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ILLUSTRATED VOLUME 25, ISSUE 2 123 f State's Sam Speno, 8-6. "It was really heartbreaking," Sabatello said. "My whole life I have been wrestling, and it's pretty much all preparation for that point last year, and I didn't get it done." The Long Grove, Ill., native called it a "rough sum- mer" looking back on the national tournament and how he performed. He said he has used the early exit as mo- tivation to make a deeper postseason run in 2014-15. "I fully believe that (last season's NCAA Champion- ships) is what's going to get me over the hump this year," Sabatello said. "I'm not going to have that taste in my mouth after NCAAs this year." First-year coach Tony Ersland said he noticed an edge to Sabatello throughout offseason workouts and into early-season practices. "His attitude is great," Ersland said. "For Danny, it goes back to shoring up some of those key little details in tight matches. Let's face it, Big Ten wrestling is like SEC football, there's going to be a lot of tight matches. From an effort standpoint and a focus standpoint, I re- ally like where he is right now." Atwood believes Sabatello is ready to take the next step and succeed at the NCAA Championships this sea- son. "He's a type of kid who even had the mindset last year that he was going to win," Atwood said. "Honest- ly, going in there, guys don't have that mindset often. Come NCAAs, it's all about your mindset and being ex- cited. He doesn't lack that. This year, he's a new guy. He's ready to go. I definitely see him on the podium." Sabatello is confident in himself as well. He feels as good now as he did at 141 pounds, and he learned a lot in his first season as a full-time starter. The top four wrestlers in the Big Ten at 133 pounds last season all graduated. "If I believe 100 percent in myself, then I believe I can reach what I want," Sabatello said. "The other half is buying into the coaching system. If they tell me to do something, I have to fully believe it and do it." He'll gladly drop the soda, hamburgers and french fries if it means standing on the podium in mid-March. "I had a coach who explained it to me: A hungry bear will rip your head off. If you walk past a full bear, he might let you go," Sabatello said. "When I'm hungry, I'm hungry for success. I'm not hungry for food or watching my meals for nothing, I'm here to win." — Travis Baugh Hinkel's departure was at the forefront of his mind. He found common ground with each returning wrestler and started to follow through on the things he said. His plan has been effective, Sabatello said. "It was pretty hectic at the start with a new coach coming in," Sabatello said. "We didn't really know what to expect. Then in comes Tony Ersland, and the team just bought into everything he had to say. We know he meant business, we know he's here to win. From the moment he got here on campus, we all just went under his wing and became like robots just lis- tening to what he's said because we believe whatever he tells us to do and if we do it, we'll be successful." Early in the season, Sabatello said Ersland's atten- tion to detail has the Boilermakers wrestling smarter than they have in the past. "We've always been a tough team and worked really hard, but I just feel the things he brings to the table in terms of positions, techniques, winning, mat-savvy … (Ersland) just puts everything together where maybe we've struggled with that in the past," Sabatello said. Ersland wants his squad to not only wrestle smart, but train smart to ensure they are peaking in the post- season. He's made it the focal point of his coaching philoso- phy after it was instilled in him by Gable. "I've always felt like the programs I've been involved with have been able to do a lot of our best wrestling at the end of the year for the Big Tens and national cham- pionships when you need to be at your best," Ersland said. After having success at three Big Ten schools, Er- sland is ready to make it four. "One of the reasons I took this job is because I think we have what we need to win," Ersland said. "It's up to us to roll up our sleeves and go to work." j