Among other things, Hofstra wrestler Will Conlon also likes to read and lists “Catcher in the Rye” as his favorite book.

“I read that for my 12th-grade AP literature class,” said the 197-pound redshirt college sophomore from Hoover, Ala.

Conlon doesn’t compare himself to the 16-year-old main character, created in the 1951 classic novel by J.D. Salinger, who dealt with the reality of adulthood in a much grimier era in New York City.

And of course, Hofstra is located 30 miles from the City on Long Island, where wrestlers can find a beach on the Atlantic Ocean as fast as they can find a much busier life in New York City.

“It’s actually more of a suburban area and what I’m used to,” said Conlon, who grew up outside of Birmingham, and does find time to enjoy today’s New York City. “My coach probably doesn’t want me to say this, but there are times I go to the City to eat and eat too much.”

But Conlon, a 2023 Alabama state high school champion, does believe “100 percent”  that the book’s message is helping him adapt to NCAA Division I wrestling.

“(The book) had a big impact on me,” he said. “I’m due to go back through that book because there are many lessons to have been learned from it.”

Conlon simply calls his college wrestling career “challenging.” That included a true freshman season in 2023-24 when he went 9-15 at 184 pounds and a redshirt year last season that saw him beat two eventual national qualifiers before undergoing surgery in March to repair an ACL injury.

He returned this season much healthier and has compiled a 14-9 record through Feb. 1. Though he is not ranked, Conlon considers himself and other Hofstra teammates — like fellow redshirt sophomore Jake Slotnick, 16-11 at 165 pounds — as diamonds in the rough.

“In high school and middle school when I started wrestling, I’ve felt like I’ve been looked over at times,” said Conlon, who also won an NHSCA national championship before coming to Hofstra.

“For me, it’s about chipping away against the top guys in my weight class and trying to close the gap. Consistency is what’s going to get me there. The biggest aspect of my training since high school is where I’ve made myself consistent with training and doing what it takes to get better.

“I’m really thankful for the coaching staff that I have now and who took a chance on me.”

Hofstra coach Jamie Franco, the former Pride alum who was a three-time NCAA qualifier (2012-14), believes Hofstra can return to the days when the EIWA school finished as high as seventh in the nation in 2007, but has not had an All-American since 2018 when heavyweight Michael Hughes finished sixth.

“We are a young team,” said Franco, now in his second year. “We just need some experience. Fortunately, most of this team has one or two years of eligibility left.”

Franco — who was introduced to the Alabama native from Conlon’s club coach, Shad Rissler, also a New York native and former prep teammate of Franco —believes that Conlon can be one of his team’s leaders.

“I think he’s a better version of himself and we see each week he’s getting a little stronger,” said Franco. “We hope over the next month before the conference tournament that he keeps building and realizes how well he is doing.”

Will, the son of Carol and Joshua (a former high school wrestler) Conlon, has tried to share his challenge with friends and family back home in Alabama.

“I tell them what’s going on, but if I wasn’t myself, I don’t think I’d truly understand what this has been all about,” he admitted. “It’s a different beast. You have to wake up early, go to workouts and team practices and classes and then go through the competition aspect of it. Every time you compete, a guy is looking to rip your head off, and you have to be willing to do the same thing.”

Conlon also credits the Hofstra brotherhood in helping me adapt to his college environment and wrestling goals.

“I just moved off campus this past semester into a house with six other guys and teammates. I consider all those guys my brothers,” he said. “That’s what was important for me when I came here on my visit. I felt like I was home with my family. The summer before my freshman year, I came into training with a team and felt connected with that group.”

But Conlon also believes he must take his own responsibility to reach his wrestling goals.

“There is something I learned since being in college: you have to seek out the answers to what your development is going to look like and how you are going to get to the next level,” he said. “At this level, you can’t just come in and work on your two best shots of two best re-attacks, work on top and bottom and simply achieve what you want to achieve.

“I feel like you have to be a fan of the sport and be watching the guys who are constantly innovating in the sport and adopting some of those habits and training methods of the best wrestlers. I think some guys don’t realize they also have to be innovators and be as much of a spectator as a competitor.”

A management major, who has been on Hofstra’s Dean List in the past two years, does believe he is reaching his overall life’s goals the past three years.

“Before wrestling was in the cards, which happened late in my high school career, I was thinking about going to a state school near me like Auburn or Alabama,” he said. “And while that experience might have been good, I think taking a different step and direction to wrestle in college and in a completely unknown area, it’s definitely something that aligns with my goals, which is trying out next experiences that make up my life.”