Travis Wittlake raised his arm after defeating West Virginia’s Peyton Hall.
Wittlake jogged off the mat and was handed a cowboy hat for his Cowboy Challenge Tournament title.
“I thought it was pretty cool,” he said. “It’s a fitting award for the Cowboy Challenge Tournament.”
The idea of an unconventional award in an unusual time was born in recruiting coordinator Tyler Caldwell’s office.
“Well, we were just sitting in my office, going over the brackets and preparing for the tournament,” Caldwell said.