Clint MusserCLEVELAND, Ohio -- Head coach Josh Moore of the Cleveland State University wrestling program announced the hiring of Clint Musser as assistant coach Tuesday morning.
Musser, a two-time All-American at Penn State in his collegiate days, returns to his northeast Ohio roots with this announcement after spending the past four seasons as an assistant coach at American University.
"Clint has the coaching experience and wrestling credentials to make an immediate impact in our program," Moore said. "He will assist with our vision of adding the top recruits from northeast Ohio with his relationships and connections."
Musser helped American to one of its most successful seasons in recent history, on and off the mat, in 2018-19.
The Eagles posted their best dual winning percentage in eight seasons with their 7-4 mark while American's 75.5 points at the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association Championships were its most in seven seasons. American finished second in Division I in team grade point average, its best such finish since 2011, while its 3.56 figure was the program's best since that academic metric was tracked.
During the 2017-18 season, Musser helped the Eagles send five wrestlers to the NCAA Championships, the first such occurrence for the program in six years. Over his first two seasons, he helped American have 12 combined EIWA placewinners, including David Terao, who earned NCAA All-American honors, the first-ever for American at 125 pounds.
"To my knowledge, this will be the first time in the history of our program that we will have two full-time assistant coaches," Moore said. "I would like to thank our Director of Athletics, Scott Garrett, and the entire administration for supporting our program by helping us add this new position."
Prior to American, Musser spent the three previous seasons in northeast Ohio, including a stint at Cleveland State in 2014-15.
With the Vikings, Musser helped the program to a 7-3 dual mark, a pair of NCAA qualifiers and the program's best finish at the EWL Championships in 11 years.
Musser served as a volunteer assistant at Kent State in his first collegiate coaching stint. Over the 2012-13 and 2013-14 seasons, he helped two Golden Flashes claim All-America honors, including one who was named MAC Wrestler of the Year in 2013, while helping the team to 21 dual wins.
Musser began his coaching career as an assistant coach at both Massillon Perry HS and Walsh Jesuit HS, helping guide nine wrestlers to individual state championships and four wrestlers to high school national titles. He also helped lead his teams to top-five finishes at the state tournament in all seven of his seasons as an assistant coach.
As a team captain at Penn State, Musser was an NCAA runner-up at 157 pounds as a senior in 1999. He was a three-time NCAA qualifier, placing in the top three at the Big Ten tournament in three straight seasons. He also earned Academic All-Big Ten honors and was selected to the National Wrestling Coaches Association All-Academic Team. Musser won 123 matches for the Nittany Lions, ranking among the top 10 in career victories.
A graduate of Walsh Jesuit High School, Musser earned a Bachelor's degree from Penn State in 1999.
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