BEREA, OHIO -- What would possess a man that just turned 45 years of age to re-enter the world of college athletics and compete against athletes well under half his age? For Terence Haynes, the answer is simple, carpe diem, "seize the day." In fact, it was that same answer that led Haynes down a life-changing path just under one year ago.
Only 10 months ago, Terence G. Haynes, a resident of Brunswick Hills, Ohio and 1981 graduate of Glenville High School, weighed 429 pounds. Today, the 45-year old Baldwin Wallace University junior weighs in at a slender 255 pounds and will step on the wrestling mat at Case Western Reserve University for the first time in his collegiate career when the Yellow Jackets face the Spartans at 7:00 p.m. in the Veale Center in University Circle.
If losing 175 pounds in 10 months and entering college wrestling at 45 years old seems too unbelievable, one must only hear Terence speak for a couple of minutes to truly grasp how he has gotten to this point in life.
His story has drawn the interest of many, such as Cleveland TV station WOIO-19 reorter Dawn Kendrick, The Plain Dealer Associated Sports Editor David Campbell and ESPN/E:60 producer Pat Knighton.
"This is a great story that we would love to tell on E:60," said Knighton, from her desk in Bristol, Connecticut. "Terence is an inspiration to us all."
Unfortunately, the opportunity of a college scholarship never occurred for the 237-pound nose-guard and fullback that could bench-press 550 pounds. Most scouts, who never took a fair look at Haynes, considered him to be too slow. So while his brother moved on to Division I Toledo University and most of his fellow teammates went to similar high-profile spots, Haynes chose to stay local at BW.
In 1981, Haynes enrolled at BW and played one year on the Yellow Jacket freshman squad. However, his career was quickly put on the back-burner as he was forced to leave school to help care for his ill mother and family. Before he knew it, Haynes was out of organized sports for two decades and was heading down a life-threatening path.
"I quit exercising like a football player should, but kept eating like one," said Haynes, who is telling his story to help motivate others who need the same help and counseling that he has received and benefitted from.
"I didn't know it at the time, but I was really going through a depression caused from not being able to pursue my dreams. I used food as a band-aid and fell into a pattern of just going through the motions."
When he finally realized there was a problem, Haynes weighed over 400 pounds. He sought help at a local weight-loss center but found himself lying and manipulating the system to a point where he gained an additional 16 pounds.
"I really found that I was lying about who I really was," noted Haynes. "That needed to change."
After realizing that his weight loss program was headed in the wrong direction, Haynes looked elsewhere for help and met local boxer and personal trainer Paul Scianna at a local workout facility.
"I watched Paul work with others for about four months before we finally began working together," said Haynes. "I saw that he was great at working with individual needs."
What Haynes didn't see was that Scianna was also keeping an eye in the same direction at Haynes. "When I first met Terence, I didn't see a 400-pound guy," said Scianna. "I saw an athlete with great strength, flexibility and potential."
The two began working together and it took only a week for Haynes to lose 10 pounds.
"Working with Paul was very intense and demanding, but it truly helped to break-up the lie I had been living over the past several years," said Haynes. "That was a very important breakthrough for us."
Scianna became more than just a trainer for Haynes, who used words like "therapist" and "advocate" when describing the native of New Jersey.
Once he began losing weight and setting new goals, Haynes couldn't think of a better place to return to school than where he began at BW. So, he set his goals high.
"First and most important was that I wanted to finish school/ college," said Haynes, who also is an ordained minister. "But applying online was a challenge that I had to work through. Now I had a goal, a purpose, and a story to tell. I felt like, you can love me or hate me, but you can't deny me."
"Then, I ran into BW Assistant Wrestling Coach and two-time NCAA Division III All-American Bryan Kmetz of Brunswick who knew I had wrestled a bit back in junior high," said Haynes. "Bryan is a personal trainer at the workout facility where I belong."
"I had wrestled for two years and set the then Franklin D. Roosevelt Junior High record with a six-second pin," continued Haynes. "Coach Kmetz asked if I was interested in wrestling because BW needed a heavyweight. So, I talked it over with Paul and he said I could if I fit it in around school, my workouts and working at Parmadale (a local facility for at-risk youth)."
"It is so exciting because I knew I can show these guys (his teammates at BW) what real life was all about," said Haynes with a big, wide grin on his face. "I know I bring a life-experience and that is something they can see everyday. Just that in itself is satisfying. I'm already a winner."
"The other members of the team really enjoy Terence," said veteran Yellow Jacket wrestling coach Rich Fleming, who is in his 43rd season of coaching the sport. "He is really motivated and comes to practice every day on a mission to work hard and make a difference. And, he is making a difference."
"It is both weird and funny, but after a day or two, the guys on the team already appeared like they are looking up to me," said Haynes with another big, wide smile on his face. "They were asking me lots of questions and asking if I need anything. They look at me as being experienced, not older."
"Terence is absolutely right," said Fleming. "The guys on the team are motivated by what he has accomplished. He is an inspiration of what you can do if you have goals and are motivated. Heck, he inspires me too. He is an excellent addition to our wrestling program and to the College community as a whole."
"I am hoping that what I am doing can impact someone, anyone, another person," said Haynes. "I hope it will make them wake up and allow their past to catch their future and equal their present. Seeing someone like me accomplish my dreams with all the odds stacked against me shows them that they can do it too."
And it all begins tonight at CWRU at 7:00 p.m.
But his goals don't end with that first wrestling match. There is a marathon to go. literally.
In the future, Haynes hopes to run a marathon, get into competitive power-lifting, continue to be a motivational speaker, and he is currently writing a book.
"I know I have come a long way so far," said Haynes, "and I know I still have a long way to go. The light is at the end of the tunnel and I am just working hard every day and following that light."
Both good and unfortunate for Haynes is that he will travel to CWRU tonight already knowing that he will win his match. CWRU does not have a heavyweight on its roster, so he will have a 1-0 record at the end of the match. He hopes to improve on that mark on Dec. 2 when BW travels to Ohio Athletic Conference rival Wilmington College for a 7:00 p.m. match.