Clay Lautt Discusses Winning ACC Title, Team Culture

In his redshirt sophomore season as the Carolina starter at 174 pounds, Clay Lautt emerged as one of the anchors of the UNC lineup over the course of 2019-2020. He capped off his year with a 21-7 record and an ACC title at 174 pounds, forever putting his name in the record books for posting one of the best "breakthrough years" in recent memory.

This week, we talked with Lautt about his season and the UNC Wrestling program.

GoHeels: You made a massive jump last year, what was the key to your success in making that leap to be so successful?

Clay Lautt: "After being exposed to some weaknesses early on in college, I knew I needed to ask more from myself. I think that staying focused throughout the entire year is a big reason I've seen improvements in all areas of my wrestling. I have started to find an identity in my shots, and I've been wrestling with confidence"

GH: How has the team culture grown since you've been here and how important was it to the team's success last year?

CL: "The entire team has bought into the coaches, and we trust in their plan. We all share the same goal, which is to become national champions, and we count on one another to perform. I know the relationships I've made here are deeper than wrestling. Whenever times are hard, I know my brothers beside me are counting on me to be my best. With a close team like we have, it's easy to see how everything is bigger than ourselves"

GH: Talk about your mindset at ACCs and what it was like to go through that process and win the title?

CL: "The entire year, my mindset was to win ACCs. I took a few tough losses in the regular season, going 3-2 in ACC duals. Despite the losses, I was still the favorite in my mind. To close the 2020 season with an ACC title was relieving, and exciting. It's something that I'll remember for a long time. It's motivating to look back on my career thus far and see how much I've improved, and it just makes me more excited for the future."

GH: When you look ahead to next year, what do you expect the team to put together and what are you most looking forward to?

CL: "Next year, I am looking forward to improving as a team and as an individual once again. Nine of our 10 starters will be back for next year, and we want to continue and build upon the success we had this season. We're building a lot of depth on this team, and it'll be interesting to see the growth of our program after another year.

"And then obviously, I'm most looking forward to the national tournament. I'm still waiting for my chance to compete at nationals, and I hope to see our whole team on the podium in St. Louis next year."

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