O’Keefe signs to wrestle at Kansas Wesleyan

Carson High wrestling standout Brady O’Keefe has signed a letter of intent to attend Kansas Wesleyan University.

O’Keefe announced the signing Tuesday night at the Dog Pound, the home of the Carson Bulldog program.

O’Keefe, a four-year performer for the Senators, is joining a brand-new program. Kansas Wesleyan’s NAIA program started last year with just five wrestlers. When he reports to campus in August, he’s going to be one of approximately 20 wrestlers in the official first year of the program.

Jimmy May, a 30-year veteran of coaching in Las Vegas, stepped down recently as head coach at KWU but will remain close to the program.

“I started talking to them probably the end of January,” said O’Keefe, who was also interested in Heidelburg University and Luther College. “They just got the program started last year. They had five kids. They didn’t really have an official team. This year they have enough wrestlers to field a lineup.

“I visited the campus in April. It’s a very small school, and the campus is in the middle of town. You are within walking distance of everything. From the outside the building looks historical, but they have been completely renovated on the inside.”

May said he does a lot of recruiting off the internet which shows a lot of live wrestling matches. May coached at Eldorado High School when O’Keefe’s dad, Wil, was a student there. He’s well versed in Nevada wrestling.

“I knew about Brady when he was a sophomore,” May said. “I was really impressed with the way he wrestled at the Doc Buchanan Tournament this year. That is one of the best tournaments in the country.

“He’s a great kid. He was here for three days, and I worked out with him. I really liked Brady and enjoyed meeting his parents. We are excited about getting him. He is the type of kid you can build a new program around.”

May said he’s staying with the program until the end of the month, and he’s helping in the selection of the new head coach.

O’Keefe said May stepping down could be a plus for him.

“It is a situation where I could get more 1 on 1 time,” O’Keefe said. “As a head coach, you have to be working with everybody.”

May indicated he had told all of his incoming recruits the will be there for them to help with the transition (on and off the mat) in any way he can.

O’Keefe, who’s going to be wrestling at 141 pounds, said there are some definite strong points to coming into a new program.

“I’ll be part of starting a team,” O’Keefe said. “If I were fortunate enough to make it to the national tournament, I would be a big part of the school history. Also, being in a new program, the expectations aren’t going to be high.

“The negative is that I will be coming to a team where nobody there has been through a freshman season (of competition).”

O’Keefe hasn’t wrestled since the end of the high school season, and he won’t be wrestling over the summer.

“I’m coaching for the Bulldogs and Team Nevada,” he said. “I’m just going to let my body rest. I already have the scholarship.”