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94 ILLUSTRATED VOLUME 25, ISSUE 3 f Chad has made it a point to not just return to the NCAAs, but to finish on the podium after his hiatus. "You have to be proud of your team members and what they've done, but seeing that it really hits you," Chad said. "Being out there is everything you train for every day. Not being out there really hurts you and really puts a dent in your life and what you need to change." After a promising freshman season in which he fin- ished tied for third on the team with four falls, an ankle injury cut Doug's season short before Big Ten competi- tion began last season. "No one wants to go out like that," Doug said. "It defi- nitely hurt. I wasn't wrestling as well as I would have liked to but I was looking to get some big wins in the second half of the season." Now injury-free, Doug holds a 13-3 record and has started to receive recognition in national polls along with Chad. "A huge difference this season has been my mental game," Doug said. "Just having confidence when I go out there is a huge part of it. Also, having people behind me that support me and believe me. I can tell these coaches believe in me whenever I step on the mat." Luke, who is two-and-a-half years younger than the twins, has split time at 125 after redshirting in his first year in the program. He holds a 4-4 record at the weight class with two losses against top-20 opponents. In mid-December, he posted a 4-0 shutout victory over Cody Karns from North Carolina, marking his first collegiate dual victory. "I've wrestled some tough guys, some top individuals this year and I've lost close matches," Luke said. "When I beat that kid, it was like, 'Yes, I finally got a win.' " Their wrestling success should come as no surprise with their family background. Their father and two un- cles wrestled at the University of Indianapolis, and nu- merous older cousins competed at the high school level as well. "Wrestling was a lifestyle that we incorporated into our family life," Doug said. "It was awesome. Ever since we were young, our whole family would come to all of our meets. Our uncles would roll around with us. Our dad would beat the crap out of us." Luke didn't warm up to the sport quite as quickly as Chad and Doug did. "I didn't like wrestling at all," Luke said. "I wasn't very good. Whenever I was growing up, I would cry after every match because I'd get pinned." Once Chad and Doug reached middle school wrestling, the sport grew on the youngest Welch. "Something clicked for me then," Luke said. "(Doug and Chad) started competing a little more and I really started to like the sport. I realized 'Man, I'm going to be in junior high soon and then high school. I want to do well. This is fun, I don't have to rely on a team.' I realized it's just me out there and I control what I do on the mat." Living room wrestling matches were abundant in the Welch household, especially during commercial breaks of the NCAA Championships every spring. Chad and Doug would grapple before the loser would take their frustra- tion out on Luke. "They'd grab me and just start beating me up," Luke said. "I'd start crying. Eventually, it got to the point where I could hold my own and it helped me." The three brothers credit the tussles for toughening them up and leading to their eventual success at Castle High School, where they won a combined 544 matches. "Honestly, without those two always (around) growing up, I don't even know if wrestling would be as big of a part of our lives than if there was just one of us," Chad said. "Having everyone into wrestling was really a huge factor for all of us." Chad and Doug came to Purdue in 2011 while Luke followed in 2013, although he didn't always want to go to the same school as his older brothers. "Growing up, we didn't get along very much," Luke said. "At first, I wanted to do my own thing. Then as I looked at Purdue, I thought it was a good school, I liked all the guys on the team, I liked the coaches and I thought it was the best place for me." Chad and Doug were able to help Luke with the transi- tion to college academically, athletically and emotionally when Luke became homesick toward the end of the fall semester his freshman year. "We were extremely excited when Luke came," Doug said. "I figured he'd come here and follow us but I didn't know exactly. It's been cool to have him here. It's some- thing special. I couldn't imagine it without him." Two weight classes stand between each brother and the next. Chad bumped up to 174 pounds this year after com- peting at 165 as a redshirt sophomore. Doug has dropped