InterMat Staff

This past March, Montclair State University (MSU) announced its plans to eliminate the varsity wrestling program. This is the second time in past 12 months they have tried to eliminate the program. Countless young wrestlers are counting on New Jersey tax paying citizens to voice your opinion again! Please take a moment to write a letter of support for saving this Division I team. Your efforts can make a difference. Some suggested talking points: • Montclair State University is a state supported school funded with tax payer dollars. MSU's primary mission is to develop the next generation of teachers and the mission should include coaches. MSU should have an obligation to provide activities like wrestling that are indigenous to the region. • There are 8,455 high school wrestlers in New Jersey and only six four-year intercollegiate wrestling programs (with an average college roster size of 25, this equates to 150 college "roster slots" to accommodate 8,455 scholastic wrestlers). • Based on NFHS participation statistics, New Jersey ranks 8th in the nation with respect to the largest number of scholastic wrestlers in a state. • The 2006 NJSIAA State Wrestling Championships in Atlantic City sold an unprecedented 41,000 tickets. This state tournament is among the largest in the nation. • Nationally, the NFHS has reported that the average tenure of a high school coach in the Olympic sports (including wrestling) is only 3-5 years. This statistic, along with the dwindling number of intercollegiate wrestling programs, has created a national shortage of high school coaches. • Currently, there are approximately 150 MSU alums that are coaching and/or teaching in the Mid-Atlantic region. Many of these coaches are among the best coaches in America. • MSU has a very rich wrestling tradition as evidenced by the following: 2 National Team Titles, 29 National Champions, and over 100 All Americans. Please show your support for Montclair State's wrestling team by e-mailing your letter to the following officials: Dr. Susan A. Cole, President MSU: coles@mail.montclair.edu Ms. Alyson Thelin, Secretary to the Board of Trustees: thelina@mail.montclair.edu New Jersey Governor Jon S. Corzine: Click on "Education" Option http://www.state.nj.us/governor/govmail.html Remember: 1. Be polite and courteous. 2. Thank them for considering your concerns. 3. If they fail to respond, write them again. There is an important rally taking place on the campus of Montclair State University on Thursday, April 6 from 3-6pm. We would like to encourage as many people as possible to attend this rally to show support for the reinstatement of the program. Please wear RED to show your support and make this a fun and positive day. The board of Trustees of MSU is meeting at College Hall at 4:30pm and they need to understand both the importance of wrestling at MSU and the current crisis in the MSU Athletic Department. Thank you for your support of college wrestling.

The Rev office has received many calls and e-mails in recent days surrounding the recent coaching changes at Iowa, Iowa State, and Ohio State from some inside sources. Some of these rumors might prove to be accurate, while others might prove to be, well, just rumors. • Cael Sanderson was going to be named head coach at Iowa State in the summer, so people who say that Bobby Douglas was forced out are way off base. It was likely going to happen after the summer wrestling camp season. Cael, Bobby, and Iowa State AD James Pollard talked about it. The only problem was the timing. Pollard got antsy and just wanted everyone to know that Cael was off the market. He didn't want Ohio State and Iowa to even consider Cael. Bobby was just really surprised by the timing, but other than that, he was all for Cael taking over. • Iowa State called an emergency meeting for wrestlers and coaches on Wednesday night after news broke that Bobby was replaced by Cael. Apparently, the information was leaked before many of the wrestlers even knew about it. • According to an Iowa State official, Cael was given a five-year contract with an initial base salary of $110,000. • The sudden Cael hiring was a P.R. move. Why let Iowa control all the headlines? Iowa State is trying to develop something, too. Chances are, Iowa fires Jim Zalesky and brings in Tom Brands and Iowa controls the headlines all summer, including when Cael is switched to the new coach later in the summer. Or, you could do it now (like Iowa State did), get some of that publicity for your school before Brands comes in, and look, Cael is just as hot (if not a hotter) topic right now. • The sudden Cael hiring had a lot to do with recruiting. Now everyone knows that Cael is coaching Iowa State and Brands is (or will soon be) at Iowa. There are no questions for recruits as to where Cael will be next year, or in two years, etc. • Chris Bono left Iowa State last off-season because Bobby and Cael sat him down. Bobby told Bono that Cael would take over this off-season, and then Cael said he wouldn't retain Bono on his staff, so Bono went looking elsewhere. This has been planned. • There is a possibility that Cody Sanderson will leave Utah Valley State to join Cael at Iowa State, where he'll become the head assistant coach. Cole Sanderson will be the strength and conditioning coach at Iowa State. And Cyler Sanderson will be the starting 149-pounder for the Cyclones. So it will be a Sanderson family affair in Ames. • Tim Hartung, who was let go as an Iowa assistant coach when Jim Zalesky was fired, will definitely be on Cael's staff at Iowa State. Cael and Hartung are close friends. Remember, Cael hand picked Hartung as his training partner to come down to Athens in preparation for the Olympics. • Derek Mountsier, a former Iowa State standout and Northern Iowa assistant coach, is a candidate to join Cael's staff at Iowa State. But in order for Mountsier to leave Tulsa (where he is a pharmaceutical rep), the job must pay really well. He is from Newton, Iowa, but his wife is from Oklahoma. • Cael wants people on his staff who aren't currently training, but he likes Zach Roberson a lot. So don't be surprised if Roberson stays on the Iowa State staff. • There is no chance that Tommy Rowlands will succeed Russ Hellickson as the next head coach at Ohio State. Rowlands will be moving to Colorado Springs to train full time. • Tom Brands is scheduled to interview for the Iowa job next week, but it's already a done deal. He is headed back to Iowa, along with all of his top recruits. Brent Metcalf vs. Dustin Schlatter should be a great Big Ten rivalry for years to come. • Brands had not yet spoken to Ohio State about their head coaching position. • Terry Steiner, an Iowa assistant who was also let go after Zalesky was fired, was very disappointed that the decision came so sudden. He's not sure yet what his future holds. "I wish they would have given us a chance with the staff we had here," Steiner told one source. "To me, two years is not enough time." • Mike Zadick will be on the Iowa staff next season. • Although it's unlikely that Dan Gable would return to coaching at Iowa, he hasn't completely ruled it out. • Zalesky had one year left on his contract. He will be paid $130,000 as part of a settlement. He could very well resurface next season at Ohio State or Oregon State. • Other names, besides Tom Brands, that are being thrown around as potential replacements for Zalesky include Terry Brands, Barry Davis, Brad Penrith, Mark Manning, Brad Penrith, Tom Ryan, Rob Koll, Jim Heffernan, Jim Miller, and Marty Morgan.

Has wrestling finally made it big? Ultimately, you can throw fan attendance, television ratings and everything else out the window when it comes to measuring the strength of a sport. Instead, you have to look at just one person -- a college's athletics director. Since the conclusion of the NCAA Wrestling Championships just a couple short weeks ago, three of the biggest jobs in all of college wrestling have opened up. And there are rumors of others, including at least one more in the Big Ten Conference. Call it coaches retiring, coaches resigning or coaches being fired, but all three Athletics Directors agreed on one thing -- their programs were not going in the right direction. Coaching slots at Iowa and Ohio State now must be filled. Olympic champion Cael Sanderson will take over at Iowa State, as was expected. But the timing of all three will continue to be questioned. The carousel began last week when Russ Hellickson announced an end to his 20-year reign at The Ohio State. Undoubtedly, Hellickson had seen some rough times with his program recently, including a protested match that was re-wrestled at the NCAA's this year. That almost seemed to be a breaking point. But with one of the nation's largest athletics budgets looming in search of a top head coach, including the likes of Rob Koll, Tom Ryan, Tom Brands, Iowa folded its hand on its entire coaching staff. Jim Zalesky may have had the toughest job in sports, which no one could argue -- following a legend. While Zalesky produced solid results at Iowa, the administration decided that after nine years, the program needed to be more competitive towards a national title. Forget that recruiting has completely changed since Dan Gable left, and that kids now know they can win a national title at almost any school. Iowa athletic director Bob Bowlsby flinched on Ohio State's move. In all reality, he would hate to see a coach such as Brands take over at Ohio State, instead of at Iowa. It would be an ironic twist for the program that rose to prominence after Gable left Iowa State. Another possible Iowa candidate would have been Sanderson, who brought in the top recruiting class in the country a year ago to Iowa State -- yes, even better than Brands'. So Iowa State did what they had talked about doing for two years, letting Douglas ride off into the sunset while Sanderson, this generation's version of Gable, was not allowed to ride a Cyclone two hours west to Iowa City. While this move was more predictable and expected, the timing couldn't have been more momentous. This was Iowa State's way of telling Iowa "Not this time!" And so now the wrestling world is left in limbo for the first time in decades - maybe ever. For college football fans, this time comes every year. Programs that struggled get rid of their coach (however they want to word it) and bring in fresh life. Brands has already become wrestling's version of Urban Meyer -- a young coaching prospect with a plethora of potential and respect. He is surely the top candidate on the lists at Ohio State and Iowa -- and with good reason, just as Meyer was the top candidate at Florida and Notre Dame over a year ago. Athletics Directors are finally showing that they care about wrestling. But not only that they care, but that they want to win as well. Oklahoma State's four straight titles will most likely be in jeopardy next year, and the wrestling world is seeing the rise of programs such as Cornell, Hofstra, Michigan and Illinois among others. Wrestling budgets are on the rise. While the Big Ten and Big XII Conferences have always placed money into their budgets, the smaller schools are starting to reap benefits. Cornell has one of the nicest practice and competition facilities you could find. MAC schools are all starting to bump scholarships up, and for those that have over nine scholarships, they are seeing their budgets increased. Other smaller programs such as Northern Iowa, Cal Poly, Edinboro and American have even become more competitive with national programs. Small schools are now being referred to as mid-majors, with Central Michigan playing the role of Gonzaga most recently. Maybe George Mason can become the next… George Mason. Soon, we may start seeing the "Iowa Clause" or the "Oklahoma State Clause" written into coaching contracts, similar to the "Notre Dame Clause" in college football. Who knows, maybe Brands and Ryan already have such a clause. And all this excitement could only mean good for the future of Real Pro Wrestling as well. The more that colleges begin to care, the more money they begin to use to fund a "non-revenue sport" such as wrestling, the more people on a national level will take notice. The more people that take notice of the live NCAA finals on ESPN, or of the individual athletes within the sport, the more they will follow these athletes beyond their college careers. Wrestlers such as Ben Askren who set themselves apart from the rest in the personality department will reap the most benefits of this. Last year, a record three wrestlers were nominated for ESPY Awards. This year, it's possible another two could be up for awards again. If the ESPY Committee is taking notice, and athletics directors are taking notice, certainly Average Joe sports fan will take notice.

Iowa State University head wrestling coach Bobby Douglas -- an NCAA champion coach, one of only three men in history to win more than 400 duals and an Olympian as a wrestler and coach -- announced Friday that he is retiring from coaching. Douglas will remain with the ISU athletics department as an assistant athletics director. Douglas said his move was to guarantee that his protégé Cael Sanderson -- an 2004 Olympic champion and the only undefeated (159-0), four-time NCAA champion -- would take over as Cyclone head coach. Cael Sanderson"The future of ISU wrestling is what I care about most." said Douglas. "I wanted to ensure that Cael Sanderson was that future. It is what fueled my decision to step down." Douglas added that he shares the vision of ISU athletics director Jamie Pollard for the wrestling team. "Jamie (Pollard) understands the importance of wrestling at this institution better than any previous athletics director," Douglas said. "I've told Jamie that having Cael Sanderson as the head coach of the Cyclone wrestling team will allow (Jamie) to fulfill the dreams he has for this program." Sanderson was Douglas' prize pupil at Iowa State and has worked his way up from special assistant to assistant coach to associate coach at his alma mater and is poised to build on the foundation that Douglas established. "I was fortunate to have a current coaching colleague and my greatest student ready to step in," said Douglas. "When you've put as much into a program as I have at ISU, it's natural to hope one of your own succeeds you." "I simply could not be more pleased or confident in a hire than I am with Cael," said Pollard. "As a competitor, he is unmatched. I know he'll bring the same level of enthusiasm, dedication and focus to the head coaching position. He is the ultimate winner and young wrestlers around the nation will be anxious to learn from him. I'm very appreciative of coach Douglas desire to make certain that Cael remains a Cyclone." Sanderson said the chance to lead the program at his alma mater was a "dream come true" story. "I'm introduced today as Iowa State's wrestling coach because of the selfless sacrifices of my college coach, Bobby Douglas," Sanderson said. "He has paved the way for me to assume this responsibility. Because of that, I'll have the opportunity to follow a legacy of legendary coaches at ISU. I promise to work as hard as I did as a competitor to build upon the traditions I've inherited as head coach. Iowa State University is a special place to our family. I'm humbled and excited at the same time about my opportunity." In 14 years at Iowa State, Douglas' teams had 11 top 10 national finishes (including NCAA runner-up efforts in 1996, 2000 and 2002), 50 All-Americans, 10 individual national champions, 29 Big 12 champions, and a dual record of 198-75-3 (.723). He was a three-time Big 8 / Big 12 Coach of the Year and the 2000 national coach of the year. Every one of his Cyclone teams boasted at least one All-American and the 1993 team produced seven. Nate Gallick became Douglas' latest NCAA champion, completing an undefeated season last week in Oklahoma City, Okla. Bobby DouglasDouglas also enjoyed remarkable success in 18 years at Arizona State before coming to Ames. The Sun Devils won nine conference championships (seven in a row from 1985-91), captured the 1988 NCAA title in Ames (the only one earned by a western school) and recorded a 227-75-6 dual mark. He was an eight-time coach of the year for the Sun Devils and coached three individual national titlists. Douglas said, "My coaching career allowed me the opportunity to come to work everyday doing something I love, teaching young people how to wrestle and helping them mature into adults." Pollard also announced the establishment of an endowed scholarship in the Hall of Fame coach's name. "To cement the legacy of coach Douglas, I'm pleased to announce publicly the creation of the Bobby Douglas Endowed Scholarship," Pollard said. "One Cyclone wrestler will receive his scholarship aid under the name of Bobby Douglas forever. I must thank John Allen for his generous financial contribution to endow this scholarship and guarantee that Coach Douglas is celebrated annually through this endowment."

TEMPE, Ariz. -- For the second year in a row, Arizona State University Head Wrestling Coach Thom Ortiz was selected as the Pac-10 Conference Coach of the Year, Commissioner Tom Hansen announced Wednesday. The honor is the third in Ortiz' five years at the helm of the Sun Devil program and the 15th for an ASU head coach in the 31 years the conference has recognized its top coach. Ortiz helped his Sun Devils post a 14-7 overall record in dual competition with a perfect 8-0 mark in the Pac-10 before heading to the 2006 Pac-10 Championships in Palo Alto, Calif., where the Sun Devils successfully defended their conference crown from one year prior. Five of his 10 starters advanced to the finals with Patrick Pitsch (165), Ryan Bader (197) and Cain Velasquez (285) winning individual titles. From there, Ortiz led six competitors into the 2006 NCAA Wrestling Championships where four earned All-America honors to help the team finish sixth in the nation. Brian Stith (157) advanced to the finals before placing second while C.B. Dollaway (184) finished fifth overall to earn his first All-America honor. Bader (seventh) and Velasquez (fourth) each earned their second All-America honor with Ortiz in their corner. Ortiz, who helped ASU tie Oregon State for the most Pac-10 wrestling titles in conference history with 16, is now tied for fourth in the Pac-10 for number of coaching honors as he, T.J. Kerr of CS Bakersfield and Mike Young of Boise State each have earned the honor three times. Former coaches Lee Roy Smith (ASU) and Dale Thomas (OSU) are tied for the second-most with four while former Sun Devil Bobby Douglas holds the most with eight. Two other individual honors were released with Boise State winning both as Ben Cherrington was selected as the Wrestler of the Year while Tyler Sherfey was selected as the Newcomer/Freshman of the Year.

Portland State junior 157-pounder Kainoa Casco and senior 149-pounder Adam Duryee were selected to the Pacific-10 All-Academic second team Wednesday, Commissioner Tom Hansen announced. Casco, who holds a 3.48 GPA, was a second time selection for the award having also been named to the Pac-10's second team last season. Duryee was a first time selection with a 3.21 GPA. To be eligible for selection to the academic team, a student-athlete must have a minimum 3.0 overall grade- point average and be either a starter or significant contributor.

TEMPE, Ariz. -- The Pac-10 Conference released its All-Academic Wrestling Teams Wednesday with four members of the Arizona State University program earning a place on the lists, Commissioner Tom Hansen announced. The four selections ties the program's record for most selections in one season with the 2000 squad that also added four to the list. Jason Trulson led the way as a first team selection while Kevin Gaughan, Pat Payne and Quinton Pruett each earned a place on the honorable mention list. All four honorees earned the first conference academic selection of their careers. Trulson's selection is his first as a member of the first team and makes him the 14th Sun Devil to collect the honor. All told, those 14 wrestlers have combined for 16 first team selections. The three honorable mention selections more than double the program's previous total of two as the distinction was added in the 2000 season. As a team this season, the Sun Devils captured their 16th Pac-10 Championship crown with three individual championships and five finalists before finishing sixth place at the NCAA Wrestling Championships on the strength of four All-Americans, including NCAA runner-up Brian Stith at 157.

Senior Risto Marttinen made the first team and sophomore Morgan Atkinson is on the second unit of the 2006 Pacific-10 Conference Wrestling All-Academic team announced today by Commissioner Tom Hansen. To be eligible for selection to the academic team, a student-athlete must have a minimum 3.0 overall grade-point average and be either a starter or significant contributor. Atkinson (Temecula, Calif.) placed fourth at the Pac-10 Championships at 149 pounds and qualified for the NCAA Championships, where he split four bouts. Marttinen (Laguna Niguel, Calif.), the Titans' 165-pounder, made the academic squad for the fourth year in a row. The team: First Team Yr. GPA Major Kyle Bressler, Oregon State RFr. 3.88 Pre-Construction Management/Engineering Lex Case, Boise State Jr. 3.61 Spanish Tanner Gardner, Stanford Jr. 3.69 Public Policy Nick Hernandez, Cal Poly RFr. 3.83 Kinesiology Jeremy Larson, Oregon State Jr. 3.59 General Science Risto Martinnen, CS Fullerton Sr 3.83 Health Sciences Eric Parker, CS Bakersfield Jr. 3.45 History Casey Phelps, Boise State Grad. 4.00 Education Jason Truison, Arizona State Jr. 3.72 Biology/Clinical Laboratory Studies Josh Zupancic, Stanford Jr 3.71 American Studies Second Team Yr. GPA Major Morgan Atkinson, CS Fullerton So 3.45 Business Administration Jared Boyer, Stanford RFr. 3.35 Undeclared Brian Busby, CS Bakersfield Sr. 3.14 Natural Sciences Kainoa Casco, Portland State Jr. 3.48 Business Administration Adam Duryee, Portland State Sr. 3.21 Business Administration David Espinsoa, UC Davis Sr. 3.30 Communications Andy Hall, Oregon State RFr. 3.60 Mathematics Thomas Kimbrell, CS BakersfieldRFr. 3.87 Undeclared Dustin Noack, UC Davis RFr. 3.78 Animal Science Garth Wara, CS Bakersfield RFr. 3.59 Physical Education/Kinesiology Honorable Mention: Ray Blake, Stanford; Jordan Brock, Boise State; Kevin Gaughan, Arizona State; John Hanks, Cal Poly; Juston Johnson, Stanford; Elliot Kelly, UC Davis; Beau Malia, Oregon; Andy Patrick, Boise State; Pat Payne, Arizona State; Brian Perry, Stanford; Quinton Pruett, Arizona State; Tyler Sherfey, Boise State; Kyle Sukanen, Oregon State.

This week on Takedown Radio: Well, things will settle down for Steve and I for a few weeks. Its been exciting for sure. I would like to thank everyone from InterMatWrestle.com, The NWCA, The NCAA, USA Wrestling, and the city of Oklahoma City. Nice work folks. Also a special thank you to my esteemed collegues in broadcasting. Cudo's to Steve Foster, J. Carl Guymon and Ryan Lang. You guys are the best! Scott and Julie from the NCAA, terrific job as always! This week on TDR -- Back in the studio, joining us will be: Pablo Ubasa -- Coach and former Wrestler Josh Koscheck -- Edinboro University 4x Placer at Nat. 1999 National Champ. Now UFC Star John Halverson -- Pro fighter and MMA promoter Chad Bergmeier -- Promoter Tim Flynn -- Head coach of Edinboro Steve Preston -- Strength and conditioning trainer

He wasn't even on my radar screen. The nation's best 112-pounder was not only unranked in the top 100 seniors, he wasn't even considered for a spot in the Rev Power Rankings. At least I wasn't alone -- not a single national ranking service had the nation's best 112, Anthony Robles, ranked prior to NHSCA Senior Nationals. It is something that happens every year. National rankings are necessarily based on results that may have happened over a year ago, sometimes several years ago. However, a 17-18-year-old wrestler can improve dramatically in a year. So every year, there is one who comes seemingly out of nowhere and defeats all the conventional favorites at Senior Nationals. In 2003, Daniel Mason-Strauss went from never being a state finalist in Ohio to being a national champion. In 2004, it was unheralded Tyler Sherfey upending highly decorated Angel Cejudo and Alex Tsirtsis. In 2005, one-time Illinois state champion Travis Hammons prevailed over an illustrious field. So, in actuality, the only question was not whether there would be an unknown seize the golden chalice, but who it would be. But there was a twist -- I certainly didn't count on the unknown wrestler having only one leg. While Anthony Robles was born without a right leg -- the term "handicapped" would be quite possibly the least appropriate word I can think of to describe him. Simply put, the 112-pounder from Mesa, Arizona, crushed a tough field to win Senior Nationals in Pittsburgh. While he had dominated the field up to the finals, including a first period fall over Jay Cobbs of Virginia in the semifinals, I thought for certain his undefeated season would come to an end in the finals against one of the nation's best 112's, Justin Paulsen of California. The first period ended scoreless as Paulsen appeared understandably uncertain as to how to attack Robles. In the second period, Paulsen made the mistake of choosing to wrestle on the mat with Robles instead of "cutting" him. Robles struck almost immediately with a switch. Once on top, Robles was able to take advantage of his tremendous upper-body strength advantage. He quickly titled Paulsen for three and simply punished him for the rest of the period. Paulsen wisely chose neutral in the third period, only for Robles to shoot in on a single, again use his power to convert the shot into a double and a 7-0 lead. After Paulsen finally got on the board with an escape, Robles added another takedown for a 9-1 final. I understand that Robles is currently unsigned. I would not expect that will last long! While Robles was by far the most powerful wrestler "pound for pound" in the competition, Lou Ruggirello, the 119-pound champion from New York, was probably second. "King Lou" made a great case for himself as the nation's best 119, though, unfortunately, Ben Ashmore was not there to settle that issue with him (more on that below). Only Tyler Zukerman of Oklahoma was able to slow down the onslaught of Ruggirello in a 7-2 loss, all other opponents succumbed by fall or technical fall. In this final against three-time state champion Walker Faison of Virginia, Ruggirello powered a first period chicken wing that was just plain painful to watch. Faison fought hard off his back for a very long time, but with 19 seconds to go in the first, could hold on no more as Ruggirello secured the fall. Adam Hall (Photo/Jon Malinowski)Though he was a Junior Nationals Freestyle runner-up to Cyler Sanderson last summer, Adam Hall of Idaho entered his 152-pound final as one of the biggest underdogs of the tournament. Jon Reader has been one of the best wrestlers in the nation regardless of weight class this year, starting with a preseason win over Division II NCAA champion Patrick Allibone and never letting up. At Senior Nationals, it was more of the same, as Reader notched three pins, a technical fall, a 10-0 major decision, and a controlled 5-1 win en route to the finals. By contrast, Hall struggled with scores of 12-8, 2-0, 1-0, and a 3-2 in double overtime. As the saying goes, that's why they wrestle the matches on the mat. Reader struck quickly with his patented "barrel roll" for a 2-0 lead. Hall escaped, and then barely managed to fight off another Reader takedown late in the first. Hall started down in the second, and managed an escape. Then the fireworks began. After escaping, Hall immediately shot in on a low single, seemingly catching Reader by surprise for a 4-2 lead. Reader struck back with a Granby Roll and immediately converted a single leg takedown of his own for a 5-4 lead, as order seemed to be restored. Reader opened the third period with an escape to extend his lead to 6-4. With about 30 seconds to go, Reader appeared to be tiring, and Hall blew through him with a double to knot the score at 6-6. A Reader escape made it 7-6. Hall wasted little time in shooting in. He appeared to be about to get the winning takedown, but Reader scrambled and managed to cling to a leg as Hall desperately tried to get behind him. It looked like Reader was going to be able to hold it off, but he literally seemed to "hit the wall" with two seconds to go and relinquished the leg as Hall went behind for the winning takedown, 8-7, in one of the best Senior Nationals matches I have ever seen. The theme for Bubba Jenkins of Virginia was "redemption." After missing state for the second year in a row for disciplinary reasons, Jenkins clearly came to Pittsburgh with an "ax to grind." Jenkins torched the field leading up to the finals: with two falls, a technical fall, a 14-4 major, and a 7-4 win over third-place finisher Josh Wilson of Utah. It appeared he might have his hands full in the finals with another Utah grappler, Nathaniel Holt of Utah. Holt knocked off highly regarded Travis Blasco of Blair Academy in the semifinals, preventing a Jenkins-Blasco rematch (won by Jenkins at the Beast of the East). However, Jenkins came out on fire with an almost immediate single-leg takedown and "dump" finish. He quickly followed that up with a breathtaking lift from a "claw" ride, putting Holt to his back and nearly securing the fall but settling for a 5-0 lead. Jenkins continued to simply overwhelm Holt, adding two more takedowns for a 9-2 lead midway through the match. With such a lead in the national finals, most would shut down their offense. However, Jenkins went for, of all things, a cement mixer … and nailed it for a five-point move. Holt was going nowhere, and the inevitable came at 3:21. Jenkins would have been leading 14-2 if not for the fall! Jenkins is another unsigned wrestler who could make a college wrestling coach very, very happy. Ryan Patrovich (Photo/Jon Malinowski)Perhaps the marquee match of the night on paper was Dave Rella versus Ryan Patrovich. Both two-time state champs in tough states, Rella was third at Junior Nationals in freestyle last summer, while Patrovich was runner-up, both at 160. Neither was seriously pushed up to the finals. In this match, both seemed reluctant to "pull the trigger" as they traded escapes for a 1-1 regulation score. The match went to double overtime, and it looked like Patrovich might be able to pull it off after he rode out Rella in a crab ride -- which took 15 seconds off the clock, and quickly pulled him back into a similar position after a restart. However, Rella "dug deep," and relying less on technique than hustle, wound up with a reversal in the last five seconds for the national title. Look for a rematch in Fargo. As great as the tournament was (as usual) there were, in my view, three huge errors. First, the consolation rounds amounted to little more than an endurance contest on Sunday morning. The wrestling started at 9:00 a.m. on Sunday, by 11:30, the 103's and 112's who started in the All-American round could have wrestled four matches. Wrestlers eventually need some time to regroup between bouts, replenish themselves (i.e. eat and drink water) especially at this level of competition. The wrestlers who started in the "All-American Round" were at a huge disadvantage as compared to those who made the semifinals and thus started in the consolation semifinals -- having already wrestled two matches in the previous 1-1.5 hours. The consolations were completed shortly after noon, leaving an unnecessarily long six hour break. Not only would it have been better for the wrestlers, but better for the fans as well since they could have watch more matches. Secondly, the Sophomore and Junior Nationals need to be done on a weekend rather than making it one long event. The action for these divisions started on Tuesday and concluded on Friday. With Monday being weigh-ins, this meant it was necessary for competitors to miss an entire week of school, very difficult considering they likely have already missed school for their state tournaments at the minimum. The sophomore event was a national championship in name only, with only five of the sophomores who entered ranked in the Rev Power Rankings Top 50 competing. Finally, and most importantly, this event simply cannot be held the same weekend as the Dapper Dan again. Not only did this event drain away at least one elite wrestler from each weight class, but it took nearly every top wrestler from the nation's top wrestling state, Pennsylvania, plus those who competed in the WPIAL versus Delaware undercard. With nearly all of the Pennsylvania stars not competing, the arena was shockingly empty. Whatever ego-driven agendas need to be put aside hopefully will be next year for the good of the sport.

IOWA CITY -- University of Iowa Director of Athletics Bob Bowlsby announced Wednesday that Jim Zalesky's contract as head coach of the UI wrestling program will not be renewed and that the search for his replacement will begin immediately. Zalesky, a four-time all-American and a three-time NCAA champion for the UI in the early 1980s, just completed his ninth season as head coach of the Hawkeyes. Iowa finished in sixth place at the 2006 Big Ten Conference Championships and in fourth place at this year's NCAA Championships. Iowa did not have an individual champion at either event for the second consecutive year. "We will move just as quickly and efficiently as we can to focus on those candidates around the country who possess the talent and experience to lead our program back to its traditional position of prominence within the Big Ten and at the national level." Bob Bowlsby, UI Director of Athletics "As we do each year with every sport, we have completed an evaluation of all aspects of our wrestling program. This year's process comes in the aftermath of one of our least successful dual meet seasons in recent history and after our lowest finish in the Big Ten Championship in 39 years," said Bowlsby. "Regretfully, we have come to the conclusion that it is time for new leadership within our wrestling program. Fred Mims and I have met with Jim and his staff and we notified them that we will immediately commence the search to identify and hire that new leadership." "I want to thank Jim and his staff for their efforts and I want to acknowledge the success they have helped to achieve," added Bowlsby. "Unfortunately, at this point in time it is not arguable that we are making the kind of progress that will once again place our program among the elite in the sport." "I have the utmost respect for Jim and his staff," said Mims, an associate athletics director at the UI and the staff member to whom Zalesky reports on a daily basis. "Jim has contributed much to the athletics program at the University of Iowa as a student-athlete and as a member of our coaching staff. It is unfortunate that in recent years the program has not met the expectations we all have for wrestling at the UI." Zalesky's teams compiled a 127-34 dual meet record, a mark that included wins in 56 of 75 matches against Big Ten opponents. However, Iowa's dual meet records in 2005-06 were 11-7 overall and 4-4 against league opponents. This year's record against Big Ten opponents follows records of 5-3 in 2004-05, 6-2 in 2003-04 and 7-1 in 2002-03. Iowa won the national championship in each of Zalesky's first three seasons (1998, 1999 and 2000) as the UI's head coach. The Hawkeyes finished second in 2001 and again in 2004. Iowa finished in seventh place in the 2005 national meet. "We will move just as quickly and efficiently as we can to focus on those candidates around the country who possess the talent and experience to lead our program back to its traditional position of prominence within the Big Ten and at the national level," said Bowlsby.

Before the 2005-06 college wrestling season began, Oklahoma State looked like a shoe-in to win its fourth straight NCAA title and 34th overall. After all, the Cowboys returned six All-Americans and four NCAA champions from a team that scored 153 points and won the 2005 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships by 70 points. John SmithBut this season didn't go as expected. It was a season of ups and downs. Oklahoma State's four defending NCAA champions, Zack Esposito (149), Johny Hendricks (165), Jake Rosholt (197), and Steve Mocco (Hwt), combined for 15 losses. The Cowboys dropped two dual meets to Minnesota. But in the end, Oklahoma State head coach John Smith pulled his team together in time for the Cowboys to claim their fourth straight Big 12 title and fourth straight NCAA title. The Cowboys finished with six All-Americans, the most of any Division I wrestling program in the country. For all these reasons, John Smith has been named 2006 Rev Coach of the Year by RevWrestling.com. The award is given annually to the nation's top collegiate coach across all divisions of wrestling as voted on by the writers and executives of RevWrestling.com. "John Smith saved his best coaching performance for last," said RevWrestling.com writer Tom Franck. "There was tremendous pressure on Oklahoma State to win its fourth straight NCAA title, but Smith's wrestlers essentially ran away and hid from the field. The Cowboys earned 28.5 bonus points over the course of the three-day event, which took every other team out of the running." 2006 Rev Coach of the Year Voting 1st-5th-Place Votes -- 9-7-5-3-1 (First-Place Votes) : 1. John Smith, OSU -- 39 (3) 2. Rob Koll, Cornell -- 32 (2) 3. J Robinson, Minnesota -- 31 (1) 4. Steve Costanzo, Dana -- 21 (1) 5. Jim Miller, Wartburg -- 17 6. Mark Cody, American -- 15 7. Mark Schwab, Buena Vista -- 9 (1) 8. Jim Zalesky, Iowa -- 8 9. Jack Spates, Oklahoma -- 7 10. Tom Borrelli, Central Mich. -- 6 11. Tom Ryan, Hofstra -- 5 11. Joe McFarland, Michigan -- 5 13. Troy Sunderland, Penn State -- 4 14. Thom Ortiz, Arizona State -- 1Smith won by seven votes (39-32) over Cornell's Rob Koll, who guided his Big Red squad to an NCAA fifth-place finish. Smith received three of the eight first-place votes. J Robinson of Minnesota, who led the Gophers to a 20-1 dual meet record, a Big Ten title, and an NCAA runner-up finish, came in third with 31 votes. Dana's Steve Costanzo, who guided his team to the school's first-ever NAIA title, was fourth with 21 votes. Jim Miller of Wartburg, who coached his team to its fifth NCAA Division III title since 1996, rounded out the top five with 17 votes. Others coaches who received votes included Mark Cody of American, Mark Schwab of Buena Vista, Jim Zalesky of Iowa, Jack Spates of Oklahoma, Tom Borrelli of Central Michigan, Tom Ryan of Hofstra, Joe McFarland of Michigan, Troy Sunderland of Penn State, and Thom Ortiz of Arizona State. Launched in October 2005, RevWrestling.com covers all aspects of amateur wrestling, including high school, all divisions of college wrestling, freestyle and Greco-Roman competition, and Real Pro Wrestling. The Web site, located at www.RevWrestling.com, provides wrestling fans with timely wrestling news coverage along with unique content features such as Rev Rankings, exclusive athlete profiles, and hard-hitting analysis of major issues affecting amateur wrestling.

The Patriot ladies from University of the Cumberlands (formerly Cumberland College) traveled to Marshall, Missouri on March 24-25, 2006 to compete in the Missouri Valley Showcase. The lady wrestlers claimed seven medals in the tournament. Othella Lucas (San Diego, CA) was named the outstanding wrestler for the senior division of competition. Earning medals for the Patriot ladies were: · Vanity Vasquez (St. Cloud, FL), 48 kg, third place · Jessica Medina (Pomona, CA), 51 kg, first place · Antonesia Giles (Chino, CA), 51 kg, second place · Othella Lucas, 59 kg, first place · Tabetha Golt (Chesapeake, VA), 67 kg, first place · Sherolynn Eppinger (Warrensville, OH), 67 kg, third place · Shelly Ruberg (Harrison, OH), 72 kg, first place The lady wrestlers will travel to Lake Orion, MI March 31-April 1, 2006 to compete in the USGWA Nationals before competing in the Senior National Tournament in Las Vegas, NV April 10-11, 2006. Article Provided by Jesse Clifton, University of the Cumberlands (formerly Cumberland College) Sports Information Assistant

GOLDEN, Colo. -- The Colorado School of Mines Department of Athletics has announced that it will host the Second Annual Scholarship Golf Scramble on Friday, May 5, 2006 and Westwoods Golf Course. The deadline to register for the event is May 1. The entry fee is $125 for an individual or $450 for a foursome and includes green fees, drink tickets, 1/2 cart, lunch at the course, one raffle ticket for a drawing following the tournament and range balls. Registration will begin at 7:00 am at the Westwoods Clubhouse on May 5 and the shotgun start is slated for 9:00 am. Those intersted in being a tournament or hole sponsor, please contact Dan Lewis at 303-273-3374 or Tom Spicer at 303-273-3300.

ERIE, PA -- The Gannon wrestling team continues to uphold its tradition of excellence on and off the mat. Gannon recorded the seventh-highest team grade-point average among NCAA Division II programs in 2005-06, according to the 13th annual All-Academic wrestling selections announced by the Wrestling Coaches Association. In addition, Jacob Tazzi (Chesterfield, Mich./Anchor Bay) was named to the Division II All-Academic All-American second team while Jason Radtke (Smethport, Pa./Smethport) earned All-American honorable-mention accolades. Colorado School of Mines (3.476) won the Academic National Championship for the fifth time since 1995. Truman State (3.413), Nebraska-Omaha (3.400), Findlay (3.370), and Nebraska-Kearney (3.292) completed the top five. West Liberty State (3.207) and Gannon (3.184) narrowly missed the top five. The team GPA is calculated by averaging the cumulative grade-point averages of 10 wrestlers from each team. Eight of those wrestlers must have competed in their team's NCAA Division II Qualifying Tournament. Tazzi landed a spot on the All-American second team with a 3.32 GPA while majoring in Science. The sophomore posted a 19-11 record in 2005-06, improving his career record to 39-28. He finished fifth at the NCAA Division II East Regionals with a 3-3 mark at 184. Radtke earned honorable-mention accolades with a 3.23 GPA as a Elementary/Special Education major. The redshirt senior capped a solid collegiate career with a 73-38 record, including a 15-6 mark in 2005-06. He also finished fifth at the NCAA Division II East Regionals with a 2-2 record at 174. The 2005-06 Division II All-Academic teams consist of 125 student-athletes from 29 universities and colleges. Forty-one were named to the first team, 36 to the second team, and 49 were named honorable mention. A student-athlete must have a minimum GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale, be in at least the second full year at his current school, be a member of the varsity team, demonstrate a degree of skill, and have a minimum of two letters of recommendation submitted on his behalf to be nominated for the Division II All-Academic teams. On the mat, Gannon finished 25th at the NCAA Division II National Championships. It was the Golden Knights' seventh top-25 finish in the last eight seasons.

Steve KimpelGOLDEN, Colo. -- The Colorado School of Mines wrestling team recently won its fifth overall National Wrestling Coaches Association All-Academic Team Award. The award is presented to the squad with the highest grade point average among Division II teams. It is the first team award under fourth-year Head Coach Steve Kimpel. CSM has priviously won the award in 1994-95, 1995-96, 1997-98 and 1998-99 under then Head Coach Dan Lewis. In addition, junior 133-pounder Garrett Eller (Kremmling, Colo./West Grand) and junior 157-pounder Nathan Pilcher (Fort Morgan, Colo./Fort Morgan) were honored as Second Team NWCA All-Academic selections.

AMES, Iowa -- The Iowa State wrestling team will host its annual banquet on April 5 in the atrium of the Jacobson Athletic Building. Check-in begins at 6 p.m. with a buffet-style dinner served by Hickory Park starting at 6:30 p.m. An awards program will follow dinner. Cost for the event is $15. Guests can pay at the door or send a check, payable to the ISU Athletic Department and mail it or drop it off to Jeanne Vogel, ISU Wrestling, 1800 S. Fourth St., Ames, Iowa, 50010.

The most anticipated finals match-up of the Division I Championships resulted in a 14-2 blow-out. Missouri's top-ranked Ben Askren dominated undefeated Jake Herbert (No. 2 seed) of Northwestern. For his efforts, Askren was named the tournament's Outstanding Wrestler and now has added wrestling's top individual prize to his trophy case: the 2006 Dan Hodge Trophy. Wrestling's version of the Heisman Trophy is awarded annually to the most dominant collegiate wrestler by the International Wrestling Institute & Museum and W.I.N. Magazine. The 174-pounder finished the season 45-0 with an impressive 25 pins. Of the other 20 wins, Askren had nine technical falls, five majors, an injury default and a forfeit, leaving only four bouts in which he failed to score bonus points. In addition to his convincing 12-point victory in the NCAA finals, he also defeated Lehigh's Travis Frick (19-3) and Hofstra's Michael Patrovich (21-6) in the quarters and semis, respectively. "It's a great honor to win the award, because of Dan Hodge and all the other great wrestlers that have won it," Askren said. "It's been a goal of mine to not only be the best in my weight class, but the best in any weight class, period." Criteria for the award include: record, number of pins, dominance, past credentials, quality of competition, sportsmanship/citizenship and heart. Other finalists for the award were four-time Div. II national champion Les Sigman of the University of Nebraska-Omaha, Iowa State's Nate Gallick, Minnesota's Cole Konrad and Boise State's Ben Cherrington. Sigman, who was wrestling unattached the first semester, was 43-0 with 19 pins. Gallick, who beat defending national champ Teyon Ware four times, was 36-0 with two falls. Konrad was 39-0 with 14 pins, downing defending titlist Steve Mocco four times. Cherrington finished his senior campaign 20-0 with three pins. Missouri head coach Brian Smith said fans won't find a more worthy recipient than his national champion junior. "I've never been around anybody like him," Smith said of his team captain. "I think he's going to be the new torch-holder for our sport. I knew that when I recruited him." Anyone who's around Askren can tell immediately the Tiger junior doesn't fit the typical mold of a wrestler or an average college student for that matter. Not having cut his hair in two years, Askren competes with a huge afro hair style which comes out of the straps of his headgear in every direction. And don't expect many typical 3-2 decisions from Askren either. He revels in the chance to entertain fans and put on a show. "A lot of people complain about wrestling's (media) coverage. Then they go out and take one or two shots in seven minutes. I hate when people do that. A decision is not satisfactory in my books. The ultimate goal is to pin someone. That's what I go after every match," the three-time finalist said. The wrestling community often describes Askren as unorthodox. He's perfectly fine with that. He's also widely known as the best scrambler in the college wrestling. But Smith warned not to mistake Askren's style for a lack of technique. "If you sat down with Ben, he'd teach you the eight stages of funk," Smith said. The Tigers' head man also stressed his star pupil is a tireless student of the sport, studying films on various Russian and other international wrestlers to pick up new techniques. And to go along with the long hours studying the sport, Smith said Askren has an incredibly good work ethic and a happy-go-lucky attitude. Minutes before his finals match, ESPN showed a clip of Hodge crushing an apple with his hand. Smith had to remind his finalist to stay focused as Askren was laughing watching the television in the tunnel saying how cool that was. During a break in the action in the finals, Askren heard the Ford Center crowd cheering. Television cameras then caught him trying to get a peak at the screen on the main scoreboard above him to see what had gotten everyone's attention. He found out later that ESPN had found a few of his friends in the stands who had on colored afro wigs to show their support. The two-time Wisconsin state champ said he always had short hair in high school. Once it started growing out in college, people started giving him a hard time, saying wrestlers shouldn't do that. Askren set out to prove to people you could have fun in the sport and still be successful. "People were saying wrestlers aren't suppose to have goofy hair and you're supposed to be serious. I enjoy bugging people a little bit and getting under their skin. So I let it grow," he said, adding that he planned to get it cut this week. Smith noted an autographed photo of the boxer Muhammed Ali in the Askrens' basement while on a recruiting trip to their Hartland, Wisc. home. Askren informed Smith that Ali was one of his heroes. He now tries to emulate the manner in which Ali carried himself, taking seriously the responsibility of an athlete to entertain the fans. Askren also added that he wanted to just be himself in front of media, not just telling reporters what they want to hear like so many athletes do. "If he wasn't such a hard worker and wasn't doing so well in the classroom, I'd say, ‘Hey, you can't talk like that,' " Smith said. "But that's Ben." Askren excels off the mat as well. The geography major carries a 3.2 GPA and was named an academic All-American his first two years. He also volunteers to read to grade school kids and "absolutely loves it," said Smith. Smith said don't be surprised if you see Askren, who won the Pam Ams this summer, making a U.S. World Team very soon. "He's going to make an Olympic team," Smith said, when asked how far the Dan Hodge Trophy winner could go. "Once he gets that, I think he's going to get a gold medal. That's a goal of his and he's achieved everything he's gone after. He finds a way to get better every day." The award will be officially presented to Askren, April 22, at the team's wrestling banquet and publically next fall at one of the home football games. (Anyone needing additional information on the 2006 Dan Hodge Trophy can contact the W.I.N. Magazine office at 1-888-305-0606.)

State College, Pa. –– The Penn State Wrestling Club held its annual year-end Luncheon today and, in addition to honoring Penn State's five graduating senior wrestlers and one manager, a total of ten team awards were handed out as well. Head coach Troy Sunderland and his team was the center's of attention at the well-attended event, hosted by Jeff Byers, radio voice of Nittany Lion wrestling. The first order of business was honoring Penn State's five senior wrestlers and lone senior manager. Seniors Eric Bradley (Plaistow, N.H.), DeWitt Driscoll (Connellsville, Pa.), Joel Edwards (Upper Darby, Pa.), Jeremy Hart (State College, Pa.) and James Woodall (Dupont, Pa.) as well as manager Carly Sayers each received their senior blankets and awards. The first team award handed out was the Charles M. Speidel Award for the senior with the most career dual meet wins. Two-time All-American Eric Bradley claimed that honor with a 40-5 career record in dual matches. Bradley went 14-6 this season and earned his second All-America honors with an eighth place finish at 184. He was also a two-time Big Ten Champion, winning the crown in 2005 and 2004. The Bill Koll Award for the outstanding freshman wrestler was given to red-shirt freshman Jake Strayer (South Fork, Pa.). Strayer went 26-6 at 133 this season, finished third at the Big Ten Championship and advanced to the ‘Round of 12' at nationals, finishing just one win out of All-America status. Junior All-American James Yonushonis (Philipsburg, Pa.) won the Kaye Vinson Award for most improved wrestler. Yonushonis posted a 24-9 mark this season and, as the No. 9 seed at nationals, earned All-America laurels with an eighth place finish at 174 in Oklahoma City. The Larry Reilly Courage Award for showing courage in wrestling and helping the team was given to Rohan Murphy (Long Island, N.Y.). The junior posted a 1-3 mark this season but, more importantly, as a bilateral amputee, will represent the United States in the 2006 Paralympics in Korea this summer, competing in the power lifting competition. Junior Brian Cantalupi (Carlisle, Pa.) won the Academic Excellence and Community Service Award. Cantalupi, who went 13-7 at 165 and 174 this year, helped raise money for THON, worked with the Red Cross, helped with Hurricane Katrina relief efforts and is the president of Penn State's Student Athlete Advisory Board. Junior heavyweight Aaron Anspach (Columbia, Pa.) earned the Eleventh Man Award for leadership and dedication to the team. Anspach went 14-8 at heavyweight, including a 3-2 dual match record. The Joe Scalzo Award for best freestyle wrestler went to freshman Brad Pataky (Clearfield, Pa.). Pataky, who went 15-8 as a collegiate grappler at 125 this past season, was fifth at Junior Nationals and was a Junior National All-American in both freestyle and Greco-Roman. Sophomore All-American Phil Davis (Harrisburg, Pa.) won the William Neidig Award for Most Outstanding Wrestler. Davis, now a two-time All-American, was the 2006 NCAA National Runner-Up at 197 this year, advancing all the way to the national title tilt in Oklahoma City. The 2006 Big Ten Champion, Davis went 25-4 this year. Manager Tiffany Clark won the Carl A. Winterburn Award to the manager who demonstrates year round support to the Penn State wrestling program. Senior Jeremy Hart (State College, Pa.), who went 5-1 at 165 before knee surgery ended his career, won the Nittany Lion Club's Academic Achievement Award.

Jeff Blatnick has always had his doubters. In 1982, when he was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Disease, many in the wrestling community gave up on him. After a rigorous series of radiation treatments, Blatnick made the decision to not only train in wrestling again, but to also train for the upcoming 1984 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles. "For me, it was simply believing that I could do that," Blatnick said while in Oklahoma City last weekend, where he was preparing to be an ESPN analyst for the NCAA Wrestling Championships. "There are just so many things you are battling at that time, mentally and physically, that a pure focus on training becomes that much harder. But at the same time, that training gave me a release -- a way to not think about what I was battling through." Blatnick went on to win an Olympic gold medal in 1984, defying all odds. Before 1984, no Greco-Roman wrestler had won an Olympic gold medal. Blatnick was Rulon Gardner, before there the rest of the world had ever heard of Rulon Gardner. Today, Blatnick has to deal with an entirely different set of doubters -- those who don't want him to be an analyst for the NCAA Tournament or the Olympic Games. "You have to look at what you do and try to do it better. Some of the criticisms are true. I mispronounced Ryan Bertin's name on the air when he won a national championship," Blatnick says of his mistakes. "Am I the best broadcaster in the world? I can't say that I am. But I'm going to do my best. I think I'm good at analyzing technique and strategy. But these were the same things I heard about me in my wrestling career." Blatnick also points to less time to meet with wrestlers before competition is aired, as well as a major expansion in ESPN coverage since 2002 as reasons broadcasting the NCAA Tournament has become a tougher task. But broadcasting only takes up a small percentage of Blatnick's life. Since winning his Olympic gold, he has taken up a strong career as a motivational speaker, though he will admit, Rulon hasn't exactly helped business in the past few years. "Rulon deserves everything that he can possibly get," Blatnick said. "The last couple of times I was with Rulon, the relationship was that of training dummy. He's still a physical animal, and I'm a little bit older than he is. I have all the respect in the world for what he's done. I've covered him for years. He's the greatest Greco-Roman wrestler we have. He promotes the sport well. I'm proud of what he's done for wrestling -- both on and off the mat." Blatnick has also started to get more involved with coaching in the last two years. After some gut-check training sessions with Rulon, Blatnick learned that his expertise of the technical aspects of wrestling could be used to help youth wrestlers. Two years ago, Blatnick became a volunteer assistant coach at Burnt Hills High School in New York. Ironically, it is the program that rivaled his high school alma mater, Niskayuna High School, when he was a youth. Jeff Blatnick"It's been fun to get back into the corner and work with kids on a daily basis. I still prefer working with older kids, because they are able to pick up on things a lot quicker, but I do enjoy being involved with all age levels." Yet, with all of this involvement, Blatnick must still find time for his wife, Lori, and his two children, 10 year-old Ian and six year-old Niki. "I used to be able to bring my wife on road trips with me. Once the kids were born, it became tougher. Both of my children are involved with sports, and my wife has become a huge fan of wrestling. I think she screams louder than I do at time," Blatnick stated. But Blatnick can still be heard cheering for wrestlers of all ages. In the past couple of years, he has spent a considerable amount of time working out with Payam Zarrinpour, the Sacred Heart heavyweight who competed at the NCAA Tournament. Zarrinpour, like Blatnick, was not favored to win an NCAA title. Some didn't even think he would earn All-American status. And they were right. But Blatnick's voice could be heard loud and clear when Zarrinpour was on the mat. The excitement in Blatnick's voice had nothing to do with picking favorites. Instead, it had to do with learning never to doubt someone else as many have doubted him.

YPSILANTI, Mich. -- Derek DelPorto, head wrestling coach at Slippery Rock State University for the past two seasons, has been named head wrestling coach at Eastern Michigan University, Athletics Director Derrick Gragg announced today. He will take over the head coaching duties from John Lange who served as the interim head coach this past season. DelPorto will take over an EMU wrestling program that recently opened the Dean Rockwell Wrestling Center and also announced that the program will offer the NCAA maximum scholarships for the first time ever in 2006-07. DelPorto, a former All-American wrestler while a Slippery Rock undergraduate, returned to his alma mater as the head coach at SRU for the 2004-2005 season. DelPorto and his 2005-06 team made the most of the school's final wrestling season, announced at the start of the year, winning the team championship at the NCAA Division I East Regional tournament and advancing a tournament-record 10 wrestlers to weight-class championship final bouts while recording a school record-tying four individual titles. In addition, SRU sent a school-record five wrestlers to the 2006 NCAA Division I National Championships. For his efforts, DelPorto was named NCAA Division I East Regional Coach of the Year. His 2004-05 Slippery Rock squad was the NCAA East Regional runner-up, and had three NCAA Division I championship qualifiers, and had three Academic All-Americans. DelPorto began his coaching career as an assistant coach at Slippery Rock from 1999-2000 before moving on to Oklahoma University as an assistant from 2000-2002. From 2002-2004, DelPorto was an assistant wrestling coach at Cornell University before returning to his alma mater to take over the head coaching duties in 2004. The 29-year-old DelPorto (April 10, 1976) grew up in Erie, Penn. and graduated from Cathedral Prep in Erie, Penn. in 1994. DelPorto went on to wrestle as a collegian at Slippery Rock where he recorded the third-best record in school history at 116-38 in his four seasons. He earned NCAA All-America honors in 1999 after finishing in eighth place in the heavyweight classification at the NCAA Division I championships. He was also a three-time East Regional champion, winning the heavyweight titles in 1998 and 1999 and capturing the 177-pound crown in 1996. DelPorto also won the PSAC heavyweight title in 1998. THE DEREK DelPORTO FILE: Name: Derek Louis DelPorto Born: April 10, 1976 - Erie, Penn. High School: Cathedral Prep (Erie, Penn.-Graduated in 1994) College: Slippery Rock University - graduated in 1999 with a bachelor's in education based English Married: Single Intercollegiate Coaching/Wrestling Experience Year School Position-Highlights 2004-2006 Slippery Rock University Head wrestling coach 2005-2006 Team finished 14-9; NCAA Division I East Regional Coach of the Year; Set tournament record with 10 wrestlers in the East Regional finals; Qualified five wrestlers to the NCAA Division I championships 2004-2005 Team finished 7-16 2003-2004 Cornell University Assistant wrestling coach 2000-2002 Oklahoma University Assistant wrestling coach 1999-2000 Slippery Rock University Assistant wrestling coach 1994-1999 Slippery Rock University Student and varsity wrestling letterman for four years; Finished his career with a 116-38 record; Earned NCAA Division I All-American honors in 1999 with an eighth-place finish in the NCAA Championships; Three-time East Regional champion who won the heavyweight title in 1998 and 1999 and the 177-pound title as a freshman in 1996; Won the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference heavyweight title in 1998

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- After piloting his team to a second straight conference title, North Carolina's C.D. Mock was named Atlantic Coast Conference Wrestling Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season Thursday. The ACC's season-ending awards were determined by a vote of the league's six head coaches. In just his third season at Carolina, Mock mentored three individual ACC champions, seven all-conference wrestlers and six NCAA qualifiers, which was the program's highest total since 2003. And in a year full of injuries, the Tar Heels were able to repeat as conference champions despite missing two of their top wrestlers for essentially the whole season. Carolina went 16-8-1 in duals for their most victories since 1989, and Mock's career record now stands 27-29-1 in three seasons. Mock also coached heavyweight Spencer Nadolsky and 141-pounder Vincent Ramirez to two of the top win totals in program history this season. Nadolsky's 42 victories are the third most for a Tar Heel, while Ramirez's 37 wins tied for sixth on the single-season list. UNC has now captured conference coaching honors 12 times since 1986, as Bill Lam was a 10-time winner before Mock took over the program prior to the 2003-04 season. The future looks bright for the program, as Carolina returns nine of its 10 starters from its 2006 ACC Championships lineup, as well as five of its six nationals qualifiers.

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- The Atlantic Coast Conference announced the recipients of its postseason wrestling awards today, as voted on by the league's six head coaches. Virginia Tech's Mike Faust was named the Wrestler of the Year, while Virginia's Eric Albright was tabbed Freshman of the Year. North Carolina head coach C.D. Mock garnered Coach of the Year accolades for the second straight year. Faust was named the Wrestler of the Year, becoming the first Hokie to garner the award. The heavyweight wrapped up his collegiate career with a fifth-place finish at the NCAA Championships, earning All-America honors. The senior from Baltimore, Md., posted a 37-8 overall record, including a 15-2 record in dual competition. For the second straight year, Faust went undefeated in regular season ACC competition, posting a 5-0 record in his senior campaign. He also won his second consecutive individual heavyweight title at the 2006 ACC Championship. Virginia's Eric Albright becomes the first Cavalier to garner Freshman of the Year honors. Albright compiled an overall record of 29-9, including a 12-3 record in dual matches in his freshman campaign. The York, Pa., native posted a 4-1 mark in regular season ACC competition. The top seed at 133 pounds, Albright earned a third-place finish at the ACC Championship. In just three seasons at the helm of the Tar Heel wrestling program, C.D. Mock has led North Carolina to back-to-back ACC Championships and has been awarded ACC Coach of the Year honors twice. Seven North Carolina wrestlers earned All-ACC honors, having advanced to the finals of their respective weight class, with three capturing individual titles, as the Tar Heels won the 2006 ACC Wrestling Championship. Five Tar Heels participated in the NCAA Championship, as North Carolina posted a 47th-place finish.

NORMAN, Okla. -- Oklahoma Wrestling head coach Jack Spates was today named the Co-Big 12 Coach of the Year along with John Smith of Oklahoma State. Spates earns the honor, voted on by the league coaches, for the third time in his career. "I am extremely excited and grateful," said head coach Jack Spates. "I am very grateful to my staff who I share this honor with because of their hard work and devotion to our program as well." The Sooners turned in a second place finish at the Big 12 Championships in Ames, Iowa, with Sam Hazewinkel winning the 125-pound title and Teyon Ware, Matt Storniolo and Jake Hager all claiming second place finishes. In the process the Sooners qualified eight wrestlers for the NCAA Championships. At the NCAA Championships, the Sooners finished in third place behind Oklahoma State and Minnesota. Ware finished as the national runner-up (141). "I am truly blessed to have such a wonderful group of student-athletes who I can also share this award with. My kids are extremely talented on and off the mat and they are the ones who make these awards possible," continued Spates. Spates has led the Sooner grapplers to top three finishes four out of the last five years. Spates was also named the 2002 Big 12 Coach of the Year and the 1999 Co-Big 12 Coach of the Year following Big 12 Championships both seasons. This is the second coach of the year award for Spates this week. Following the conclusion of the NCAA Championships Spates was named the 2006 NWCA Coach of the Year by the NWCA. The National Wrestling Coaches Association, established in 1928, is a professional organization dedicated to serve and provide leadership for the advancement of all levels of the sport of wrestling with primary emphasis on scholastic and collegiate programs. The membership embraces all people interested in amateur wrestling. Spates has an overall career record of 307-90-8 and a record of 183-74-7 while at OU. Prior to coming to Norman Spates was the head coach at Cornell from 1988-93, and has been at the helm of the Sooners since 1993. For more information on OU wrestling visit www.SoonerSports.com

Shortly after winning the 174-pound title last Saturday night at the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships held at the Ford Center in Oklahoma City, Missouri's Ben Askren was asked if he was the best pound-for-pound wrestler in the country. "I've worked long and hard not to just be the best wrestler in my weight class, but the best wrestler in the nation, period," said Askren, after dominating Northwestern's previously-unbeaten Jake Herbert, 14-2, in the finals. "I try to go out there and make it exciting every time for the fans, give them what they want." 2006 Rev Wrestler of the Year Voting 1st-5th-Place Votes -- 9-7-5-3-1 (First-Place Votes) : 1. Ben Askren, Missouri -- 63 (7) 2. Cole Konrad, Minnesota -- 58 (1) 3. Nate Gallick, ISU -- 21 4. Les Sigman, Neb.-Omaha -- 19 5. Dustin Schlatter, Minnesota -- 17 6. Shane Webster, Oregon -- 5 7. Johny Hendricks, OSU -- 4 7. Jake Rosholt, OSU -- 4 7. Joe Dubuque, Indiana -- 4 10. Troy Nickerson, Cornell -- 3 11. Matt Valenti, Penn -- 1 11. Earl Jones, Central Oklahoma -- 1On Wednesday night, Askren was named 2006 Rev Wrestler of the Year by RevWrestling.com. The award is given annually to the nation's top collegiate wrestler across all divisions of wrestling as voted on by the writers and executives of RevWrestling.com. Askren, who hails from Hartland, Wisconsin, won by five votes (63-58) over fellow Wisconsin native Cole Konrad, who won the heavyweight title for Minnesota. Askren received seven of the eight first-place votes, with the other vote going to Konrad. Askren finished his junior season with a perfect 45-0 record, which is the only undefeated season in the history of the Missouri program. He also set season records for pins (25), consecutive wins (45), and currently owns the record for most career pins at Missouri (61). "Ben Askren put together one of the most dominating single seasons in the history of NCAA wrestling," said RevWrestling.com senior writer Andrew Hipps. "He made it look easy while wrestling with a wide-open style that is extremely entertaining to watch." Ben Askren (Photo/Danielle Hobeika)Missouri coach Brian Smith, who guided the Tigers to a 15th-place finish at the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, has high praise for his junior standout. "It's hard to get mad at a kid who is a straight-A student, does everything right, has a passion for this thing that he loves, which is wrestling, and lives it," said Smith. "That goes to the room. Our team in the summer works out with Ben … and follows Ben. He's the leader of the team. A kid that's like that, you don't want to pull the reins too much because what he's doing is something special and it's something that he loves." Iowa State's Nate Gallick, who won the 141-pound NCAA title and finished his senior season with a 35-0 record, came in third with 21 votes. Nebraska-Omaha's Les Sigman, who capped off his career with a fourth NCAA Division II title at heavyweight, was fourth with 19 votes. Dustin Schlatter of Minnesota, who won the 149-pound title as a true freshman, rounded out the top five with 17 votes. Others wrestlers who received votes included Shane Webster of Oregon, Johny Hendricks and Jake Rosholt of Oklahoma State, Joe Dubuque of Indiana, Troy Nickerson of Cornell, Matt Valenti of Penn, and Earl Jones of Central Oklahoma. Launched in October 2005, RevWrestling.com covers all aspects of amateur wrestling, including high school, all divisions of college wrestling, freestyle and Greco-Roman competition, and Real Pro Wrestling. The Web site, located at www.RevWrestling.com, provides wrestling fans with timely wrestling news coverage along with unique content features such as Rev Rankings, exclusive athlete profiles, and hard-hitting analysis of major issues affecting amateur wrestling.