But battling through the decision-making process when it came to picking a college proved to be a little tougher.
Especially when the two schools competing for his services in college have long held a special place with him — Ohio State and Iowa.
“Growing up, I loved Ohio State football and wrestling,” Marinelli said. “But I also always had a passion for (Iowa). Sometimes the path less traveled is the best to go on.”
Marinelli committed to OSU over the summer, but Monday announced that he would be attending Iowa.
“It was a pretty tough decision,” said Marinelli, who recently visited the Iowa campus with his parents. “I didn’t want to let people down and I wanted to be with (former high school teammates) Bo and Micah (Jordan at Ohio State). Ohio State would have been a great choice if I picked it, but it wouldn’t have been the best choice for me. I had to sit down and put everything in perspective and I chose Iowa.
“… I had a lot of family and friends and coaches who wanted me to go to Ohio State, and I didn’t want to let them down,” he added. ” I’m a pleaser and I wanted to make them happy, but I decided I’ve got do what is best for me.”
Marinelli is ranked the No. 9 prospect in the Class of 2016 by InterMat.
“I always watched Iowa wrestling and it is more my style,” he said. “What brought me to Iowa was everyone there was real and genuine. They cared about how much I could improve as a wrestler in addition to how much I could help the program.”
The decision out of the way, Marinelli can begin work toward winning a third state title as he attempts to become the eighth four-time state champ in Graham history.
“It can be (relaxing with the pressure off),” he said. “But now I think I represent not only Graham, but Iowa when I step on the mat. It drives me to want to win more. But it is a great feeling (to have made the decision).”
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