Baggot: Liegel embraces change and challenge
UW wrestler joins father and brothers as Badgers
Andy Baggot
2/11/2024
MADISON, Wis. — One of the most meaningful moments in life comes when you decide to trade a familiar existence for something unknown. It could involve a different address, time zone, acquaintance or a job offer. It could be abrupt or a long time coming.
Regardless, you expect things will become more challenging, more humbling and more uncomfortable. But you go ahead and make the change because, deep inside your heart, you believe it’s for the best.
Shane Liegel had an intensely satisfying existence as a wrestler at Loras College, an NCAA Division III school in Dubuque, Iowa. From 2019 to ’23, he won 100 of 110 matches, advanced to the national finals three times at 184 pounds and was crowned NCAA Champion as a sophomore in 2021.
When Liegel reached the end of his senior year with the Duhawks, he was a four-time first-team NCAA All-American as a student as well as an athlete and owned a degree in business administration and accounting.
But he wasn’t done.
Thanks to the pandemic, Liegel had another year of athletic eligibility remaining, so he entered his name in the NCAA transfer portal and quickly embarked on a journey of discovery.
“I knew that change could be a good thing,” he explained. “I knew that by having that degree I could further myself by getting a Master’s. Being around a little bit higher level of wrestling, I thought I had some more potential.
“Sometimes you can get a little comfortable where you’re at. I felt I could still grow in every aspect.”
Liegel drew interest from Central Michigan, Indiana, Purdue and Chattanooga, but one phone call steered his life in a new, albeit familiar, direction.
Within an hour of his debut in the transfer portal, Liegel heard from Wisconsin associate head coach Jon Reader. Just like that, a difficult decision became a no-brainer.
The Liegel legacy is well-known in the state as well as UW. Shane’s father, Ralph, was a two-time Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association state champion at River Valley High School who competed for the Badgers in the 1980s. Shane’s two older brothers, Scott and Seth, also won WIAA state titles at River Valley, located in Spring Green, before following their father’s path to Madison.
Reader said he called Shane “instantly” when he heard that Liegel was looking for a change in scenery. Reader was determined to right a wrong that he felt occurred in 2018 when the Chris Bono coaching era began at UW.
“It was a big mistake not securing him (as a recruit),” Reader said of Shane. “It’s one of my biggest regrets as a coach, not getting him to be a Badger right away. I wish I could go back in time and make the right decision.
“But we’re here now and he’s loving where he’s at and we’re absolutely thrilled to have him in our family.”
Why was Reader so gung-ho about pursuing and landing Liegel?
“I cannot speak highly enough about him as a person, as an athlete, as a teammate,” Reader said. “He’s everything you want to have when you’re a coach.
“He’s an unbelievable kid. He’s a workaholic. I’m not going to guarantee that he’s going to be a national champion or an All-American, but I promise you, he will give you every single ounce of his heart and soul. That’s who he is.
“He belongs at this level. There’s no doubt in my mind.”
Liegel felt that passion during his phone call with Reader and his subsequent campus visit with Bono.
“I’m very grateful for him because sometimes I think a good mentor isn’t just someone who teaches you stuff on the mat,” Liegel said of Reader. “Sometimes a good mentor sees things in you that you don’t necessarily see in yourself. He was one of those guys. That’s someone I wanted to follow and it’s a big reason why I’m here.”
Liegel said he has no regrets about the time he spent at Loras. It was fulfilling, enlightening and productive. He said the connections he made and the lessons he learned were vital to his development as a person as well as an athlete.
“I’m very grateful for my time there,” he said. “Some of those guys will be my best friends forever.”
But that tiny choir in Liegel’s head kept singing the same verse about his ongoing transition from Division III to the Big Ten Conference, the most demanding Division I wrestling league in the land.
“I kept thinking that if I could do this,” he said, “I could do anything.”
Reader confirmed that sentiment.
“I truly believe that this is where Shane really belongs,” he said. “There was another level of capability that was still within. There was a burning desire for him to go chase that down and see how far he could take it. He could easily have stayed where he was and won another national title in the division that he was in. But he was leaving something on the table. He wants to see how far he can take it.”
So far, Liegel has cultivated a notable start. He’s 18-6 overall and ranked 16th in his weight class, according to Intermat. He's also earned the regular starting spot at 184 pounds for the Badgers.
The most eye-opening development where Liegel is concerned came in December when he won six bouts enroute to claiming the individual title at the prestigious Midlands Championships. Dean Hamiti (165) also reached the top of the podium, helping Wisconsin to a second-place finish that equaled its best showing in program history.
Liegel was motivated in part by his time at Loras.
“I was just a Division III guy in some peoples’ minds,” he said.
Liegel heard numerous coaches in the stands yelling “Three” during his matches. After Liegel knocked off four ranked opponents and won his championship bout in overtime, he said his phone was weighed down with upbeat text messages.
“They wanted to see me win,” he said of his D-III acquaintances.
Of course, Liegel got a huge boost of confidence from the experience.
“I always knew it was inside of me,” he said. “There was a lot of people in my life who knew what was inside of me.”
LIEGEL TAKEDOWN!
— Wisconsin Wrestling (@BadgerWrestling) December 31, 2023
Shane Liegel is your 184 pound @MidlandsChamps winner!
1st Place Match: Shane Liegel (Wisconsin) over Maximus Hale (Penn) • SV-1 9-6 pic.twitter.com/f41S0ec4Oh
Ralph and Mary Liegel were on hand for the tournament, staged in suburban Chicago, to watch their youngest child compete. They kept a text chain of former UW teammates up to date, reveling in the outcome.
“Going into that tournament, I was thinking, ‘Man, if he could place that would be great,’” Ralph said of Shane. “It was a great tournament for him. He wrestled smart. That’s one of the things he’s good at.”
From his home in Denver, Scott watched the Midlands via live stream, texting his brother between matches.
“He’s always been capable of that,” Scott said of Shane.
When Shane informed his family that he was looking to transfer from Loras, the collective response was measured and supportive. They all told him to take his time and consider all his options.
“Do what’s best for yourself,” is how Shane described the theme of their input.
Shane visited Indiana and Purdue, but when the Badgers got involved, he made a lot of people in the UW camp very happy.
“Obviously with the history of my dad and me and my other brother Seth, it’s kind of cool to see it come together for one last ride,” Scott said.
“I was happy, but I think his brothers were happier than me,” Ralph said, referring to Seth, Scott and Steve, who played football at Winona (Minnesota) State.
“He’s got so many attributes that I’ve fallen in love with as a coach, just being in his corner,” Reader said of Shane. “He’s got a great gas tank. He’s got the heart of a champion. He will not give up. He’s never out of a match.”
Unlike his father and brothers, Shane, a three-time WIAA state champion, didn’t like wrestling at the outset.
“There were times when I was sitting in the kitchen and there would be youth practice in an hour,” he recalled. “I’d be like, ‘I’m not going.’ Then I’d start crying.
“What I did love was sitting in the gymnasiums watching my brothers wrestle. That’s how I grew to love it. To this day, I love watching other guys wrestle and try to mimic their style and strategy.”
Shane said he’s a blend of his brothers’ strengths. He said Scott was very smart and strategic, while Seth was a goer who would keep coming at you.”
Scott has seen old videos clips of his father wrestling for UW. He said his dad was known for being especially strong at the fundamentals, being patient while riding opponents into submission. Scott said Shane is the same way.
“He’s just a battler,” Scott said.
Shane is on pace to earn his Master’s in business analytics from UW in May. He’s not sure of an occupation, but he said he’d love to coach.
“The choice he made was good, not only just for wrestling, but for school,” said Ralph, a civil engineer. “He’s really into his education and he’s going to come out of there with a Master’s.”
Shane said his transition from Loras and Division III to Wisconsin and Division I has been the test he thought it would be.
“For sure,” he said. “I wouldn’t be here right now if I didn’t think I could handle it. I knew it was going to be tough. I knew it was going to be hard.”
Ralph said the move from Dubuque to Madison has been beneficial for his son.
“I think he did what he wanted to do there in a sense,” Ralph said of Shane’s four seasons at Loras. “I think he was looking for that greater challenge and to see how he stacked up wrestling in D-I. He wanted that challenge, not only in wrestling, but school.”
Ralph said Shane’s decision to wrestle one more season has been a gift.
“Any chance we can, we’re going to go watch him,” Ralph said. “I told him thanks for giving us the opportunity to do it.”
The latest edition of the Liegel legacy is full of intrigue.
“When he was thinking about (transferring) and when it first started, I was thinking, ‘Man, this could be a good story,’” Ralph said. “Hopefully he can keep things going and make it a better story.”