effect beginning this season.
Originally from Galion, the Shumates moved to Dublin before his freshman year. His sister, Leah Shumate, is a junior on the Coffman girls volleyball team and was second-team all-occcentral Division this fall.
“Since winning another state title in March, Seth has focused on getting healthy and winning it all again,” coach Chance Van Gundy said. “He has very high goals for himself and for this team. ... No matter how much success a kid has, there's always things to work on. Seth understands this and embraces the idea of a growth mindset.”
Shumate went 50-1 and won his first state title in 2019. He was 43-0 and a heavy favorite to defend the title in 2020 when the state tournament was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Last season in the state tournament, Shumate earned two wins by technical fall and two by pin, including pinning Delaware's Clay Ours in 1 minute, 42 seconds for the title.
After not being able to train regularly during the early months of the pandemic, Shumate focused last winter on having a “deeper respect” for the sport.
“It's been more about just enjoying it instead of treating it like a job,” he said. “What do I want to do and what do I feel like I need to work on and what other people that are supporting me feel what's best for me. It's been me exploring my deeper understanding of the sport.
“My weight is pretty low right now, so I feel a lot healthier than in past seasons and more in shape. We have a bunch of ranked kids and a bunch of kids with big potential to do some big things.”