After two years away from competition due to a knee injury he sustained in 2020, Nebraska’s Lenny Pinto returned last season and had a solid campaign that didn’t end the way he wanted. This year, he may be one of the most improved wrestlers in the country as he’s worked his way up from a preseason #14 ranking all the way to #3 at 184 pounds.

After winning a Pennsylvania state title at 170 pounds as a junior, Pinto partially tore his ACL just before his senior year of high school in that Who’s #1 match against Rylan Rodgers. He was up 1-0 when the injury occurred but still finished the match, winning a 7-5 decision against the future Michigan Wolverine. 

Pinto elected to let it heal naturally through rehab but missed his senior season in Stroudsburg. Ranked #11 on the 2021 Big Board and #1 in the country at 182 pounds, Pinto was a Fargo champion in 2019 and a prized recruit. Upon arriving in Lincoln, Pinto had a few weeks of practice where he was holding his own against All-American Taylor Venz in the room but kept tweaking his knee in practice. After an MRI, it was found out that his ACL was completely torn and he was in surgery five days later. 

That led to him missing his entire redshirt year, stunting his development. He missed out on a lot of the advantages of taking a redshirt year that most other freshmen get when they get to Nebraska. 

“One of the beauties of the redshirt year is just development. When you have a guy like Lenny coming into the program with a ton of talent and potential, those years you’re going to open tournaments and you’re going with varsity guys in individuals,” associate head coach Bryan Snyder said. “There’s a ton of reps that you get, and Lenny lost a lot of that. A lot of his development and learning was on the fly that first year in the lineup, so you saw a little bit of up and down with him. He’ll tell you too, that’s one of his main areas of improvement and continued focus is consistency.”

While going through yet another long period of rehab, it was the mental toll that was the hardest part for Pinto. 

“For me, it was kind of a little battle of ‘Am I ever going to be the same?’ Because it was just injury after injury, and that’s a long wait period. Like, ‘Can I still do the things I used to do? Is my passion still there?’” Pinto wondered. “I think it was a whole mixture of finding myself again and finding my style again. I picked it back up easily, but it was still a mental thing I struggled with.”

So, how’s the knee feeling now?

“It literally feels better than it ever has,” Pinto said.

As a redshirt freshman a year ago, Pinto finished the season with a 22-11 record, placing fifth at Big Tens before a disappointing 1-2 record at his first NCAA tournament, a moment that motivated him all offseason as he prepared for his sophomore year.

“It definitely fuels you because I would have wished I could say I was a four-time All-American, and I really could have been because there were guys on that podium that I had one-point matches with or that I had beat some of them,” Pinto said. “Sitting in the stands watching is really what sucks the most, and for me it was a disappointment in myself because you have to have high expectations in this sport if you want to succeed. It definitely fueled me a lot for sure because knowing that I had the potential to do it, I feel like it’s a waste of my talent if I don’t really put my full effort out there. This year, things are going to be different.”

To start this season, Pinto wasn’t mentioned much as a contender, but he’s injected himself into the conversation with his 19-3 record, losing only to #1 Parker Keckeisen, #2 Dustin Plott and #5 Isaiah Salazar. He also took a match from Plott at CKLV where the two split matches. A year ago, Pinto lost to Keckeisen 11-2 by major decision, but this year he’s narrowed the gap, losing an 8-4 decision at CKLV.

“Growing up at a young age, it was always instilled in me that you are supposed to be competing with the best. I was instilled with the mindset to be the best,” Pinto said. “Being able to have those close matches with those top guys really fuels the fire because it just shows you how close you can be to all the dreams that everyone has of being the champ – Big Ten champ and national title. It shows how close I am but also reminds me of the little things that are standing in my way, so it really ignites the fire of the little things to work on.”

And what little things has Pinto been working on that have made his rapid improvement possible? A lot of it’s been mental, like not giving in to frustration and fatigue and just striving for more consistency. As far as technique, he’s added to his arsenal so he has more ways to score points.

“It’s crazy how little the things are that really make a big difference, and that’s why it takes awhile for some guys to really understand it. For me, it’s the real little things,” Pinto said. “Last year, if I got into a little bit of a scramble or I would send something like a hard shot and I’d put seven seconds of hard work into getting it and then I’d fail at getting it, that would really frustrate me. I would just push the guy away and get out of position, then I’d start bouncing around and lose focus of using my time wisely. Getting out of position once, that’s when the good guys will snag a good one on you.”

“He’s gotten a little better on top, but more to his arsenal on his feet. He’s got attacks to both sides of the body and that’s a program staple,” Snyder said. “He’s started to buy into that more and you see it – he hits high Cs, drags, swing single, underhook.”

For Pinto and this staff, the focus has been on getting him to put together full matches without taking breaks or getting out of his stance because when he does that, he’s really tough to beat. Against Keckeisen in the CKLV semis, Pinto struck first with a quick takedown. The match was tied at 4-4 in the waning seconds of the second period before Keckeisen pulled away.

“For five minutes, he was there (against Keckeisen). That’s the focus is seven-minute Len,” Snyder said. “Putting a consistent effort in for seven minutes, and Lenny’s a very, very scary competitor when we get that. We’re building there, he’s working his way there, and today was a great step in that direction – he had one of his best workouts. To compare this workout with a similar workout 12 months ago leading into Big Tens, night and day (difference), so he’s grown up a lot.”

With the postseason up next, Pinto has a brand new mentality than a year ago at this time. Last season, he was hoping to get a good draw and maybe knock off a top guy or two. This year, it’s combat.

“Now, I’m going in with the mindset of literally just like I’m going to war for seven minutes. My phrase is ‘just find a way’. If I’m up by seven, find a way for another one. If I’m down by a takedown with 30 seconds left, find a way. When my foot goes on the line, I need to be able to go 100 percent from start whistle to end whistle,” Pinto said. “The coaches just remind me that these guys don’t want to wrestle me because of my explosiveness and the weird style I have. It’s definitely just like a war mentality.”

With Big Tens in Maryland this year, the Pinto family will be well represented in the stands, something that has Pinto even more excited.

“I’m stoked because family is a big thing to me, and this year Big Tens is in Maryland so I have a bunch of family heading right out to Maryland to come see me,” he said. “I’m excited for the opportunity again to earn these goals and earn a title. The thrill of it is what excites me – nothing is definite. It’s a big moment of life that I know I’m going to look back on one day.”

Nebraska Healthy and Hungry Going into Big Tens

With the Big Ten Championships starting March 9, Nebraska is about as healthy as you could ask for after a grueling Big Ten and non-conference schedule. The Huskers finished the season with a 12-2 dual record with its only losses coming to #1 Penn State and #2 Iowa.

“We’re excited as hell. We got some guys that can score some points. If you don’t get excited about this team, I don’t know what team gets you excited,” Snyder said. “We’re really healthy. If you can get a hungry and healthy team this time of year, that’s a good recipe for success. Just keep hammering into them that it’s going to be tough and be ready to fight.”

During the dual season, Nebraska had some setbacks individually but was able to come out on top even when not at its best – like its 21-17 win over South Dakota State or its 18-17 win over Northern Iowa.

“Dual meet season, obviously you have a couple individual hiccups here and there, but I think it’s a testament to the resiliency and toughness of our team that we found a way to win some dual meets when we weren’t firing on all cylinders,” Snyder said. “When we all get firing, we’re scary. I like what our guys can do.”

Top-Ranked Ridge Lovett Takes Late Loss

After starting the year 21-0, Ridge Lovett lost his final dual match against #3 Kyle Parco of Arizona State. In a match that featured some controversial stall calls, Lovett dropped the match 4-3, but with wins this season over #2 Caleb Henson, #5 Austin Gomez, #11 Caleb Rathjen, #12 Tyler Kasak and #13 Dylan D’Emilio, Lovett is a proven commodity. 

“He’s battle-tested, but he just came out on the wrong end of one,” Snyder said. “That’s who he was that day, but that’s not who he’s going to be at Big Tens and NCAAs.”

In some ways, a loss like that can sometimes be a blessing in disguise in that it helps re-focus and ignite a fire in a wrestler.

“Ridge is a competitor and he hates to lose,” Snyder said. “That’s where our head is at as a staff that hey, it was a good wake-up call and Ridge will be better because of it. We know Ridge is there, but that’s how people are going to try to wrestle Ridge.”