So Upchurch, an 145 pound senior, attended the Ken Chertow, Grandby and Bloomsburg wrestling camps during the summer. The more aggressive wrestling approach resulted in a perfect a 20-0 season record for Whitfield to end his high school wrestling career and a state championship at the Hearnes Center.
The wrestling camps not only gave Upchurch a more aggressive style but also boosted his confidence.
“At the camps I got to wrestle and take down college guys,” said Upchurch. “The camps made me aware of mat skills that go toward winning. Do not give away points unnecessarily, beware of your placement on the mat, time remaining in the mat. A lot of little things that I used against my high school opponents.”
Another benefit of the camp that Upchurch used against his high school opponents is that he went for the first takedown, often putting his opponent on the defensive.
“I always like to get the first takedown because then I will feel that I am in control of the match the rest of the time,” said Upchurch. “That way my opponent then will have to play catch up. Getting the first takedown also relieves the nervous pressure that l feel at the beginning of the match.”
Upchurch began to wrestle when he was eight years old, introduced to the sport by his father, Jay Bordeaux Jr., at the Jimmy Miller Royal Knights wrestling club because his father wanted him to try wrestling. Upchurch also played football from seven until he was 13. He also gave basketball a try but insisted that he was no good.
But it was wrestling that Upchurch found out that was his sport.
“Wrestling was something that I could show some skill on an individual basis although it was a team sport,” said Upchurch. “I always cheer my teammates on when I am not competing. I also got to travel all over the place. It was important to learn not to blame others for not winning but to be a teammate no matter what the outcome is because the team is always dependent on you.”
Upchurch contended that being part of a team meant that he always had another pair of eyes, his coach Charlie Sherertz, focused on his matches.
“A lot of times I will get frustrated when something I am doing is not working,” said Upchurch. “Then I will turn to my coaches because they can see things that I can not. The coaches want me to speed things up. They feel that I am quicker than my opponents and create scrambles because they believe I can win those.”
Upchurch said also noticed that his technique become better after attending the wrestling camps. And Upchurch insisted that the wrestling camp also made him mentally tougher .
“I learn how to fight through pain, not to give up during a match,” said Upchurch. “College wrestlers are more physical than high school wrestlers and you need to be mentally tough to beat them.”
When Upchurch won his championship at the Hearnes Center, he joined his father as the only African-American father and son combination as 145 pound champions. Upchurch noted his father was proud of the accomplishment yet the father and son have only talked about wrestling each other.
Bordeaux, won the 145 pound championship at Kirkwood, went 35-0 in 1988 under coach Sheppard Pittman and was a teammate of Brian Jackson, now the coach of Maryville University. Bordeaux said he only introduced Upchurch to the sport because he was a natural talented wrestler.
“Jimmy recruits kids for wrestling and he is a strong advocate of the sport,” said Bordeaux. “Jimmy has introduced a lot kids into the sport like Dante Butler of Sumner. He and I decided to have Chris try for team. Chris is successful at wrestling because he controls his hips well.”
Upchurch has a natural wrestling gene in his family with his grandfather, John Bordeaux Sr, who wrestled at O’Fallon Tech in 1965. Bordeaux Jr. said that winning a wrestling championship means that a lot of people have contributed to your success.
“I do not think it has hit Chris yet but winning a wrestling championship requires that a lot of people have helped develop your talent,” said Bordeaux Jr. “It also signals that there is a conversion from a boy to a man because there is an inner confidence that you can overcome any challenge, that ‘I can do it’.”
Upchurch will attend Pepperdine University in Malibu, California this fall but will not wrestle because Pepperdine does not have a wrestling program. However, Upchurch will remain active as he will wrestle for Team St. Louis this summer. Upchurch will also maintain a habit he learn at the wrestling camps to improve his performance on the mat; watching videotape of his matches.
“At the camps, I learned how valuable it is to see myself on tape.” said Upchurch. “Before I used to just wrestle. Now I listen to my coaches but also I see things the coaches see and now I can make the correct adjustments myself in matches.”
Upchurch said after attending the camps he had only one goal; winning a championship.
“A lot of people say winning one championship is not as hard as winning the second,” said Upchurch. “There are now people in the state out to beat you. Some guys will wrestle their best match against you are because now you have name recognition.”