NCAA national runner-up Tanner Sloan never forgets his roots at Alburnett

ALBURNETT, Iowa (KCRG) - Before Tanner Sloan earned a second-place finish at 197 as a South Dakota State Jackrabbit, he was a two-time Iowa state champion as an Alburnett Pirate.

“Alburnett’s just a big family the support system is truly amazing there,” Sloan said. “It kind of just followed me regardless of where I chose they were still gonna be big fans, so doing them proud and doing Brookings (South Dakota) proud, it feels really good.”

Sloan was a star on the football field too. He had to make a decision, and when he chose to wrestle in college, it didn’t take long to find his new home at SDSU

Since then, Sloan has qualified for four NCAA Tournaments, and made it all the way to the finals as a No. 7 seed this year.

“I think it’s proven that a small town kid can have a lot of big goals and reach them.”

Back at home, his high school coach, Clayton Rush, isn’t taking any credit. The two met when Sloan was a sophomore.

“I remember he came off the mat, and I said ‘hey what weight are you going this year?’” said Rush “He said ‘I don’t know’ and I said ‘whichever one you choose you’re winning it.””

“I think the most important - if you wanna call it - lesson that I taught him was just having a really good relationship with his wrestling coach.”

With one more year left at school Sloan says he’s ready to get back to the NCAA Tournament, this time ending with a win.

“I got on the bus Sunday morning to go back to Brookings and my body’s telling me ‘a little break and then right back at it.’” Sloan said. “I just want to make sure I can do everything possible to end up on top.”

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