Baylor's Khamari Whimper, shown with the award for Outstanding Wrestler at this year's Division II state championships, recently received the same honor at the National Prep Championships after winning the national title at the 170-ound weight class. Whimper, a senior, is also a two-time champion at that weight class at the state level.
photo by Dennis Norwood/File Photo
Baylor School has quite a storied past when it comes to excellence in prep wrestling circles.
It all started a long time ago with the late, great Luke Worsham and it’s continued in generations since by guys like Jim Morgan and Schack Van Deusen. Ben Nelson is currently the Baylor head coach and he’s kept the ball rolling like the others when it comes to racking up state and national honors.
The Baylor wrestling room has pictures on one end of young men who excelled on the wrestling mat. All were state champions and several won more than once. Down on the far end of the display are pictures of guys who wrestled for the Red Raiders back in the early days when Baylor was still military and members of the Mid-South Association.
Long before the school joined the TSSAA, Baylor wrestlers worked toward qualifying for the National Prep Championships, which were held at Lehigh University in Pennsylvania. That’s where some of the nation’s best young grapplers gathered to determine who really was the best at their respective weight classes.
There are photos of nine Baylor individuals won earned prep national titles, including the Healy brothers – Rob and Chip – who won national titles twice.
Others on that wall of fame include guys like Ralph “Mo” Trail, Lane Headrick, John Hannah, Randy Weinburg, Albert Wilson, Charlie Moore and Alex Roberts. Wilson was the last one to earn such a prestigious post-season honor and that was back in 1970.
They can now add another picture to that wall as 17-year-old Khamari Whimper won a national prep title last weekend after winning the 170-pound class with five straight wins.
And that came on the heels of his winning his second straight Division II state title in Franklin where he defeated Father Ryan’s Anthony Hagey in the championship finals by a technical fall.
That win improved his season record to 47-1 and he was honored as the Outstanding Wrestler for the private school division.
He then won five straight matches at the national tournament and was again named Outstanding Wrestler after beating a young man named Dale Tiongson from Maryland by a 9-5 final.
Whimper’s wrestling career didn’t start until the seventh grade. He also played football for several years before suffering an injury that kept him from wrestling when he was in the ninth grade.
He’s really a quiet young man who speaks in a soft tone and is very laidback in his approach to life. But once he’s inside that familiar circle known as a wrestling mat, he turns into another person when the whistle blows.
The man has a Tiger in his tank. And what starts out as a likeable young man turns into an athlete who is willing to do anything to be the best in the sport.
He thought he was ahead in the final minute of his most recent championship match until one of the Baylor coaches yelled that the score was tied and time was winding down.
Whimper didn’t panic, but in the space of about 10 seconds, he threw his opponent to his back for a takedown and back points to win, 9-5.
“I had a really good season and accomplished all the goals I set for myself,” the senior from Social Circle, Georgia said when asked about his favorite sport while relaxing in the Worsham Lounge located right outside the Baylor wrestling room.
“I finished third at the national tournament last year and really wanted to win it this year. And being named the Outstanding Wrestler was really big. I wasn’t expecting it and was talking to friends and not paying attention when they called my name,” he recalled last Saturday’s big moment.
Whimper will graduate in a couple of months and his two-year time at Baylor will be over. He’s heading to the University of Pennsylvania where he will be a member of the wrestling team. He leaves Baylor with a career record of 89-3 in two seasons.
“I’ve really enjoyed my time at Baylor. I love wrestling as it’s a rigorous sport and I like the challenge. It seems like wrestling is all that I do, but I just enjoy working out and reading in my spare time. I just want to keep getting better as my plan is to do the best I can.
“I have pretty good athletic ability and I’m faster than most, so that is where I get my advantage, but winning that national title last weekend was the most meaningful for me,” he added.
Coach Nelson is just happy that Whimper has been part of the Baylor program for the past two seasons.
“He’s done really well and he just joined a pretty elite group of Baylor wrestlers,” Nelson said Monday afternoon.
“He has a unique style of wrestling that’s really explosive and fun to watch. He’s been a real workhorse for us and one of those guys you can count on for a big when when the team needs it most. And he’s a great role model for other guys on the team.
“He works just as hard in practice as he does in a match, but it’s hard for him to find a workout partner because he’s so physical. We always put him with the heavier guys to make them work harder and they always got better as a result.
“He’s excited about going to Penn where he will be part of an outstanding wrestling program in addition to being part of an academic program at an Ivy League school.
“Khamari is almost legally blind and has a tough time seeing the numbers on the scoreboard in a match. He thought he was ahead in that match last Saturday, but we yelled to him that the score was tied and that time was running out. He had dominated the match from the beginning, but when he had to go, he made a nice throw to win.
“Some guys are explosive while others are quick and strong. Khamari has a great combination of all three and is strong enough to finish anything he starts,” the coach concluded.
Khamari Whimper’s time at Baylor wasn’t very long, but what a mark he made in his two years there.
And now as he prepares for the next step in his life, he’ll have a lot of positive memories to think about.
Winning two state titles and one national title will surely be at the top of the list. And to think he was Outstanding Wrestler in his last two high school tournaments is just icing on the cake.
(email John Hunt at nomarathonmoose@gmail.com)
Baylor's Khamari Whimper in action at this year's Division II state championships where he won his second straight title at the 170-pound weight classification. Whimper now has a national title to go along with his state-level wins.
photo by Dennis Norwood/File Photo