Never again will Braydon Metcalf complain about a high school wrestling practice being too hard.

Not after running 1.5 miles from the dorms on the campus of Pennsylvania State University, running every last step of gigantic Beaver Stadium (capacity 107,282), then running all the way back.

Not after wrestling for an entire hour against the same person - no water breaks, no bathroom breaks, no gear adjustments.

Not after a week in the most intense wrestling camp, hosted by the reigning NCAA champions and guided by arguably the best wrestler the United States has ever produced.

Most importantly, not with all the things he now needs to impart on the younger wrestlers in the Canyon Ridge program.

As far down as the high school level, there's no longer much (if any) of an offseason from a given sport.

Even less so for guys like Metcalf, whose tireless pursuit of a state championship landed him in a prime camp, clashing with the best of the best from around the country.

When Metcalf got a sponsorship to attend essentially any one wrestling camp he wanted, he immediately thought of regional camps he'd already attended. He quickly was reminded that any camp he wanted meant exactly that: any camp he wanted.

From then on, there was just one he set his heart on - an ultra-intensive camp from June 25 to July 2 at Penn State, home to the national champions and coach Cael Sanderson, a U.S. wrestling legend at age 32.

It had been full for months, but almost as if by providence a spot opened up, and Metcalf became the only Idaho wrestler in attendance.

For seven full days and parts of two others, there were three things wrestlers could do - attend practices, sleep, and eat.

"If we weren't too tired to eat," Metcalf said Wednesday. "My dad used to come home and we'd have dinner ready, and he was too tired to eat. I never understood that, but I do now."

Aside from Beaver Stadium and hour-long grudge matches, Metcalf and the others came ready to wrestle and to learn.

For someone new to that elite level of wrestling, there was a lot for Metcalf to take in. But he wrote down as much as he could so he could remember it and share it with his teammates.

The biggest moment was when he finally mustered up the courage to approach his idol, Sanderson, who was 127-3 with four state titles in the Utah high school ranks and a perfect 159-0 at Iowa State with four national titles.

Oh, yeah, and he won a gold medal in the 2004 Olympics.

But Metcalf might have learned more from the way Sanderson carries himself than from any wrestling move.

"He's my biggest role model ever. The epitome of perfect (as a wrestler)," Metcalf said. "It took me two days to go up to him and ask him about the kind of grip he likes to use, pick his brain.

"It was kind of weird talking to him because he's so bashful, but this guy could rip my head off at any moment if he really wanted to. I learned I need to be more modest about myself and don't let my ego get to me. If you're going to be like him, you're going to be pretty dang good."

Now home from his once-in-a-lifetime experience, Metcalf acknowledges this season presents his last chance, in more ways than one.

He'll have to shake the reputation of being hotheaded - Metcalf was ejected from both the 2010 Twin Falls-Canyon Ridge football game and the 2011 Red Halverson Invitational wrestling tournament for striking an opponent - but he's determined to be known for something else: improving on his fifth-place finish at state, and being a good leader for the Riverhawk program.

"I know I mess up one more time and I'm not going to be a part of this program ... being successful has everything to do with attitude and maturity," he said. "When I went to this camp, I was there for the whole Canyon Ridge team, to learn as much as I could.

"This is a landmark for me, because I got messages from all my wrestling buddies that want to wrestle against me every day in practice. I feel like I'm one of the first seniors to go through Canyon Ridge with full respect, full captain title and it'll be because I'm at that maturity level.

"Did I learn anything from the camp? Not yet," he added. "There was a lot to learn but I've got to process all that. I really think that during the season is when I'm going to really call on it."