Franklin Regional grad Spencer Lee opens up about shocking NCAA loss

About three weeks ago, one match at the NCAA Championships knocked the college wrestling world off its axis.

The nation watched as Iowa sensation Spencer Lee writhed under Purdue’s Matt Ramos, bending and trying to peel his opponent off and turn him as time ticked away, finally submitting for a stunning loss.

Those who watched will remember where they were as the referee slapped the mat to make it official: Pin, Ramos.

Did that just happen?

Lee, a former Franklin Regional star, fell behind 4-0, rallied to take a 7-4 lead but then allowed Ramos to take him down and finally pin him in 6 minutes, 59 seconds.

The head-turning match in Tulsa, Okla., was the win of a lifetime for Ramos. It was a buzzkill for Lee and Hawkeye Nation, which was fully expecting their beloved 125-pounder to win a fourth national title.

But Lee still earned All-America recognition for the fifth time in his career, joining a former Iowa teammate and Franklin Regional alum, Michael Kemerer, with five All-America honors.

Lee, in an exclusive interview with Barstool Sports, with whom he has an NIL deal, finally talked about the loss, one of the greatest upsets in NCAA history. A loss he admits was more of what Ramos did than what Lee did not.

He also discussed his mom’s viral glasses-crushing reaction.

First thing’s first: Despite knee issues in the past, Lee said he was not banged up for the match.

That despite Iowa announcing the next day that Lee would medically forfeit and settle for sixth place instead of trying to wrestle back for bronze.

Lee said skip the controversy.

“I saw people say I lost because I was hurt,” Lee told Barstool. “That’s not true. I got beat. I hate when people try to make excuses for me when I got out-wrestled and beat. They’re taking credit away from someone who deserves credit.

“Why not just go give love to Matt Ramos for beating me? The kid deserves the praise for making the NCAA finals. People are too busy finding ways to shove down people and not give him credit.”

Amazing scene at the Division I Wrestling Championships. Iowa's Spencer Lee, going for his fourth national championship, loses in the semifinals.

His mother was quite upset with it. pic.twitter.com/uHIXOvMIFx

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) March 18, 2023

Lee, 24, who is known as a generational talent, said he will continue to push toward his lifelong goal of making the Olympics.

He plans to compete in the USA Wrestling U.S. Open on April 26-30 at South Point Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.

Lee finished 98-6 for his college career, and he had a 58-match winning streak from 2019-23.

Ramos took Lee down twice in a previous matchup, but Lee rallied to pin him.

This time, Lee was not himself.

“He’s really explosive,” Lee said of Ramos. “He’s funky. He’s pretty awkward, a little tall and strong. He kept binding my arms and stuff.

“I wasn’t very explosive (in the NCAA match). I don’t know what was wrong with me. I just didn’t have any pop. I felt real slow.”

Lee said he told Iowa coach Tom Brands after the match that he had “made history.”

“I was in disbelief,” Lee said. “I looked at him and said, ‘At least I made history Tom. He goes, ‘What do you mean?’ I said, ‘First guy ever going for four to lose, right?’”

As for the ESPN video that showed his mom, Cathy, crushing her glasses seconds after her son lost, Lee was sympathetic. She is, after all, his mother. An Olympic alternate in Judo, yes, but still his mother.

Lee said he wished ESPN had panned to Ramos’ family instead.

“I didn’t really start hurting until that night about the loss,” Lee said, “but my mom, I could see the emotion in her eyes. She hurt more than anyone. She knew how much I was going to hurt, so she felt that pain.

“What she said to me, she wanted to hit something, but she didn’t know what to do. She had her reader glasses on. They weren’t prescription or anything. They were like $5 readers, and she broke them because she needed to get anger out.

“I felt for her. We’ve been doing this my whole life to reach a goal, and I haven’t reached a goal yet. We’re still working on it.”

This is a perfect, uninhibited, invested sports mom moment. So real you feel everything she's feeling. You grit your teeth along with her as she shatters the specs.

Anger, sadness and disbelief. She literally wanted to pull that kid off her son. https://t.co/zjEzL8BrNs

— Bill Beckner (@BillBeckner) March 18, 2023

Reactions to the video, which ranged from snarky and sarcastic, to congenial and heartfelt, gave Lee mixed emotions. It wasn’t that she got camera time. It was the negative feedback that made him want to crack stems and lenses himself.

“She knows how much I hurt and how I was going to feel that night,” Lee said. “She was feeling it. That hurt me a lot watching that, and then seeing the backlash she got. People don’t understand the sweat, blood and tears my parents have put in to get me here.

“My mom is an Olympic-level athlete. She understands the pain of not reaching your goals. And she’s a mother first, who watched her son fail. I was a little disappointed in people making it a meme, or making her out to be a bad person because she was so passionate. That’s something I probably won’t ever forgive them for.”

Lee told Barstool he wants to win nine world titles and three Olympic golds by the end of his career.

Lee’s famous, “Excuses are for wussies” line came into question with the hot-button social media crowd.

The suddenly polarizing Lee took it in stride.

“I got called a quitter a lot, that I’m not a role model,” Lee said. “There was someone who said that they’re glad I did forfeit because now their son can see the difference between winners and quitters. Stuff like that.

“The thing is, maybe one day I’ll regret (the medical forfeit). I don’t know. I don’t regret it now. I’m trying to get ready for what’s next. I’m not healthy. I’m trying to get healthy the best I can. I wrestled fine all year.

“But it’s hard to hear all that hate because I didn’t wrestle two more matches.”

Lee posted 84 bonus-point wins in his college career and had 35 pins.

He was so dominant for so long, people expect him to win every match handily, even those against the nation’s best.

“People are expecting me to destroy everybody, and if I don’t, there’s something wrong,” Lee said. “Like come on, guys. The other guy wants to win, too.”