Takedown Report

Beating Army Is Priority #1 At U.S. Naval Academy

Reaching the podium at nationals and winning conference titles are important at Navy — as long as you beat Army
Ask Navy wrestling coach Cary Kolat about facing Army and his demeanor changes. If there was a pecking order of importance, it might look like this:

• Beat Army;
• Fight hard;
• Become a leader

For the alumni, the biggest and most important thing for them is beating Army every single year,” said Kolat, who is in his fourth year at the Academy in Annapolis, Md. “They will let you know if you drop the ball on that one. After that, they’re concerned about the guys competing and always fighting — even if they’re outmatched. They want to see a wrestler in a Navy singlet fight and then they’re concerned about the leadership side that was taught to them before they leave here. 
“Beating Army is a big deal. It’s the entire school at every sport. It’s by design. I’ve wrestled my entire life. I’ve been in some big dual meets as a competitor and as a coach. This one is different from anything you can imagine. It’s designed for two military forces to keep each other sharp.”
Greco-Roman Olympian John Stefanowicz took it a step further. Stefanowicz — a proud Marine — was recently commissioned to the U.S. Naval Academy and was on hand for Navy’s wrestle-offs. 
The event was held side-by-side with Air Force versus Navy boxing matches. The matchups were held in conjunction with the Air Force-Navy football game the following day. It’s nice to beat another service academy but, for Navy, it’s all about beating Army. 
Good luck getting Stefanowicz to say something complimentary about Army. Even he admits his views about the rivalry are extreme. “The Army-Navy matchup is at the forefront of everyone’s minds,” he said. “It’s nice to beat Air Force but Air Force is irrelevant. It’s about beating Army. I’ll gladly take a pay cut and stay a Marine than take a promotion in the Army.” 
Known as the Star Match, the Army-Navy rivalry, which will close out the upcoming regular season, on Feb. 16 in Annapolis, is the prototype of how wrestling can thrive. Build such a strong and deep-seated rivalry that it doesn’t matter how good the action is. 
The boxing matches were mediocre at best, but that had no bearing on the enthusiasm of the crowd. The entire facility erupted when a Midshipman got the better of a Cadet. The action is secondary to the outcome.

“We couldn’t have a conversation right now if Army was boxing Navy,” Stefanowicz said. “This entire place would be wall-to-wall people. You couldn’t move.”
Navy holds an all-time 55-10-5 dual record against Army, … rest of story at … Flowrestling.org/Beating-army-is-priority-1-at-us-naval-academy

November 1, 2023 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized