Careef Robertson
Careef Robertson, is a two-time South Carolina high school wrestling state champion. He became the first native South Carolina NCAA Wrestling national champion on March 12, 2005 when he a won a gold medal for Anderson College (now Anderson University) as a junior. Robertson captured the Division II crown with a 6-4 overtime victory over Travis Kinke of Minnesota-Mankato. Robertson took a redshirt during the 2005-2006 season.
Robertson's high school accomplishments include two South Carolina high school state championships. He won his first title in 2001 as junior at the 160 lb weight class, and his second at the 171 lb weight class his senior year. He also was named "Mr. Wrestling" for South Carolina in 2002.
Robertson championship was a milestone for South Carolina wrestling. Although this does not give him the status of Sam Henson and Noel Loban of Clemson University, his accomplishment is noteworthy because is from South Carolina and attended Dutch Fork high school. Sam Henson is from the state of Missouri and Noel Loban is from the United Kingdom, their success at Clemson University in no way reflects on the quality of wrestling in the state of South Carolina.
American folstyle wrestling has been, and continues to be, dominated by wrestlers from regions of the Northeast and Midwest United States. Wrestlers from Northeastern states including New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania and Midwestern states, including Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Minnesota, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Ohio, and Wisconsin still dominate regional and national competition. While the South Carolina State Wrestling Tournament is lucky to draw 2000 total fans over the two day event (South Carolina has a population of over 4 million people), many midwestern states draw sold out crowds to their state wrestling tournaments. Nebraska, for example, a state with a population of less than 1.5 million people, sells out the state finals every year with over 12,000 fans in attendane and the total 3 day state wrestling tourney attendance at nearly 50,000 people.