Monday: Maybe the best day for wrestling celebrity watching in Fargo
BY GARY ABBOTT, USA WRESTLING | JULY 15, 2019,
There are seven days of competition at the USMC Junior/16U Nationals in Fargo, N.D., and every day there are a ton of well-known wrestling people who are all around. Today has the 16U men’s freestyle finals and the Junior men’s freestyle knockout rounds through the semifinals. This is a day in which college wrestling coaches come out of the woodwork, to see the great talent that could be available for their programs. For wrestling people watching, there is no better day in Fargo. Before we get too far, we wanted to note the first Olympic champion sighting, as 1976 Olympic champion and 1972 Olympic silver medalist John Peterson was walking across the Fargodome floor. Peterson is not only one of the wrestling greats, but is also a fantastic person. When you spend time around him, you respect his faith and kindness. He has some great wrestling stories to boot.
Before we list all of the additional college coaches we have run into the last 24 hours, we also want to recognize some more great international competitors in the house. 2001 World silver medalist Brandon Eggum, who also gets on the college coach list as the head man at the University of Minnesota, is here to help stock the Gopher wrestling room with new talent. Eggum got the chance to compete in one Senior World Championships, and had a great run to the finals. It is guys like Eggum who make the U.S. men’s freestyle program so powerful. If you make a U.S. Senior World Team, you are expected to win a medal, and Eggum got it done when he got that chance. Rest of the story at
Two NCAA Champs, PA Champion, Six State Place-Winners Lead 2019-20 Mountain Cat Wrestling Recruiting Class
TDR Editor’s Notes ; Coach Pat Pecora currently has 598 dual meet wins under his belt as a head coach. This total places him 2nd among over 5,000 college coaches in over 110 years of competition. The late Dale Thomas who coached at Oregon State from 1957-1990 won 616 matches and he has held 1st place in wins since 1976 when he passed Coach Joe Begala of Kent State. The Mountain Cat squad could put Pecora in 1st place in February of 2020 if weather holds up and all matches are held and the wins continue to roll in. We will keep an eye on these matches and hope to be there.
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Head Coach Pat Pecora and the Pitt-Johnstown wrestling program have added 19 new wrestlers, including a pair of NCAA Division II National Champions, a Pennsylvania State Champion, six former Pennsylvania State place-winners and seven state qualifiers, for the 2019-20 season.
2019 NCAA Division II National Champions Tyler Warner (Dennison, Ohio/Claymont High School) and Connor Craig (Cincinnati, Ohio/Elder High School) both transferred to Pitt-Johnstown from Wheeling Jesuit (WV) University after leading the Cardinals to a runner-up national finish. Warner, a red-shirt junior, posted a 25-1 overall record and defeated Nebraska-Kearney’s Wesley Dawkins, 4-1, to win his title at 133 lbs. Warner was 53-10 in two seasons at Wheeling Jesuit. Craig won the 174-lb. national championship with a 6-2 decision over McKendree’s (IL) Nick Foster. Craig, also a junior, was 28-1 in 2018-19 and 54-9 in his two-year career at Wheeling Jesuit. Rest of the story at
Thousands flock to Fargodome for national wrestling tournament
FARGO – The FargoDome will be the epicenter of youth wrestling for the next several days. Day two of the 2019 Junior National Championships and U-16 Championships is in the books. The tournament features Greco-Roman and freestyle wrestling. Thousands of athletes from as many as 48 states are represented.
West Fargo’s Alana Schaefer is one of them. This is her first year on the North Dakota girl’s team. “There’s a lot more freedom in freestyle and you’re able to do more, which is sometimes hard because I can forget what I’m supposed to do,” she said. “It’s a little different, because they can do different throws and they can grab you differently which comes to a surprise sometimes.” The tournament runs until July 20. Rest of the story and video at
#Fargo2019: New Jersey’s Gary “Gimp” Brownell
TDR Editor’s Notes; Wow, 42 Tournaments! Way to go ‘Gimp’!
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Gary Brownell is known more by his nickname “Gimp” in wrestling circles. He’s attending his 42nd USA Wrestling Junior & 16U National Championships. He’s held a variety of roles in wrestling, but technology has been something he’s been an innovator. We talk with Gimp about his fond moments and how technology has shaped wrestling and how much easier it is to follow an event like Fargo2019. Rest of the story and podcast at http://www.mattalkonline.com/podcast/short-time/fargo2019-new-jerseys-gary-gimp-brownell/?mc_cid=628521d7c2&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b
TDR blog
After 20 seasons of publicizing wrestling The TakeDown Report’s (TDR) focus has changed to the collecting of college coaching records from North America since 1903. We will continue to recognize and reward successful wrestlers in eastern North Carolina (east of Raleigh & Fayetteville), assist with schools in starting or re-starting a team and this blog. Join us on our FaceBook Page – “The TakeDown Report” for photos and news. Please send results, stories, links and news to pass along. E-mail us at takedownreport@gmail.com
Martin Fleming, Editor
Takedown Report
Takedown Report 