About this episode
Fresh off winning the U17 World Championship, Jayden James joins the BASCHAMANIA Podcast to break down his incredible run in Turkey. We talk semifinal and finals moments, training with Khaled Dassan, balancing club and high school coaching, and his dominant 43-0 high school season. Jayden also opens up about flipping his commitment from Virginia Tech to Penn State, reuniting with Duke and Welsh in Happy Valley, and being part of the loaded Class of 2026. From goals for next year to the mindset behind staying hungry, this conversation gives an inside look at one of wrestling’s brightest young stars. 0:30 - Intro 01:50 - Cadet World Team Race, Winning as a Team 03:10 - Semifinals Celebration & Finals Win 05:55 - Relationship with KD (Khaled Dassan) 07:15 - The Growth of KD TC 07:50 - Balancing Club Coach & High School Coach 08:40 - High School Success 10:50 - Jersey Wrestling 12:15 - Goals of Next Year 13:00 - What’s on Radar 14:20 - Staying in Love With The Sport 16:00 - U20 World Experience 16:45 - Flipping Commitment to Penn State 18:50 - Reuniting with Duke & Welsh at PSU 19:45 - Excitement about Becoming a Nittany Lion 20:50 - Developing a High Wrestling IQ 21:35 - Being A Part of the Talented Big Board Class 24:15 - Future Development at Penn State 25:15 - Fan Q&A Be sure to SUBSCRIBE to the podcast. NEW EPISODES WEEKLY/BIWEEKLY! Support the show & leave a 5-star rating and review on Apple Podcasts, and shop some apparel on BASCHAMANIA.com! For all partnership and sponsorship inquiries, email info@baschamania.com. BASCHAMANIA is a Basch Solutions Production. Learn more about Basch Solutions at BaschSolutions.com. SUBSCRIBE FOR VIDEO ON YOUTUBE! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxf0TDH1TTY TWITTER: http://www.twitter.com/justinjbasch INSTAGRAM: http://www.instagram.com/jbasch BASCHAMANIA: https://www.instagram.com/baschamania ARGUE WITH THE BRAIN ON TWITTER/X: https://x.com/MatScouts1