Joey Cruz didn’t get to be one of the top 120-pounders in the country by accident. His father had him on a wrestling mat at age 3, and for the last decade, while Joey was training to compete, his dad, Joey Sr., was in a fight for his life with cancer.

On January 12 of this year, the elder Joey Cruz passed away, and now his son is looking for a new sense of what's normal without him. That isn't easy to do, but the things Joey Cruz Sr. taught his son, many of them through wrestling, help.

Perhaps it's no surprise that wrestling itself is a big part of what has helped Joey deal with the passing of his father. The sport has been a constant in Joey's life and in his relationship with his dad.

Throughout Mr. Cruz's battle with cancer, he was supportive of Joey's career, and even when his medical issues were their most intense, he insisted that Joey train and compete as often as possible.

Now that Mr. Cruz has passed, the wrestling mat remains a place where Joey feels at home, and he's continued to have impressive results. Over the weekend, he turned in an impressive 3-0 performance at the Rumble in Arizona Duals, and prospects are bright.

Wrestling isn't the only thing helping Joey process his father's passing. He also relies a lot on mentorship from Harold Zinkin and Izzy Silva, two men who have been willing to invest time and wisdom into Joey for a long time, especially in the last couple of months.

Another key part of Joey's ability to move forward is the time he spends with his bulldog, Bruiser, a dog that reminds Joey of his father's years long fight for his life. The way Bruiser came into Joey's life is remarkable.

Two years ago, Joey Cruz Sr. took a troubling turn and went into a coma. For nearly two weeks, the Cruz family didn't know if Joey Cruz Sr. would recover. Then, on Joey Jr's birthday, his father woke up unexpectedly, and as a birthday present, he bought Bruiser for the family. Now, Bruiser serves as a physical reminder of Joey Cruz Sr's fighting spirit and the support he gave Joey Jr. throughout his life.

With these support systems in place, Joey is able to navigate his daily life, but he also has an eye on the future, a future many are interested in as he's one of the biggest recruits in the class of 2022. This is a strange time to be recruited, not just because of Joey's personal circumstances but also because of the recruiting dead period due to COVID-19.

Despite those recruiting obstacles, Joey has narrowed his school list two four programs. In alphabetical order, those are Iowa State, Little Rock, Oklahoma, and Oklahoma State.

Joey likes the coaches and culture at each of these four programs. Both Oklahoma and Oklahoma State are also appealing because Joey has some family in the area, but Joey doesn't have a strong preference in program at the moment.

Little Rock might seem like a surprising program to be in Joey's top four as they're just finishing their second year of competition, but Joey's connection to coach Chandler Rogers has been strong. 

Rogers, like Joey, lost his father while he was still competing and has spent years processing his father's passing. As a result, he and Joey can relate in a way that few people can.

At this point, Joey plans to wait to make his college decision until after he can get on these campuses. He believes that it will be important for him to feel out each program in person before he knows where he fits best. For now, the NCAA recruiting dead period is scheduled to continue through May 31.

Between now and then, Joey plans to keep training and competing as he continues to carry on his father's legacy.