Sammy Sasso is retiring from wrestling, Ohio State wrestling head coach Tom Ryan announced on Thursday, confirmed by Sasso on Twitter Friday morning.
“It’s painful to say that my college wrestling career has come to an end,” Sasso said in his Twitter statement.
“Sasso is very direct with his words and his thinking,” Ryan said. “In the beginning of the year, he said, ‘I will do everything in my power to get back to the level of wrestling that I know I’m capable of. If i can’t, I won’t wrestle anymore.’ “
After returning this season from a gunshot wound that he suffered in August of 2023, the four-time All-American and two-time Big Ten champion will no longer compete for the Buckeyes.
Sasso’s 12-7 record this season, which he accrued at 157 and 165 pounds, made it so the team was between he and redshirt freshman Brandon Cannon for a spot in the lineup in the Big Ten tournament that begins on March 8.
“This season hasn’t been the Sammy Sasso you are used to watching, and I understand that,” Sasso’s statement read. “Most people would have thrown in the towel after getting shot, but I couldn’t just give up. I worked harder than ever before to get where I’m at, but nonetheless my leg cannot move the way it used to. Although this whole situation has been tough, I know this entire process has made me a better person.”
“His will is 100 percent there. That has never wavered,” Ryan said. “This guy is an ultra-competitor. As difficult as it was for him to bow out — he was supposed to go to Lock Haven and battle it out with Cannon for the spot, but he’s a man and he felt that it was not in his best interest or the best interest of the program.”
He retires with a 106-19 career record as a four-time NCAA qualifier, coming in second place in the NCAA tournament twice during his career (2021 and 2023) and fifth once (2022) after the 2020 tournament was canceled due to COVID-19.
Despite his wrestling career coming to an end, Ryan said that Sasso wants to remain involved with it through coaching.
“We met with Sammy about a role at the RTC here,” Ryan said. “He wants to stay in college coaching, so he’ll have plenty of opportunities, we believe. We’re grateful for all he gave to this place and the way he led here.”
