Michael White became Indianapolis (Indiana) Lawrence North High School’s first wrestling state champion in more than 10 years to cap off his undefeated season at 47-0. However, success did not come easy for one of the top wrestlers in the 190-pound weight class according to FloWrestling.

For nearly a year, White was homeless and struggled to make it to school, which made getting to wrestling practice even more difficult. Despite the challenges, White was still determined to be the best wrestler possible.

Lawrence North head wrestling coach Jacob Aven played a big role in White’s rise to the top. Aven’s leadership as a coach and mentor helped White join Oklahoma State’s 2026 recruiting class, the top-ranked class in the country.

After going 16-15 as a freshman, White went 36-9 as a sophomore and finished sixth in the state before going 44-2 as a junior and reaching the state finals.