Takedown Report

College Coaches of the Year (2021)

TDR Editor’s Notes ; Started with gathering the Annual Coach of the Year Awards but have added in tournament results from the Fivision II and Division III (unofficial) championships last weekend. The last article is another look at the tragic dropping of the sport 10 years ago in what was a good school. Keep watching and enjoying the Division I Championships this weekend. Wrestling Onward! Contact us at the Editor’s office at martinkfleming@gmail.com
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1 } – NWCA Announces 2021 NCAA Division II National Coach of the Year
St Louis, MO – On Thursday the National Wrestling Coaches Association announced the NCAA Division II National Coach of the Year and six finalists as selected by their peers. The award is presented to the coach that has demonstrated outstanding effort throughout the season in developing and elevating their program on campus and in the community. The NWCA National Coach of the Year awards program is presented by Defense Soap, the official Hygiene partner of the NWCA. “In continuing our mission, Defense Soap is proud to partner with the NWCA, to keep wrestlers on the mat with our products and education in hygiene.” Guy Sako, Founder and CEO of Defense Soap. The recipient of this year’s NCAA Division II National Coach of the Year is Don Henry of Gannon University (PA).  Coach Henry is in his 37th year at Gannon and his achievements this season include capturing the program’s first Super Regional championship with six individual champions and qualifying eight athletes for the NCAA Championships.  He currently has 50 athletes on his roster. … rest of story at _{^{https://www.nwcaonline.com/nwca-announces-2021-ncaa-division-ii-national-coach-of-the-year/?mc_cid=1a80b5744e&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}

2 } – NWCA Announces 2021 NCAA Women’s National Coach of the Year
Tiffin, OH – On Saturday following the National Collegiate Women’s Wrestling Championships, the National Wrestling Coaches Association announced the winner of the NCAA Women’s Defense Soap National Coach of the Year. NWCA Executive Director Mike Moyer presented Sam Schmitz of McKendree University with the award after he was selected by his peers for a second consecutive year. The award is presented to the coach that has demonstrated outstanding effort throughout the season in developing and elevating their program on campus and in the community. The NWCA National Coach of the Year awards program is presented by Defense Soap, the official Hygiene partner of the NWCA. “In continuing our mission, Defense Soap is proud to partner with the NWCA, to keep wrestlers on the mat with our products and education in hygiene.” Guy Sako, Founder and CEO of Defense Soap. McKendree took home the team title for the second year in a row with 209 pts over second-place King University 171.5 pts.  The Bearcats of McKendree also brought home 14 individual All-Americans with eight national finalists and six national champions.  The NCWWC currently serves as the national championships for NCAA-affiliated women’s programs until the sport receives championship status.
“On behalf of the NWCA and our Board of Directors, it is an honor to recognize Coach Schmitz as our Defense Soap National Coach of the Year,” said NWCA Executive Director Mike Moyer.  “What Sam has been able to build and sustain at McKendree is nothing short of amazing.  He truly is a wonderful ambassador for our sport and more specifically women’s wrestling.” … rest of story at _{^{https://portal.nwcaonline.com/articles/NWCA_News/NWCA-Announces-2021-NCAA-Women-s-11-3-2021}}

3 } – NWCA Announces 2021 NAIA Men’s National Coach of the Year
Park City, KS – On Thursday evening the NAIA hosted a virtual National Championship Coaches Social.  At the conclusion of the event, National Wrestling Coaches Association Executive Director Mike Moyer recognized the 11 finalists for the NAIA Men’s National Coach of the Year and announced the winner as selected by his peers. The award is presented to the coach that has demonstrated outstanding effort throughout the season in developing and elevating their program on campus and in the community. The NWCA National Coach of the Year awards program is presented by Defense Soap, the official Hygiene partner of the NWCA. “In continuing our mission, Defense Soap is proud to partner with the NWCA, to keep wrestlers on the mat with our products and education in hygiene.” Guy Sako, Founder and CEO of Defense Soap.
The recipient of this year’s NAIA Men’s National Coach of the Year is Nick Mitchell of Grand View University (IA).  Coach Mitchell is in his 13th year as head coach and his achievements this season include a 14-0 dual meet record which has pushed their collegiate all-time dual win streak to 103 consecutive victories. His squad also captured its sixth straight Heart of America Athletic Conference championship with eight individual conference champions while qualifying 12 athletes for the NAIA Championships.  His current roster has an incredible 66 wrestlers. … rest of story at _{^{https://portal.nwcaonline.com/articles/NWCA_News/NWCA-Announces-2021-NAIA-Men-s-National-11-3-2021}}

4 } – NWCA Announces 2021 NAIA Women’s National Coach of the Year
Jamestown, ND – On Thursday evening the NAIA hosted a virtual National Championship Coaches Social.  At the conclusion of the event, National Wrestling Coaches Association Executive Director Mike Moyer recognized the five finalists for the NAIA Women’s National Coach of the Year and announced the winner as selected by their peers. The award is presented to the coach that has demonstrated outstanding effort throughout the season in developing and elevating their program on campus and in the community. The NWCA National Coach of the Year awards program is presented by Defense Soap, the official Hygiene partner of the NWCA. “In continuing our mission, Defense Soap is proud to partner with the NWCA, to keep wrestlers on the mat with our products and education in hygiene.” Guy Sako, Founder and CEO of Defense Soap.
The recipient of this year’s NAIA Women’s National Coach of the Year is Lee Miracle of Campbellsville University (KY).  Coach Miracle is in his 8th season as head coach and his achievements this season include an 8-0 dual meet record capped by a regular-season Mid-South Conference championship, a 3rd MSC Individual Tournament title with seven finalists, five individual conference champions, and 12 athletes qualified for the NAIA Championships.  His current roster is comprised of 43 wrestlers. … rest of story at _{^{https://portal.nwcaonline.com/articles/NWCA_News/NWCA-Announces-2021-NAIA-Women-s-12-3-2021}}

5 } – NWCA Announces 2021 NCAA Division I National Coach of the Year
St Louis, MO – On Wednesday the National Wrestling Coaches Association announced the NCAA Division I National Coach of the Year and seven finalists as selected by their peers. The award is presented to the coach that has demonstrated outstanding effort throughout the season in developing and elevating their program on campus and in the community. The NWCA National Coach of the Year awards program is presented by Defense Soap, the official Hygiene partner of the NWCA. “In continuing our mission, Defense Soap is proud to partner with the NWCA, to keep wrestlers on the mat with our products and education in hygiene.” Guy Sako, Founder and CEO of Defense Soap.
The recipient of this year’s NCAA Division I National Coach of the Year award is Tom Brands of the University of Iowa.  Coach Brands is in his 15th year as Head Coach at Iowa and his achievements this season include a 5-0 dual record,  Co-Big Ten regular-season title, Big Ten tournament championship, nine wrestlers with automatic NCAA berths, and a tenth wrestler received an at-large birth.  Entering the NCAA tournament, four Hawkeyes have the top seed in their respective weight classes.

“On behalf of the NWCA and our Board of Directors, it is my privilege to award Coach Tom Brands, for the second year in a row, the NWCA Division I National Coach of the Year award,” said Mike Moyer, NWCA Executive Director. … rest of story at _{^{https://www.nwcaonline.com/nwca-announces-2021-ncaa-division-i-national-coach-of-the-year/?mc_cid=058a64ca1f&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}

6 } – Drew Black to be Inducted into CT’s Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame
MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – Drew Black, head coach of the Wesleyan wrestling team, has been chosen for Connecticut’s 2022 class of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the induction event has been pushed back to April 30, 2022 in hopes of having a live ceremony at Foxwoods Resort Casino.
Black is in his 23rd season at the helm of the Cardinals’ program and is the winningest coach in the history of Wesleyan wrestling with 211 career wins. He was named the New England Wrestling Association (NEWA) Coach of the Year twice (2010 and 2012), and over the past decade, the Cardinals have been a consistent top-4 team in the NEWA. Black was also inducted to the NEWA Wrestling Hall of Fame in January 2020, and has had representation at the NCAA Division III Tournament in 13 of the last 15 years. … rest of story at _{^{https://athletics.wesleyan.edu/news/2021/1/20/drew-black-to-be-inducted-into-cts-chapter-of-the-national-wrestling-hall-of-fame.aspx}}

7 } – Huskies win third straight national championship
ST. LOUIS, MO. – It was supposedly a down season for the St. Cloud State University wrestling team. The perennial power had supposedly taken a back seat. Despite completing a perfect season in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) play, the Huskies were ranked third in the final National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) rankings with just six wrestlers individuals ranked in the top-10. The University Nebraska-Kearney surged from third to first, with nine wrestlers nationally ranked in the final poll entering the Super Regional and NCAA Championship. 

In the words of Michael Jordan… St. Cloud State took that personally.  The Huskies proved just how dominant they are and put the naysayers to bed in the best way possible: by winning their third consecutive NCAA Championship. After seeing th 2019-20 championship cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and falling behind 58-51.5 after the opening day of the 2020-21 competition, St. Cloud State outlasted Nebraska-Kearney, winning the national championship with 107 total points compared to the Lopers 105.5. 
The Huskies did everything they needed to in Saturday’s morning session, as all seven wrestlers advanced to the championship round with wins in both the semifinal and consolation semifinal matches. In fact, four of those seven qualified for the … rest of story at _{^{https://scsuhuskies.com/news/2021/3/13/wrestling-threepeat-huskies-win-third-straight-national-championship.aspx?mc_cid=adf7973f0f&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}

8 } – COE HAS THREE CHAMPIONS, WARTBURG AND LORAS GET TWO CHAMPIONS AT NWCA DIV. III COACHES ASSOCIATION NATIONALS
CCORALVILLE, Iowa – Last year, Loras ended Wartburg’s reign atop the American Rivers Conference. The Knights got back on top this season, but another conference rival proved Saturday night that it is ready to make a challenge for the top spot.

Coe won more championships than any other team, crowning three champions at the Division III Coaches Association National Wrestling Championships at Xtream Arena. “That’s out goal; that’s what we train for, to take that top spot,” Coe’s Brock Henderson, who won at 133, said. “We’ve been working really, really hard, and everybody is buying into the program,” said Josh Gerke, who won the title at 149. Alex Friddle of Coe opened the finals with a 6-3 win against Wartburg’s Brady Kyner at 125, his second win this season against the Knight. “I love setting the pace being the first one out,” he said. … rest of story at _{^{https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Wrestling/Features/2021/March/13/NWCA-Div-III-wrap?mc_cid=adf7973f0f&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}

9} – Wrestling Records Two National Champions, Eight All-Americans
CORALVILLE, Iowa – The top-ranked Wartburg wrestling team concluded competition at the NWCA Division III National Championships on Saturday, March 13 at the Xtream Arena with one third-place finish, four national runner-ups, two national champions and eight All-Americans.  No team scoring was recorded during the NWCA national meet, but unofficially Wartburg tallied the most team points with eight All-Americans.

Junior David Hollingsworth and senior Kyle Briggs highlighted the tournament with national championships at 157 and 174. Briggs ran through the first four rounds when he pinned all of his opponents and then won by major decision in the finals. Brady Kyner, Kris Rumph, Brady Fritz and Zane Mulder all finished in second in their respected weight class. After falling in his quarterfinal match, Joe Pins swept the consolation bracket and earned a third place spot on the podium.  During day two, the Knights went 11-6 with four pins, … rest of story at _{^{https://go-knights.net/news/2021/3/13/wrestling-nationals.aspx?mc_cid=adf7973f0f&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}

10 } – Kyle Briggs paced Wartburg to an unofficial team title at the D3 national championships
CORALVILLE, Iowa — Kyle Briggs of Wartburg didn’t get exactly what he wanted but his consolation prize was a major decision in the finals. Don’t feel too bad for Briggs, though. The 174-pounder crushed the field by picking up four falls before settling for a shutout win in his fifth match. The hometown favorite grew up just north of Xtream Arena where the NWCA Division III Coaches Association National Championships were being held. This was the conclusion of a disappointing season for D3 wrestlers that saw the NCAA Championships canceled for the second year in a row. Just over 30 teams were in attendance with several top programs missing, but this was a nice way for several Division III programs to end the season. 

No team scores were being kept; however, Wartburg College — winners of seven of the past nine NCAA team titles — came away with the most hardware. The Knights pushed six wrestlers into the finals and came away with two titles. Perhaps no individual was more dominant than Briggs. His teammate, David Hollingsworth, secured a fall in the finals at 157 pounds. Coe won the championship gold rush by snagging three titles after sending four to the finals. Alex Friddle (125), Brock Henderson (133), and Josh Gerke (149) gave the Kohawks a nice send-off before making the 20-minute drive back to Cedar Rapids. 

Loras College was the only other school with multiple champions. Shane Liegel won at 184 pounds while Wyatt Wriedt secured the title at heavyweight. … rest of story at _{^{https://www.trackwrestling.com/PortalPost.jsp?TIM=1615786249346&twSessionId=egzatbcpdq&postId=1124193135&mc_cid=adf7973f0f&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}

11 } – St. Cloud State prevails again in down-to-wire D2 title race
Ever since St. Cloud State broke through six years ago to capture its first NCAA Division II title, the Huskies have been lockdown closers. Putting the finishing touches on this year’s title quest, however, required a little more time and final-round stress than usual. Kameron Teacher’s victory in the heavyweight title bout pushed St. Cloud State past Nebraska-Kearney — 107-105.5 — in the tightest D2 team race since 2008. A 4-for-4 semifinal round put the Huskies in a position where they needed just one win in the finals to secure their fifth team title in the last six D2 national tournaments. The clinching victory was difficult to find, though. 

St. Cloud State dropped title matches at 133, 141 and 149, leaving the team race in Teacher’s hands. “I had confidence in every one of those matches with the guys we put out there, it was just unfortunate we lost the first three in a row and it came down to Kam,” St. Cloud State coach Steve Costanzo said. “As I was watching him get ready for the match, I became more and more confident that we were in good shape going into that match. He was just very relaxed before he went out there. I’m sure he was a little bit nervous, but I could see a lot of excitement in his body language and I knew we were in great shape.” 

The three-time All-American, who placed second, second and third before transferring from Notre Dame College, scored a pair of takedowns in the opening minute against Weston Hunt of Colorado School of Mines and made the lead stand in a 6-5 victory. … rest of story at _{^{https://www.trackwrestling.com/PortalPost.jsp?TIM=1615786249346&twSessionId=egzatbcpdq&postId=1124195135&mc_cid=adf7973f0f&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}

12 } – UNO Wrestling still lives on 10 Years after the program has been dropped
It’s been ten years to the day since AD Trev Alberts and the Board of Regents put the darkest eye on the once respected institution. On March 12th, 2011 the University of Nebraska-Omaha, led by Alberts, dropped the storied wrestling program (along with football) to “cut costs and to better align with the sports sponsored by the Summit League.”
The Early Years
UNO’s program began in the 1948-1949 season, and like most young programs, got off to a slow start. Allie Morrison was the first coach and had a combined dual record of 5-10. They then went through a five year stint of no wrestling before coming back under the direction of coach Russ Gorman. Gorman went 24-16 in duals before Al Caniglia came in 1961. Caniglia only coached for two years, going 10-10 in duals. UNO was 14 years into their program and still had never had a top 25 finish. The only All American in that time frame was under Caniglia when George Crenshaw finished runner up in 1962 and won the national championship in 1963.
In the 1963-1964 season, UNO hired legendary head coach Don Benning. Benning, who was the first ever African-American college wrestling coach in history, coached UNO for eight seasons and changed the program forever. During Benning’s tenure, the Mavericks finished in the top 25 at Nationals every year and had a dual record of 87-24. After three seasons finishing outside the top 10, Benning’s teams never finished worse than eighth. In the 67-68 and 68-69 seasons, UNO finished as NAIA National Runner-Up. Benning led the team to their first national title in the 69-70 season. In his final season at UNO the Mavericks finished third. He coached 23 All Americans and had eight national champions. Roy Washington won three of those titles. Bernie Hospodka, Curlee Alexander, Mel Washington, and Wendell Hakanson were the other National Champions. Don Benning would later be inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame. 
Benning was succeeded by Mike Palmisano. It was under his direction when UNO transitioned into NCAA Division II. Palmisano had a dual record of 144-47 in his eight years as coach. In his final three seasons with UNO his teams finished 15th, 7th and 7th in DII. Palmisano had 15 All-Americans, led by three time All American Paul Martinez. During Palmisano’s time as head coach, the Mavs had four wrestlers win national titles including Frank Gonzalez, Gary Kipfmiller, and Phil Gonzalez two times. … rest of story at _{^{https://newrestle.com/2021/03/12/uno-wrestling-still-lives-on-10-years-after-the-program-has-been-dropped/?mc_cid=adf7973f0f&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}

March 18, 2021 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized