Former Center Grove wrestler Drake Buchanan, right, finished with 15 wins on the mat as a freshman at Air Force.
Submitted photo
Drake Buchanan had months to envision how his first year as a Division I athlete at a military academy might play out.
Reality started with six weeks of basic training.
“Obviously, basic isn’t fun, but I really wasn’t surprised because our wrestling coaches here are so transparent,” said Buchanan, the former Center Grove wrestler who recently completed his freshman season at the United States Air Force Academy. “Everybody has to go through it.
“But it’s really rewarding once you’re done. It’s both an accomplishment, and there’s a sigh of relief.”
Buchanan, who finished his prep career with a state championship at 182 pounds at the 2022 state finals, ended his four seasons in a Center Grove singlet with a 140-18 record and three state medals, finishing sixth as a sophomore and runner-up as a junior.
But at Air Force, credentials such as these are common.
Buchanan nonetheless finished the season with a 15-6 record at 184 pounds for the Falcons’ junior varsity squad. He capped his first collegiate season by winning three of four matches to finish third in his weight class at the Rocky Mountain Open at the Colorado School of Mines.
Other accomplishments include winning the Miners Rookie Open and taking third at the Younes Hospitality Open.
“As a freshman, you’re at the bottom of the chain, and you’re just trying to get better,” Buchanan said. “It’s been a good growth year. Twenty-one matches for a freshman is pretty good.”
Buchanan, one of two Trojan seniors to capture individual state championships last February — the other, Hayden Watson, wrestles at The Citadel — verbally committed in September of 2021 to spend the next stages of his life with the postcard-worthy splendor of Colorado Springs, Colorado, as life’s backdrop.
He hasn’t once second-guessed himself.
“I had visited here two times before that. Once during my junior year and again a week before I committed,” Buchanan said. “It is very beautiful here. There are mountains, and it’s open.”
Buchanan, who majors in management and minors in Japanese, finished his first semester with a 3.98 grade-point average.
As a result, he was awarded the Superintendent’s Pin, which is worn only by cadets whose name appears on the Superintendent’s list for obtaining the Commandant’s Pin, Dean’s Pin and Athletic Director’s Pin from the previous semester.
In other words, Drake Buchanan continuing to do Drake Buchanan things.
Ninth-year Air Force wrestling coach Sam Barber, whose 39-person roster is made up of former prep standouts representing 20 different states, has managed to bring in three alone from the southside of Indianapolis.
Sophomore Alec Viduya graduated from Roncalli, where he won two state championships medaled all four seasons; Air Force freshman Aiden Warren attended Perry Meridian.
Buchanan knows it’s only a matter of time before he works his way into the Falcons’ starting lineup. He’s presently behind junior 184-pounder Noah Blake on the depth chart.
Academically and athletically, Buchanan is prepared to continue putting in the work.
“It’s just about managing your time. Being an athlete, you have even less of it,” Buchanan said. “There are only so many hours in a day, but I enjoy it. I enjoy the team, and the academics are tough, but Center Grove really set me up to have good habits.”
