Former All-American Oklahoma State Wrestler Meets Near-Fatal Accident as Community Unites in Support

A former Oklahoma State wrestling star was in the comfort of his home and working peacefully on 7 January. It was then that misfortune struck. The redshirt senior wrestler unfortunately met with a horrible accident. Now, he has several fractured bones and has to endure a very long period of recovery. Fortunately, his community has come forward with help in this crisis.

Travis Wittlake Jr. is one of the top wrestlers in the country and dominates the 184lbs weight class. A recent social media post reported the tragic encounter Wittlake went through and talked about his current condition. On top of it, the post has also come forward in an endeavor to provide the necessary help needed by the ex-Oklahoma State wrestler.

Joining forces to help “one of our own”

Reporting the news, a tweet on X said, “Beaver Nation. This is one of our own and a lifelong Oregonian. Travis is great people and his family is the real deal. He’s got a long road to recovery. Anything helps! #GoBeavs.” While the tweet called for the people of Oregon to join hands, community members of Oklahoma State also came forward to help. The tweet also carried a link to a GoFundMe page dedicated to collecting funds for Travis Wittlake Jr. Let’s take a look at how this happened.

Wittlake is a native of Oregon but attended Oklahoma State University for his collegiate career. According to the information on the page, Wittlake was working on his truck in his garage. While he was under the vehicle, the jack unfortunately gave way, bringing the massive weight of the vehicle down instantly.

This crushed the leg and the body of the former Oklahoma State wrestling star. Wittlake was airlifted to the trauma ward of Salem Hospital from South Oregon. 

Reports revealed that the former Oklahoma State wrestler suffered a compound fracture and his lumbar vertebrae also had several compression fractures. Fortunately, the All-American is out of danger, but his road back to normalcy is very long. He will also need to amass $100,000 for his medical costs.

Positive response by the community for the former Oklahoma State wrestler

The GoFundMe page set up for the former Oklahoma State wrestler’s treatment costs is aiming to take care of the $100,000 needed by him. Fortunately, the page has received a good response in just a few hours, and more than $28,000 has been collected via donations in a short period.

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Travis Wittlake Jr. wrestled for the Oklahoma State Cowboys from 2018 to 2023. He switched teams for the 2023-24 season and decided to grapple as an Oregon State Beaver. Unfortunately, his days of dominating the mats will not be within reach for some time. But Wittlake is fortunate enough to receive the love of two home states at the same time.

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