Jun 7, 2002 By Rob Burchianti 4 min read

Jeff Pelehac wanted to be a wrestler when he was in kindergarten, but his parents made sure he realized what he was getting into beforehand. “They wanted me to know that this isn’t with chains and snakes,” said the 17-year-old Brownsville Area High School senior with a laugh. “They made sure I knew that the professional wrestling I was used to seeing was a lot different than real wrestling on a mat.”

Pelehac’s parents, Mark and Valerie Pelehac of Republic, let their son wrestle on one condition.

“They said I had to stick with it for at least one month,” Pelehac said. “That way I would know what it was about and I could make a decision on if I wanted to stick with it or not.”

He stuck with it, and 13 years later he’s still wrestling, and hoping to continue on in the sport in college.

Pelehac, who is ranked fifth in his class with a 4.0 GPA, has accepted an ROTC Air Force scholarship to Penn State University.

He was selected as the top male student/athlete at Brownsville Area High School and will receive a $500 scholarship through the Davis & Davis Student/Athlete Scholarship Program.

The program, sponsored by Davis & Davis Law Firm and coordinated by the Herald-Standard, will culminate with a banquet to be held at 5 p.m. Sunday, June 16 at Shady Side Inn.

Pelehac was a four-year letterman in wrestling at Brownsville. He was a three-year member of the football team where he lettered as a junior and senior, and also lettered his freshman year in track.

In school, Pelehac was president of the National Honor Society, vice president of YEA (Youth Education Association) and was involved in student council.

In wrestling, Pelehac finished third in the section all four years. He showed his mat potential as a freshman when he placed sixth in the very competitive Tournament of Champions in Ohio.

“That did a lot for my confidence when I was sixth in Ohio,” Pelehac said. “That really gave me a boost.”

As a senior, Pelehac wrestled at 140 and was selected as team captain by coach John Armel.

“I think coach Armel counted on me to help motivate the team, and he let me keep people in line when I thought we needed that,” Pelehac said.

He has put countless hours of work into wrestling.

“It takes a lot of discipline,” Pelehac said. “You have to keep in shape and build your strength, and you have to watch your weight at times. You have to be on top of things. It’s been a lot of hard work.

“I wouldn’t take any of it back, though. I’m glad I did what I did.”

Pelehac played defensive back and wide receiver in football for the Falcons under veteran coach Don Bartolomucci.

“He’s an awesome guy, a great guy and a great motivator,” Pelehac said of Bartolomucci. “I would say I enjoyed playing football almost as much as wrestling. Football was great, especially when we made the playoffs.

“I have a lot of great memories from playing football at Brownsville.”

The Falcons reached the postseason in Pelehac’s sophomore and junior years, but missed out this past season.

Balancing sports that require year-round conditioning with academics isn’t all that easy, Pelehac admits.

“You don’t have much free time,” he said. “Between my practice schedule, school work, weight lifting, running and everything else … it’s hard to juggle all that and still find time for your family and friends. You really have to work out a schedule and stick to it.”

Pelehac’s two sisters – 16-year-old Gina and nine-year-old Angela – and his parents lend him plenty of support.

“My dad and mom are probably my biggest fans, and my whole family pulls for me and pushes me, and I really appreciate that,” Pelehac said. “It’s nice to have all that positive backing when you’re working and trying so hard.”

And what does Pelehac think of professional wrestling now?

“I like watching it,” he admits. “Really, I just think it’s pretty funny now.”