This season is for “Three”

By Brody Feldmann
Sports Editor

To lose a good friend is hard for anyone no matter the age.

Mustang’s Tate Picklo, freshman, lost a close friend just weeks before the beginning of his first high school wrestling season.

Cade Boles of Tuttle, Oklahoma was taken from this earth on October 13th due to an accident while at a friend’s birthday party. The two freshmen became close friends the year before while at the same friend’s birthday party.

Picklo recalls the friendship just clicking from the get go and growing continuously.

“We clicked really well and just started talking a lot after that,” said Picklo.

Boles is known around the town of Tuttle for his number, three. That was the number that Boles wore in every sport that he participated in and that’s because his bigger brother, D.J. Boles, wore number three during his time at Tuttle.

Ironically Picklo and his sister Trinity also wear number three on the playing field.

“I played quarterback and I was number three and Trinity’s soccer number is three. That is just something we kind of kid around with each other and when we talk we would just throw up the number three. That was just our thing,” said Picklo.

The trio could be found sending pictures (Snapchats) of the number three anywhere they saw it in public. That’s a bond that will never be broken between the Picklo’s and the Boles.

“I will always remember Cade for number three. It is different not being able to snapchat him the number three, but I am always thinking about it,” Picklo said.

With something like this happening around Picklo just weeks before his first varsity wrestling season he knew that he needed to do something for his friend. So, that is when Picklo told his family and the Boles family that he was dedicating this wrestling season to Cade.

“We think the world of Tate and the entire family and think it is so awesome that he would do something like that,” the mother of Cade, Dara Boles said.

In just the one year that the two knew each other they saw big things between the two of them. Boles would often tell Picklo “You are going to be a four-time state champion” and Picklo would tell Boles “You are going to do big things and one day make it to the NFL.”

“We would always encourage each other. Just throughout this season I keep that in my mind that he is still encouraging me,” said Picklo.

That sticks with Picklo every time he gets on the mat and he knows that Boles is there with him helping him get one step closer each day. But, it is D.J. that will be on the mat physically helping Picklo get better and improve his craft.

“I am really excited that they asked me to go drill with him. Hopefully I have some stuff inside me that can help him still,” said D.J. “I am very excited, that he is dedicating this season to my brother and I can go help him achieve his goals. It means a lot to me because now I can kind of participate in Tate’s journey this year.”

D.J. was a state champion wrestler during his wrestling years and the Picklo’s have asked him to come and work with Tate this season in the practice room. That is something that is special to the oldest Boles brother, especially now with Picklo dedicating this season to his younger brother.

The impact that the freshman Boles had in just 14-years can be seen all around in Mustang, Tuttle, Bridge Creek and much further.

“It means a lot. It just shows the impact that Cade had on people in a short period of time. They just hit it off and now Tate feels like this is something that he needs to do,” D.J. said.

Boles had a way to spin any situation into a positive and is known for always giving people compliments. In the Boles family, it is known as being “Caded” when he would one up someone’s compliment.

“Cade never said anything bad or discouraging. We have a little thing in our family that says you have been ‘Caded’ and that’s when mom will say ‘I like your shirt today’ and Cade would say ‘I like your shirt every day,’” said D.J.

Mustang and Picklo are competing today at Edmond Memorial in the final preseason tournament of the year. This season will be a special one for Picklo for many reasons, but hopefully he will be able to raise that “3” in the sky in February at the State Tournament as his hand is being raised in victory.

“I think it was just a destiny bond, it was just going to happen,” said D.J. “The number means a lot. Cade just wanted to be number three in everything and after this and when Cade got to write the three in the sky it just went crazy.”