Dan Fox Senior Profile

DURHAM, N.C. ? Dan Fox recently sat down with GoDuke.com for his senior profile. Fox is a 197-pound competitor on the Duke wrestling team. Read on to find about his nicknames, who he would eat dinner with if he could and why he chose to attend Duke.

GoDuke.com: What is your nickname?
Dan Fox: I usually get called any variation of Fox. Fox or Foxy are the most used versions, however I do get to hear Foxylady, Foxyllama, Foxface and others occasionally.

GD: What do you have in your iPod before a match?
DF: Ok, so this is kind of embarrassing, but I only have two songs on repeat. “Bring Me To Life” by Evanescence and “The World's Greatest” by R. Kelly. A little clich?, but it gets me pumped.

GD: If you could change one rule in your sport, what would it be?
DF: Eliminate a style called “funk.” Some guys can wiggle themselves out of a takedown which really frustrates me.

GD: What is your favorite professional team?
DF: New England Patriots. It's almost not fair... almost.

GD: Who is your favorite professional player in your sport?
DF: Favorite Olympian is Kendall Cross. I got to train with him in high school because he lived in the next town over. He taught me important technique and mental skills to compete and win.

GD: Who is your favorite professional player outside your sport?
DF: Teddy Bruschi, a linebacker for the Patriots. He's a beast, not even a stroke can stop him.

GD: What is your favorite movie?
DF: Braveheart.

GD: What's your favorite movie from over the summer?
DF: Superbad.

GD: What's your favorite book?
DF: Angels and Demons by Dan Brown.

GD: What's the last non-school related book you read?
DF: Digital Fortress by Dan Brown.

GD: What's your favorite TV show?
DF: Lost, followed by Scrubs a close second. Expect my grades to drop in February when Lost comes back on.

GD: Who's your favorite fictional character (from a TV show, growing up, etc.)?
DF: Spiderman. He definitely had the best super powers, plus he was a good guy and was wicked smart.

GD: Who's your favorite musical artist?
DF: Slightly Stoopid ? a new reggae-ish band. But Queen also has a soft spot in my heart.

GD: What's your favorite food?
DF: That's like asking me to choose a favorite among children. I love Greek food, Chinese food and Italian food. Probably the best single thing is a good loaf of cinnamon chocolate chip banana bread.

GD: Do you have any pre-match rituals?
DF: No I try to just keep myself calm and not think too much about the match until a couple minutes before. If I get too excited I try to kill the guy in the first minute and strategy and stamina go out the window.

GD: Are you superstitious and if so, describe why?
DF: No, not really.

GD: What's your best non-athletic talent?
DF: I am the world's best pancake maker. From scratch, no mix ? I only serve up the real deal. Chocolate chips and maple syrup aren't necessary.

GD: If you could have dinner with four people from history (dead or alive), who would it be and why?
DF: Sir Isaac Newton, Bruce Lee, Hercules and Quentin Tarantino. Why? Because Newton is a genius and I think him and Bruce would have a hell of a conversation. Hercules would be great to eat with because he might be able to hang with me in an eating contest. Tarantino would be fun because he would be telling a seemingly normal story and then spring into some crazy tangent involving large guns, explosions and general incoherent mayhem.

GD: If you could have dinner with anybody related to Duke (dead or alive), who would it be and why?
DF: My coach, because anytime out with him is a good time. Plus he always tries to makes the meal “extra fun.” Of course, if I did have dinner with him, that means it would most likely be at Subway.

GD: What are you planning on doing after graduation?
DF: Hiking the Appalachian Trail.

GD: What would your dream job be?
DF: Teaching environmental education and conservation.

GD: Think one year down the road, what will you be doing?
DF: Finishing up an internship working on environmental sustainability and getting ready to hit the Appalachian trail.

GD: Think 10 years down the road, what will you be doing?
DF: Teaching and coaching wrestling, while creating a wrestling squad of my own with my wife.

GD: Who's had the most impact on your life and why?
DF: My parents. They are my moral compass, my inspiration and my friends. Truly some of the most honest, hard working and best people I know. Oh, and the fact that they gave birth to me helps out too.

GD: Who's had the most impact on your athletic career and why?
DF: My head wrestling coach in high school. He brought in people for me to wrestle and get better, got me to big tournaments, pushed me harder than I thought possible and believed in me. I would not be where I am now without him.

GD: What's your favorite memory to date of your college career?
DF: I took a summer semester abroad in Greece. One of my favorite memories is eating at one particular restaurant on the island of Santorini overlooking a 400 foot cliff into the ocean.

GD: What would the perfect end to your athletic career look like?
DF: Winning ACC's in a close overtime match.

GD: What's your favorite part of practice and why?
DF: When we wrestle live on our feet in something called “Sharkbait.” That's the position I like wrestling best, and you keep changing up partners so it stays interesting.

GD: What's the thing you most admire about your coach and why?
DF: I most admire his open approach to life. He is not afraid of change (though possibly stretching), he embraces new workout techniques, he's accessible to the wrestlers if we're having problems and he is understanding of these problems when they arise.

GD: Where is your secret spot to study?
DF: Not so secret ? first floor Bostock second table on the left. Unless it's finals week, then all the bandwagon studies come out and take my spot.

GD: Being a few years removed from high school, what pops into your head when you think back to your high school career?
DF: Hanging out with my friends during and after school. Definitely a lot less work and a whole lot more hang out time then.

GD: Who was your childhood hero?
DF: My dad, I used to get into contests with some kids on whose dad was smarter, cooler and the best carpenter.

GD: What's the best advice you've ever received?
DF: Never be satisfied.

GD: What's your favorite sport, other than your own, to watch on TV?
DF: Football. Actually it is pretty much the only sport I enjoy watching on TV, other than curling and competitive spelling bees.

GD: What is your advice to children?
DF: Don't do drugs, stay in school and don't eat the yellow snow.

GD: What is your advice to this year's freshmen on your team?
DF: Relish the marketplace ? all too soon it will be gone out of your life, leaving a vacuumless whole.

GD: If you could go back-stage at any concert, what would it be?
DF: ACDC because there would be some crazy stuff going on back stage at one of their concerts.

GD: What's the best concert you've ever attended?
DF: Well I've only been to three concerts ever, but my favorite was a free concert Duke put on that no one knew about. Blessed Union of Souls played on Keohane quad my sophomore year. I grabbed a friend and just sat out there for an hour listening to them. They had been a favorite band in middle school and even though they were only playing to 30 or so Duke students, they still rocked.

GD: What concert do you most want to attend that you never have?
DF: Raffi. Baby Beluga is the greatest composition ever.

GD: Why did you choose to attend Duke?
DF: Because this is the only top level institution that felt like a community, especially for athletes. All the other top tier institutions seemed cold, with no school spirit. As soon as I stepped on campus I felt the school spirit, especially for athletics. The possibility of being seen as an asset to the community rather than a free-loader was very appealing.

GD: Where is your favorite place to play outside of Duke?
DF: Playing ultimate Frisbee on the turf fields with the team.

GD: What do you do in your free time?
DF: I like to get out to some of the local rivers and go kayaking. Generally though just hang out with friends. Finally, I just like to eat.

GD: What game is in your gaming system right now?
DF: What's a gaming system?

GD: What's your favorite video game?
DF: Are those the things that you would play with if you had free time and a TV?

Players Mentioned

Dan Fox

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