Proven Parker Keckeisen ready for another NCAA wrestling tournament run for UNI

Parker Keckeisen proved he was a contender and a special talent in the postseason last year.

He captured a Big 12 Conference title and then stormed his way to the national semifinals, becoming Northern Iowa’s 11th freshman All-American and achieving the highest first-year finish since 1952.

Keckeisen proved a little something to himself as well.

“I’ve got to believe in myself,” the two-time Big 12 champion said. “I’ve got to believe I’m the best wrestler in the country. My coaches have prepared me for this moment.”

Keckeisen earned the fourth seed at 184 pounds for the second straight season and is one of eight Panther qualifiers for the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, beginning Thursday at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit. The qualifiers are the most since 2008 and a season high under 12-year head coach Doug Schwab.

Added confidence and assurance comes with this appearance. What was the biggest lesson learned from his third-place performance last season?

“That he can win a national title and that he’s the best guy,” Schwab said. “Sometimes you have to get there and feel it to realize it. Sometimes you’ve just got to get in certain situations. You’re not sure. Am I there? I think I’m there. I hope I’m there. Now, he knows he’s there. There is a difference.”

Keckeisen owns a 24-1 record and dominated most foes with 11 major decisions, four technical falls and two pins. He scored majors in all four conference tournament matches, outscoring his opponents, 58-19.

Overall, Keckeisen has scored double-digit points in 16 of 22 victories that didn’t end in a pin. Schwab speaks with an almost palpable enthusiasm about Keckeisen, who opens against Wisconsin’s No. 29 Christopher Weiler.

“You see his variety of attacks. I just think there’s even more there, though, because of what I see every day,” Schwab said. “To me, that’s as exciting as you can get when a guy is doing that and really beating up and handling guys. He’s scoring a lot of points, bonus points and there is still more there.”

The Glendale, Wis., native is fueled by a passion for all aspects of the sport. He isn’t consumed with it 24/7, but wrestling creeps into his mind regularly throughout the day. Keckeisen will sit down for dinner and contemplate how to clear underhooks or maybe what to do with a snatch single-leg attack when the opponent has two hands on his shoulders. The walk to class may include thoughts of new positions or what chain moves he can put together or how to create various angles off a fake shot and snap down.

YouTube also provides endless opportunities to watch other wrestlers at all levels. Keckeisen has used that to incorporate things into his own wrestling, asking UNI assistant Lee Roper about various moves and situations at practice. He even watched and worked on a takedown finish he watched Schwab execute in an online video of his NCAA title match victory over Oklahoma’s Michael Lightner.

“I’d say the thing I love to do is wrestle,” Keckeisen said. “Wrestle, learn and try to get better. Try to get better at whatever it is. Consistency is key. Doing a little bit each day after practice.

“That’s where I get my enjoyment. I’m a huge fan of the sport. I constantly like to watch it.”

Schwab said Keckeisen’s relentless offense isn’t reckless abandon. He constantly works to build his wrestling style, making adjustments and adapting his opponent’s adjustments.

“He has a high wrestling IQ, but it also takes a lot of reps and time,” Schwab said. “That’s the only way some of those things happen. They don’t happen because you hope them to. They happen because you train like that and your level is incredibly high.

“He’s prepared himself very well. He’s a student of the sport and he’s guided very well, too. Coaches are doing a phenomenal job with him.”

The 184-pound bracket includes top-seeded Myles Amine, who won the Big Ten title last weekend, and Penn State’s No. 2 Aaron Brooks, the 2021 NCAA champion who beat Keckeisen in the semifinals and handed him a 3-2 loss in December. The field is tough, but so is Keckeisen.

“I do a little bit of visualization every day,” Keckeisen said. “I see myself on top of that podium. Just have to wrestle hard and have fun.”