{"id":1929,"date":"2016-08-03T07:53:34","date_gmt":"2016-08-03T12:53:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mukwonagowrestlingclub.com\/?p=1929"},"modified":"2016-08-03T07:54:01","modified_gmt":"2016-08-03T12:54:01","slug":"wrestling-paved-way-for-duos-development-packers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mukwonagowrestlingclub.com\/?p=1929","title":{"rendered":"Wrestling paved way for duo\u2019s development (Packer’s Football)"},"content":{"rendered":"

http:\/\/m.packers.com\/news\/article\/wrestling-paved-way-for-duo-s-development-9dbfcd3b-e61e-43f5-a685-c4a396e03ac3<\/a><\/p>\n

Wrestling paved way for duo\u2019s development<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sport prepared Packers’ defensive linemen Mike Daniels, Kenny Clark for life in the trenches<\/em><\/p>\n

AUGUST 2, 2016 by<\/em>\u00a0WES HODKIEWICZ<\/strong><\/p>\n

GREEN BAY \u2013 Twenty years ago, nobody in the Daniels household was thinking about the best way to build an NFL defensive lineman.<\/p>\n

Mike and Carlene Daniels simply wanted to find a sport that would allow their son, Mike Jr., a chance to burn off some energy like any other 4- or 5-year old.<\/p>\n

So Mike Sr. signed his son up for wrestling.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thank him to this day for it,\u201d said Mike Jr., now in his fifth season with the Packers. \u201cBecause it builds character.\u201d<\/p>\n

Before Daniels was a football player, he was a wrestler.<\/p>\n

He stuck with the sport even after he started to flourish on the football field. His accolades piled up in both sports, becoming a three-time letterman on the Highland Regional (N.J.) High School wrestling team.<\/p>\n

However, Daniels wasn\u2019t a 312-pound nose tackle back then. In fact, he actually cut down to 207 pounds as a senior, so he didn\u2019t have to wrestle at a substantial disadvantage in the heavyweight division, which maxes at 285 pounds in most states.<\/p>\n

Wrestling didn\u2019t just allow Daniels to release energy \u2013 it showed him a different way of life. It made him cognizant of his diet and emphasized the importance of discipline.<\/p>\n

When Daniels finally picked up football, he quickly noticed how the two sports relate to each other, particularly when it came to securing leverage and proper technique.<\/p>\n

Daniels\u2019 shorter stature caused many college scouts to overlook him out of high school. He accepted his only Division I offer to Iowa and the rest was history.<\/p>\n

Now a fifth-year NFL veteran who received a contract extension in December, Daniels feels his size and wrestling background helped open the door that eventually led him to the pros.<\/p>\n

It also underscored a crucial rule \u2013 the low man wins.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can still draw from some of my teaching until today. It\u2019s unbelievable,\u201d Daniels said. \u201cIt builds up a certain type of toughness. It\u2019s a combative sport. A lot of the techniques translate over to football, the mentality being the biggest thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

When the Packers drafted Kenny Clark in the first round this year, Daniels already was familiar with the UCLA defensive tackle\u2019s background as a former high-school wrestler.<\/p>\n

Hours after Clark\u2019s selection, Daniels sent a tweet to his new linemate.<\/p>\n

Another high school wrestler. Welcome to the Pack and let’s get to work!!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Unlike Daniels, Clark first started wrestling as a sophomore at Wilmer Amina Carter High School in Rialto, Calif., at the insistence of friends and football teammates.<\/p>\n

Clark remembers getting manhandled the first time he stepped onto the mat, but he stuck with it and eventually \u201cfell in love\u201d with the sport.<\/p>\n

After his sophomore year, Clark won a national freshman-sophomore invitation tournament in Idaho and later went on to make two state appearances in California.<\/p>\n

He spent countless hours in the school\u2019s wrestling room with his younger brother, Kyon, who doubled as his partner. While two years Kenny\u2019s junior, Kyon actually was bigger than Kenny with gumby-like flexibility.<\/p>\n

Clark could pick up things wrestling when drilling against guys who were lighter than him, but trying to take down Kyon was grueling, especially in the sauna-like conditions of the wrestling room.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the most flexible guy I\u2019ve ever seen in my life,\u201d said Clark of his younger brother. \u201cI\u2019m working with him all day, picking up a 330-pound guy every day, so I\u2019m going to get strong and picking up those 285 guys (became) easy.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust me picking up my brother\u2019s legs or trying to single-leg him or double-leg him, it was so hard because he was so flexible. I could lift up his leg and he wouldn\u2019t go down.\u201d<\/p>\n

Those sessions, mixed with his actual matches, taught Clark leverage and body control. It made him a better wrestler, and in the process, a better football player.<\/p>\n

The things that made him successful on the wrestling mat \u2013 flexibility in his ankles and explosion in his hips \u2013 are also what made him thrive on the football field.<\/p>\n

It also challenged him mentally, whether it was getting through long workouts or understanding how to counter a 285-pound wrestler exerting pressure on you.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe biggest thing I\u2019d have to say is it helps you out with leverage and being able to be flexible, to bend,\u201d Clark said. \u201cThere aren\u2019t a lot of defensive linemen who (can) really stay low, bend, get off the ball, and be physical. Not often do you find a defensive lineman who can do all those things.\u201d<\/p>\n

Clark\u2019s wrestling background was easy for Mike Trgovac to spot when the Packers\u2019 defensive line coach began working with the first-round pick earlier this summer.<\/p>\n

Right away, Trgovac noticed how combative he was with his hands and able to secure leverage in battles with offensive linemen.<\/p>\n

Daniels and Clark are entirely different players with contrasting skill sets, but Trgovac sees a common thread between the two as a former state champion heavyweight himself.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith both those guys and myself having a wrestling background, I can talk a certain language to them and they understand,\u201d Trgovac said. \u201cBoth of them do a very good job getting their hands inside and working nice and tight hands. Again, they understand leverage very well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Daniels still applies many of the same training techniques in his offseason routine, including MMA and combat workouts.<\/p>\n

No, Daniels\u2019 father didn\u2019t know his son would one day become a top interior rusher in the NFL, but Mike Jr. remains grateful that he signed him up for wrestling all those years ago.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you\u2019re a bigger kid, don\u2019t waste your time playing basketball \u2013 go wrestle,\u201d Daniels said. \u201cMore than likely you\u2019re going to be a football player \u2013 if you so choose to seek athletics in college or professional level. Wrestling is going to get it done for you. That\u2019s just how I view it.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

http:\/\/m.packers.com\/news\/article\/wrestling-paved-way-for-duo-s-development-9dbfcd3b-e61e-43f5-a685-c4a396e03ac3 Wrestling paved way for duo\u2019s development Sport prepared Packers’ defensive linemen Mike Daniels, Kenny Clark for life in the trenches AUGUST 2, 2016 by\u00a0WES HODKIEWICZ GREEN BAY \u2013 Twenty years ago, nobody in the Daniels household was thinking about the best way to build an NFL defensive lineman. Mike and Carlene Daniels simply wanted … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Wrestling paved way for duo\u2019s development (Packer’s Football)”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1929","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-mwc-club-news"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mukwonagowrestlingclub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1929","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mukwonagowrestlingclub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mukwonagowrestlingclub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mukwonagowrestlingclub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mukwonagowrestlingclub.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1929"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/mukwonagowrestlingclub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1929\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1935,"href":"https:\/\/mukwonagowrestlingclub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1929\/revisions\/1935"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mukwonagowrestlingclub.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1929"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mukwonagowrestlingclub.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1929"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mukwonagowrestlingclub.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1929"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}