When you’re talented at every sport you play as a youth, how do you decide which one to pursue in college?
For Scott Barker, a senior wrestler who has left the mark of a franchise player on Oregon’s team in just one season, he addressed the dilemma before he was 10 years old.
“I was good at everything I did,” Barker recalls. “When I was four, I started wrestling and liked it most, so I stuck with it thinking it would do a lot for me.”
Barker is now 22 and finishing his senior year majoring in sociology. Barker’s collegiate career started at the University of Missouri; while there, Barker won a Big 12 Conference title and finished second at the 2003 NCAA Championships. He aims to earn his fourth All-American honor next weekend at the NCAA Championships in St. Louis — Barker’s hometown.
“I’ll hopefully have a big crowd on hand to watch me,” Barker said. “They like
me more when I win, and I don’t want to disappoint them.”
In 2002, Barker wrestled Cael Sanderson of Iowa State — one of the biggest names in the history of college wrestling. Sanderson never lost a match in his entire collegiate career and took home four national titles. When the two wrestled, Sanderson defeated Barker by way of a 21-4 technical fall at the Big 12 Championships.
“He (Sanderson) was unbeatable, because he was so conditioned,” Barker said. “He didn’t have to deal with knee injuries like I did. If we wrestled today, I like my chances, honestly.”
Barker was born in 1982 in Cheyenne, Wyo., but never had the chance to grow accustomed to it or any other city he lived in
because his father and role model, Mitchell Barker, was in the Air Force and moved the family to wherever he was stationed. Barker even lived in Germany for a year. Mitchell Barker now works for the CIA, but Barker doesn’t know what his job entails.
“You could ask me questions about him,” Barker said with a laugh. “But I have no answers.”
Moving from city to city caused Barker to become independent,
relying solely on himself for encouragement on and off the mat.
“I have always been a self-motivator,” Barker said. “Wrestling is
as much a team sport as it is an individual sport and picking myself up let me grow self-confidence
and determination.”
Barker feels that his ability to motivate himself is one of the key reasons he has been so successful in his career.
“In every match you really have only two options,” Barker said. “You can easily give up at times and take a loss, or you can push yourself and keep fighting. Winning and losing comes down to whether or not you are willing to do your best.”
After growing up in front of numerous backdrops, Barker and his family eventually landed in St. Louis, which he now calls his hometown. Barker attended Oakville High School and had no problem earning mat time under coach Rocky Streb. Barker reached the Missouri state finals in three consecutive years taking home titles in 1999 and 2000. He left Oakville with a plethora of Big 12 recruiters knocking on his door and holding wrestling scholarships. He passed on wrestling powerhouses like
Nebraska and Oklahoma State to become a Tiger at Missouri just like his old coach Streb.
“(Missouri) seemed okay, since it was close to home, and I knew I wouldn’t have trouble starting on the team,” said Barker.
Barker’s wrestling resume at Missouri would have satisfied most wrestlers, but it was not enough for Barker. After taking a year off to
recover from a knee injury following the 2003 season, Barker transferred to Oregon where he felt comfortable wrestling for head coach Chuck Kearney.
“Oregon is a lot more laid back, and I like that,” Barker said. “There is less pressure here and doing my best is good enough for my coaches.”
Kearney was thrilled to have Barker on his 2004-05 roster, on which seniors were scarce. Kearney knew that Barker’s work ethic and accomplishments would make him a worthy tutor for the team’s younger wrestlers. Barker’s teammates have come to expect success from him.
“He does what he is suppose to do, and that is win matches,” teammate Cody Parker said. “When we need him to get points, he does it.”
Kearney’s expectations of Barker have also been met. This season, Barker has posted a team-best
31 wins and 15 pins. Last week at the Pacific-10 Conference Championships in San Luis Obispo, Calif., Barker took home a Pac-10 title after defeating reigning two-time conference champion Ryan Bader.
“He is a national level competitor,” Kearney said. “He provided an example of what a top wrestler in the nation looks like and how hard he works.”
Going into the season, Kearney felt that Barker could do more for the program than the program could do for Barker.
“With an athlete like Scott, your job as coach is not to change him, but to mold him,” Kearney said. “He has been a leader on this team and a calming influence.”
At the NCAA Championships next weekend, Barker will be joined by Parker and teammates Joey Bracamonte and Shane Webster, who received bids for the tournament following the Pac-10 Championships. Although Barker is excited to compete, his game plan remains the same.
“I’m just going to do my best,” Barker said. “More importantly, I’m going to have fun and leave it all on the mat.”
After college, Barker plans on attending a fire fighting academy, preferably in Oregon. He has no wish to coach wrestling.
“There is much more I wish to do with my life outside of wrestling,” Barker said. “I don’t want to ever limit myself or look back on my life and see it spent doing just one thing.”
For Barker, a man who has lived life beyond limits, this outlook is both his legacy and a fitting tribute to his potential success.