Penn State's Carter Starocci Talks Olympics, MMA After NCAA Wrestling

The three-time national champ has big goals and is confident he can achieve them.

Penn State's Carter Starocci barely gave himself a moment to celebrate becoming a three-time NCAA wrestling champion. Sure, he recognized joining "elite company," and clearly reveled in the Nittany Lions' 10th team title in 12 years.

But Starocci quickly turned his attention to Monday, when he'll return to training for what's next. For Starocci, there's always a what's next.

"This is not where the train stops," Starocci said Saturday night at the NCAA Wrestling Championships.

Starocci won his third straight national championship at 174 pounds, pinning Nebraska's Mikey Labriola in the first period. Starocci became Penn State's fifth three-time champion, followed quickly by teammate Aaron Brooks at 184 as the sixth.

With the victory, Starocci completed his second consecutive unbeaten season at 24-0 and won his 52nd straight bout, now the nation's longest active streak. But will that streak continue? That becomes one of the biggest questions in college wrestling.

Because of the 2020-21 COVID season, Starocci has two seasons of eligibility remaining, meaning he conceivably could become Penn State's first four-time champion and potentially a five-time winner. Starocci could stamp his name in college wrestling history, if he wants.

Starocci, though, has other goals, which he discussed Saturday night in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The first is making the 2024 U.S. Olympic Team and then winning gold.

"Everyone is talking about it, and everyone asks me about that," Starocci said. "But it's not something that excites me. I kind of want to be a four-timer, and how the Olympics fall, that will be next year, my senior year. If I come back and wrestle next year, we'll see. I plan on winning the Olympics. That's where my head is."

If he takes an Olympic redshirt next season, makes the U.S. team and wins a gold medal, would Starocci be willing to return to college wrestling? "After I complete something like that, it's kind of like, you're not going to want to come back to this," he said.

Then there's the allure of MMA. Starocci will make that career move eventually. In fact, he can't wait for it, especially after watching the success of Bo Nickal, another Penn State three-time NCAA wrestling champ.

"I love [wrestling], but I also love fighting," he said. "And I see Bo Nickal eating those dudes like it's candy. It's pretty easy I think that game's a lot easier. So we'll just take it a day at a time."

Starocci certainly backs his confidence. He's a perfect 15-0 in three NCAA tournaments, and his college career record is 61-2.

But Starocci doesn't count the losses (to Indiana's DJ Washington and Iowa's Michael Kemerer) because of what followed: He beat Washington twice and Kemerer three times.

"I don't have any losses because those two that you're talking about, I avenged those, plus some," he said. "So I didn't even the score, I upped the score. In my book, I'm undefeated."

If Starocci's Penn State career is over, it will be remembered among the program's most entertaining. He also demonstrated a love for Penn State wrestling.

Starocci raved about freshman Levi Haines, who reached the 157-pound final. "I feel like running through a steel wall watching him wrestle," he said.

Starocci also teared up watching an interview with teammate Max Dean, who ended his career as a four-time All-American. Most of all, Starocci embraced the Penn State wrestling community, which certainly reciprocated.

"That's something you guys really can't see or can't feel unless you're experiencing it," he said. "And just what Penn State's doing over there is a lot deeper than wrestling. I know we talk about having fun all the time, it may sound like they're having fun or whatever, but I love those guys with all my heart, and they've helped make me the man I am. And I'm just grateful to be in that community."

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AllPennState is the place for Penn State news, opinion and perspective on the SI.com network. Publisher Mark Wogenrich has covered Penn State for more than 20 years, tracking three coaching staffs, three Big Ten titles and a catalog of great stories. Follow him on Twitter @MarkWogenrich. And consider subscribing (button's on the home page) for more great content across the SI.com network.