Best Wrestlers that Started Wrestling in High School?

[WrestlingRecords.com]

I just came across an interesting Twitter thread about the best guys that started wrestling in high school. Can't believe some of these guys got so good so fast.

1. Tamyra Mensah Stock

She started wrestling sophomore year. According to Wikipedia, she almost quit wrestling after her dad died in a car accident driving back from one of her high school matches. 1x Olympic Champ. 2x World Champ. 2x World Bronze.

Tamyra Mensah Stock's Record: https://wrestlingrecords.com/wrestler/tamyra-mensah-stock/

2. Tervel Dlagnev

Started wrestling sophomore year, supposedly as a way to lose weight. 1x Olympic Bronze. 2x World Bronze.

Tervel Dlagnev's Record: https://wrestlingrecords.com/wrestler/tervel-dlagnev/

3. Lee Kemp

Started wrestling in 9th grade at Chardon High School. 3x World Champ. 1x World Bronze.

Lee Kemp's Record: https://wrestlingrecords.com/wrestler/leroy-kemp/

4. Zach Rey

Started wrestling as a freshman at Hopatcong High School. 3x D1 NCAA All-American. 1x D1 NCAA Champ. World Team Member. Pan American Champ.

Zach Rey's Record: https://wrestlingrecords.com/wrestler/zach-rey/

5. Chris Campbell

He apparently started wrestling when the basketball coach told him "You suck." He only wrestled one year of high school at the varsity level. Won Olympic Bronze at 37 years old. 1x World Champ. 1x World Silver.

Chris Campbell's Record: https://wrestlingrecords.com/wrestler/chris-campbell/

6. Mark Schultz

Started wrestling as a junior in high school and went 4-6. 1x Olympic Champ. 2x World Champ.

Mark Schultz's Record: https://wrestlingrecords.com/wrestler/mark-schultz/

7. Mo Lawal

Started wrestling as a sophomore, and won state in TX as a junior. Pan American Champ. 3x US Open Champ.

Mo Lawal's Record: https://wrestlingrecords.com/wrestler/mo-lawal/

8. Andre Metzger

Started wrestling as a freshman at Cedar Springs High School. 1x World Silver. 2x World Bronze.

Andre Metzger's Record: https://wrestlingrecords.com/wrestler/andre-metzger/

9. Stephen Neal

Started wrestling in 9th grade. 1x World Champ. 3x Super Bowl Champ with the Patriots, despite never playing football in college.

Stephen Neal's Record: https://wrestlingrecords.com/wrestler/stephen-neal/

10. Richard Perry

He didn't start wrestling until junior year of high school. 2x US Open Finalist. 1x World Team Trials Finalist.

Richard Perry's Record: https://wrestlingrecords.com/wrestler/richard-perry/

Any other legendary wrestlers that started wrestling in high school? Or any other great guys that started wrestling as late as middle school?

[mad_rascal]

NIce List!! Though not quite on your lists level, and may have never wrestled free or greco. Mike Martin was a badass for Detroit Catholic Central in MI. Started wrestling as a junior, and won 2 state titles at heavyweight... do the math. He went on to be a star for UMich at D-Tackle and played in the NFL.

[Timo]

Daniel Brand didn't wrestle in high school (he played basketball, football and track starting in his junior year).  He was 6'6" and 191 lbs and walked on as a basketball player at Nebraska.  He was cut in his sophomore year and decided to wrestle in an intramural tournament to stay in shape.  Head wrestling coach saw him and invited him to join the wrestling team as a sophomore. They didn't have scholarships for wrestlers then.  His record was 4-7 and 4-5-1 in his sophomore, junior years.  Nebraska hired Bill Smith (1952 Olympic gold medalist) as head coach for Brand's senior year (1958).  As a senior, Brand finished with a 19-5-1 record and was 4th in the NCAA.  Bill Smith became the head coach at the San Francisco Olympic Club and recruited Brand to go there and continue wrestling.  Brand went on to make the USA world team in Freestyle (1960 Olympics 5th, 61 World Championships 4th, 62 Worlds 3rd, 64 Olympics 3rd) and 1961 in Greco (5th in Worlds).  He won 3 AAU Nationals in Greco (1962-64) and 4 in Freestyle (1961-64) plus finished 2nd in 1960.  Amazing career after starting wrestling his sophomore year of college.

[fishbane]

Henry Wittenberg doesn't really qualify to the question as asked, but he did not start wrestling until college.

[WrestlingRecords.com]

4 hours ago, Timo said:

Daniel Brand didn't wrestle in high school (he played basketball, football and track starting in his junior year).  He was 6'6" and 191 lbs and walked on as a basketball player at Nebraska.  He was cut in his sophomore year and decided to wrestle in an intramural tournament to stay in shape.  Head wrestling coach saw him and invited him to join the wrestling team as a sophomore. They didn't have scholarships for wrestlers then.  His record was 4-7 and 4-5-1 in his sophomore, junior years.  Nebraska hired Bill Smith (1952 Olympic gold medalist) as head coach for Brand's senior year (1958).  As a senior, Brand finished with a 19-5-1 record and was 4th in the NCAA.  Bill Smith became the head coach at the San Francisco Olympic Club and recruited Brand to go there and continue wrestling.  Brand went on to make the USA world team in Freestyle (1960 Olympics 5th, 61 World Championships 4th, 62 Worlds 3rd, 64 Olympics 3rd) and 1961 in Greco (5th in Worlds).  He won 3 AAU Nationals in Greco (1962-64) and 4 in Freestyle (1961-64) plus finished 2nd in 1960.  Amazing career after starting wrestling his sophomore year of college.

That's absolutely insane. Didn't know anyone wrestled at a high level that started wrestling in college.

[WrestlingRecords.com]

1 hour ago, fishbane said:

Henry Wittenberg doesn't really qualify to the question as asked, but he did not start wrestling until college.

Impressive. Just Googled him. Wasn't familiar with the Henry Wittenberg lore

[The Kid]

Michial  Foy.....world silver. Greco

[mspart]

Awesome list guys!!   Thanks for sharing. 

mspart

[Interviewed_at_Weehawken]

Jeff Blatnick. D2 Champ.  D1 AA.  Olympic champ.

Frank Famiano D3 Champ.  D1 AA. 5th Olympics Greco.

[Truzzcat]

I believe anthony robles started in 9th grade.

[dragit]

Mark Schultz starting as a junior is absolutely stunning.  He is one of the most extraordinary wrestlers ever.

[Ched64]

5 hours ago, Interviewed_at_Weehawken said:

Jeff Blatnick. D2 Champ.  D1 AA.  Olympic champ.

Frank Famiano D3 Champ.  D1 AA. 5th Olympics Greco.

Love it…both Schenectady NY guys who wrestled for Joe Demeo’s ATWA program in Albany! Frank wrestled for D3 Brockport and AAd four times winning twice…in addition he AAd twice in tw shots at the D1 tourney as d2 and D3 champs were invited to D1s at that time.  He had a great intl career after college finishing 5th at the Olympics along with myriad other accolades.

Jeff Blatnick is more familiar to many wrestling fans for winning gold at the 84 Olympics after recovering from non Hodgkins lymphoma the year before. Local lore has it that he was causing some trouble in the halls of Niskayuna High one day.  Legendary NYS coach Joe Bena (Gwizs hs coach many years later), a shop teacher at school pulled him aside and talked him into coming to a practice and he was hooked.  

 

5 hours ago, Interviewed_at_Weehawken said:

Jeff Blatnick. D2 Champ.  D1 AA.  Olympic champ.

Frank Famiano D3 Champ.  D1 AA. 5th Olympics Greco.

[Ched64]

35 minutes ago, dragit said:

Mark Schultz starting as a junior is absolutely stunning.  He is one of the most extraordinary wrestlers ever.

Joe Demeo who I referenced below was the coach at Stanford when Mark and Dave were growing up in Palo Alto.  They would often come to Stanford practices and work out with his team while in high school.  Mark came to a premiere of Foxcatcher that Frank Popolizio organized in Albany and Coach Demeo was there.  They were trading stories back and forth during a Q and A after the showing and Demeo said he couldn’t believe the ferocity that the Schultz boys brought to those practices.