InterMat Staff

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Illinois wrestling assistant coach and three-time All-American Mike Poeta will be the featured speaker at a coaches clinic at Lyons Township High School in LaGrange, Ill., on Sunday, Sept. 27. Registration will be from 1-2 p.m., with the clinic running from 2-3:30 p.m. The clinic will be followed by a demonstration by the Illinois wrestling team from 3:30-5 p.m. "This is a great opportunity for us to improve our relations with many of the coaches in the Chicago area without asking them to come to Champaign," Illinois head coach Jim Heffernan said. "It's also something we plan to do more of in the future." The cost for the clinic is $20 and is open to coaches of all levels, while the demonstration by the Illini wrestlers is $10 and is open to coaches and wrestlers of all levels. Registration can be done online at http://www.fightingillini.com/camps or at Lyons Township High School on the day of the clinic.

Columbia, Mo. -- The nationally ranked Missouri wrestling team released its 2009-10 schedule today as announced by Head Coach Brian Smith. The Tigers will open the 64th season of Missouri wrestling on Sunday, Nov. 1, at 1 p.m. (CT) with the annual Black and Gold meet held in the Hearnes Center. Throughout the campaign, Missouri will host six home events, including the dual-opener against Illinois on Thursday, Nov. 12, at 6:30 p.m. Smith, entering his 12th year as head coach of the Tigers, will lead the squad through a challenging schedule that includes duals against five teams that finished among the top 25 in the nation at the 2009 NCAA Championships. "Our team and staff are anxious to get another season of TigerStyle wrestling underway," Smith said. "We've scheduled a lot of solid opponents for the upcoming year, and our guys will take on some of the best in the field. In addition to our 11 scheduled duals, the team will be traveling to three tournaments and will compete in our annual Missouri Open, Nov. 22." Big 12 action will begin on Friday, Jan. 29 as the Tigers take on the Nebraska Cornhuskers in a 7 p.m. (CT) dual in Lincoln, Neb. Missouri will host Oklahoma and Oklahoma State in back-to-back duals, Saturday, Feb. 6 and Sunday, Feb. 7, before closing out the dual season on Feb. 14 against Iowa State in Ames. The 14th annual Big 12 Championships return to Norman, Okla., for the third time in league history and first time since 2002. All five Big 12 squads are expected to rank among the top 15 teams in the nation. The wrestling season concludes at the 80th annual NCAA Division I Championships, March 18-20, at the Qwest Center in Omaha, Neb. The Tigers return three All-Americans including 2009 NCAA heavyweight champion Mark Ellis for the upcoming season. Additionally, five members of Missouri's 10-man lineup are prior NCAA qualifiers.

FARGO, N.D. -- North Dakota State head wrestling coach Bucky Maughan has announced the hiring of Roger Kish as an assistant coach. Kish joins the NDSU program after a successful wrestling career at the University of Minnesota. Roger Kish“We’re excited to have a wrestler with such an outstanding background joining our coaching staff,” said Maughan. “Roger will be a tremendous help with our upper weights both on the mat and from a recruiting aspect.” Kish was a graduate assistant for the Gophers last year. Kish, a LaPeer, Mich. native, was a two-time All-American and two-time NCAA runner-up for the Gophers at 184 pounds. He had a career record of 117-27 for the Gophers. As a sophomore, he went 35-7 en route to a Big Ten title and an NCAA runner-up finish. In his junior season, Kish was 37-3 and was the Big Ten and national runner-up. He was also a team captain. Kish graduated from Minnesota in May 2008 with a BS in business and marketing education. He was also a two-time cadet national champion and also captured a USA Wrestling junior national title. At LaPeer West High School (Mich.), he was a four-time Michigan state champion. Kish is the son of Roger and Brenda Kish. His older brother, James, wrestled at North Carolina.

I have heard endless debates about whether mixed martial arts (MMA) is good for amateur wrestlers or the sport of amateur wrestling in general. Here’s the thing ... Regardless of whether you like MMA or not, it’s here to stay. It’s no longer a fad, it’s not new, and it’s about to go mainstream on local TV in the next few years. The UFC just completed a deal in England to have it on local channels. The U.S. can’t be far behind. Many make the argument that it takes away senior level wrestlers from training full-time and gives the U.S. weaker World and Olympic teams. That argument can go on and on with both sides having valid points. Whichever way you feel is a personal opinion ... and one that I’m not here to argue. But my question is, “When is a professional wrestling league or organization going to step up and expand the sport?” Why isn’t someone modeling what the UFC built in 2005 under Dana White and the Fertitta brothers? The formula is working and the sport is growing at a rapid pace. Fans spring up from everywhere to watch cage fighting. Why hasn’t a league formed for professional wrestling? I’m not talking about the failed Real Professional Wrestling (RPW) league. In the UFC, there are weight classes and individual fighters. Why aren’t there a set of weight class and individual wrestlers making a living in the sport they love? If we can fill arenas for the NCAA Championships and collegiate dual meets between powerhouse programs, there is no reason to believe that we can’t fill an arena once a month, or once every six weeks, to see the best wrestlers of this era go head-to-head. Wrestlers could finish their college wrestling careers, join a wrestling club, like the Sunkist Kids, Gator Wrestling Club, or New York Athletic Club, and then prepare for a run at a championship belt. Can anybody past or present within 30 pounds beat Cael Sanderson? Do techniques that worked in the mid nineties still work in this day in age? Are wrestlers now or then more fit? Here’s one way to find out. We need great owners and venues. We need to model the MMA system. And we need to let wrestlers be individuals and make money from apparel, sponsors, and camps. You can’t tell me that Iowa can sell out Carver Hawkeye Arena for college wrestling dual meets, support the Barnstormers Arena Football League team and the Iowa Cubs minor league baseball team, but couldn’t host and sell out pro wrestling cards filled with intriguing matchups? Imagine Henry Cejudo vs. Shawn Bunch. Or Jamill Kelly vs. Trent Paulson. Or Cael Sanderson vs. Mo Lawal. We would settle the age arguments. It would give wrestlers a career and a job outside of coaching. A wrestler could coach, like the MMA fighters do, and train at the same time. Wrestlers could open up clubs and camps for wrestlers of all ages, from high school wrestlers preparing for college, college wrestlers training for collegiate wrestling, to pro wrestlers gearing up for pro matches. MMA clubs are the biggest things going on these days. They have a great slogan, 'Why spend $80 a month at a pretentious health clubs with mirrors everywhere? Instead, come to our club and we can train you in fine martial arts.' There must be thousands of former high school wrestlers who gave the sport up for a career and/or to start a family, or weren’t good enough for college wrestling, that would love to roll a few times a week and gladly pay gym fees. Take a look at the latest payouts to former wrestlers on the UFC 102 card: • Mike Russow: $20,000 ($10,000 to show and $10,000 to win) • Jake Rosholt: $26,000 ($13,000 to show and $13,000 to win) (He also won Submission of the Night, netting him another $60,000) • Mark Munoz: $24,000 ($12,000 to show and $12,000 to win) • Aaron Simpson: $18,000 ($9,000 to show and $9,000 to win) These are only the fighter purses. They also get sponsorships money, UFC pay-per-view money, insurance for injury, plus other bonuses through the UFC. The fighters I listed are former wrestlers just getting started in MMA and they are making good money. Why can’t wrestling adopt something similar? Maybe we won’t have great pay gauges at first, but looking at MMA, it shows us that there is room for this kind of venture. These fighters can only fight three or maybe four times a year. A wrestler could compete up to once every month ... or every other month. Opportunity is staring the wrestling community in the face. You’re telling me that a sport that only starting running correctly in 2005 can grow at this rate and wrestling can’t even get off the ground? Wrestling is the world’s oldest and greatest sport. It can work. It should work. So why isn’t there anything going on yet? Let’s not debate whether MMA is good or bad for wrestling. Instead, let’s get this thing going and show the world what wrestling is really about. Bring pro wrestling to life! Stay tuned for Tony Nguyen’s preview of the wrestlers fighting on Wednesday's UFC Ultimate Fight Night card. He will break down all the wrestlers on the card, their strengths and weaknesses, and how they can win. You can also follow Tony on Twitter at http://twitter.com/TonyNguyenMMA.

Jay Weiss

Scottsdale, AZ -- AZWrestler.com, an Arizona based wrestling news website,today announced a merger with ArizonaWrestling.net, an Arizona based social network geared towards the Arizona wrestling community. "Merging AZWrestlers loyal fan base with the latest technology the web has to offer will certainly create one of the nation’s best wrestling websites if not the best. This will help our wrestling community to grow and improve as well as help our athletes get the recognition they deserve. I am excited about the future of wrestling in Arizona and I am proud to be part of it." said AzWrestler's Vince Buccellato about the merger of AzWrestler and ArizonaWrestling. By combining the rich tradition and following of AZWrestler with the social networking and video technology of ArizonaWrestling, the merger will allow for the creation of possibly, the top state based wrestling website in the United States. "This merger allows our social networking tool, Wrestle-Connect, to provide an even bigger audience the opportunity to use our advanced technological platform to provide themselves better opportunities", says new AzWrestler co-owner Tony Pagliocco. The site will be in a Beta stage, for a soft opening, until a formal grand relaunch date is announced. About AZWrestler Founded in 1998, AZWrestler is a pioneer in online wrestling news. The site's mission is to provide up to date news for the entire state of Arizona and to help develop opportunities for wrestlers of all ages. For more information please visit us at www.azwrestler.com

Former Missouri All American Wrestler and Comedy Central star Greg "Fluteman" Warren is in town appearing at the Funny Bone Comedy club this weekend and may pop in to give us some comedy relief. So, the Brute Adidas studios will be lively again this week with the best in sports talk radio, Wrestling Talk! The gang is back together again. Join Steve Foster, Chris Arns, Randy Crimmins, James Moncherry, Will Shutt and I for the best two hours in radio Saturdays at 9 a.m. CST at Takedownradio.com. Our Guests this week include: 9:05 Rob Koll- Head Coach of Cornell's Big Red 9:20 Guy Sako- Founder of Defense Soap 9:40 Kevin Jackson- Head Coach of the Cyclones of Iowa State 10:05 Greg Jackson- One of the Top MMA Trainers in the World has a new Book "the Standup Game" 10:20 Craig Sesker- Wrestling writer and man about town to talk about Denmark 10:45 Maureen Roshar of Wildrose Casino and Resort Clinton, Iowa Missed an episode of TDR? Now You can get TDR on your PDA or iPhone at Lightsout.tv and at iTunes Please note that Episode 22 of TDRtv is now up on all the top web sites around the country and is available for your viewing. Please join us for the show that started it all, Takedownradio.com. America's Wrestling Radio Talk Show is on Supertalk 1570 in Michigan, AM 1460 KXNO in Iowa and on a radio station near you or on line at many of our broadcast partners around the world including Takedownradio.com. We air 9 AM to 11 AM CST every Saturday morning and look forward to having you listen in.

Greg Jackson

So you want to be a wrestling coach? You want to stick around, work on some graduate courses and keep ties with all your neighborhood bartenders during happy hour. You want to get paid to work out, that’s all coaching is, right? Drew Pariano (right) served as the head coach at Cornell College in Mount Vernon, Iowa for two seasons before returning to his alma mater and joining Tim Cysewski's coaching staff at Northwestern in 2005 (Photo/Danielle Hobeika)Some coaches know there are more attributes to coaching than having success on the mat as a competitor. Some don’t. One program that “gets it” is Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. For starters, many coaching careers begin with staying on at one’s alma mater, working as a graduate assistant or volunteer coach as they complete their degrees or the aforementioned graduate degrees. Others set a course for smaller programs in order to build their resume and get a head job. Some many end up back at their alma mater. Northwestern head coach Tim Cysewski has a little bit of both on staff -- associate head coach Drew Pariano, who coached in Division III before resurfacing at his alma mater and new assistant Matt Storniolo, fresh off a two-year stint from his first coaching position at Old Dominion after he placed as a sophomore and junior as a competitor at Oklahoma. Pariano was a four-year starter for the Wildcats and after his career on the mats ended, a new one began in the corner. He set off for his native Ohio, as an assistant at Cleveland’s John Carroll University. It was at John Carroll where Pariano found the itch to make coaching his life. “Kerry Volkmann's been there for a long time,” said Pariano. “They've had two head coaches in the history of John Carroll wrestling. You're working with a guy who knows the ins and outs of Division III wrestling. “There was a time when JCU was beating Cleveland State in duals when CSU had formidable teams. The thing that Kerry let me do was he let me take the reins. Starting freestyle in the spring. Once I got to do it all and I tasted that, I can do the recruiting, I can do the coaching, I can do the motivation, I can do the off-season practices, I don't know if it was the power of it, but it just grabbed a hold of me. I'm dedicated to this.” It was Pariano’s new appreciation for coaching which caused him to change his focus in his graduate program, since class was getting in the way of Ohio Athletic Conference dual meets. After that three-year run at John Carroll, Pariano landed a head coaching job at Iowa’s Cornell College. “I was looking at Division I jobs at that point and didn’t want to be a volunteer or second assistant and the Cornell job came up,” explained Pariano. “I figured, it’s in Iowa, I’m 15 miles from Iowa City. I can draw off the Hawkeye Club, I can draw off Iowa City. Drew Pariano“At the time, I was the first or second youngest head coach in the country and that was intriguing. I could change a whole program which had seen its hardest times,” he said. With 32 new wrestlers brought into the program in his two years, Pariano didn’t see his time in Iowa coming to an end until a phone call to his old coach at Northwestern. After Tony Ersland left Northwestern, Pariano called Cysewski to drop some names for an upper weight coach to fill the void in Evanston. Penn head coach Rob Eiter, who was an assistant at Northwestern at the time, called Pariano back and said “Why not you?” Now Pariano was presented with an opportunity that is common for assistant coaches, sitting in the corner at their alma mater, but his road to get there -- two Division III schools -- isn’t the most common highway. “There’s always a fear when you switch divisions,” Pariano said. “Can you re-enter Division I?” Pariano did and finds himself constantly busy, because as he puts it, being a career college wrestling coaches isn’t just about putting on shorts and a t-shirt and wrestling with kids every day. “If you want to be a good coach, you have to work as many hours as possible during the day,” he said. “If I can work until the coffee wears off, I can get a lot done in a day. “At Cornell, you could find me sleeping in the office if we had a 6 a.m. workout the next day,” he said. Chris HeilmanChris Heilman, a three-time Division III All-American for Cornell College and current assistant coach at Division II St. Cloud State, was high on Pariano despite only wrestling for him for one season and saw first-hand the amount of time he put in. “He has a strong work ethic,” said Heilman. “He knows how to run a room and he loves getting the school name out there. He does a lot for his wrestlers on and off the mat. “I worked with him as a work study student for the athletic department and there are not many coaches who will work as hard to make sure his wrestlers are getting everything they need,” he said. It was during his time at Cornell where Pariano had an epiphany, if you will. “You have to convince guys to buy into the coaching plan for them, it’s not for you, it’s for your athletes,” he said. “In Division III, guys have varying interests and commitment levels. When you deal with that, compared to when you jump back into Division I where guys have that instinct to win and do everything you expect them to ... if you can instill that in Division III and motivate those guys to stay on a team and start winning, then you can motivate anybody.” “I knew Drew when recruiting him and the process and his brother Tony (an All-American at Northwestern), so it was a good relationship from the beginning,” said Cysewski. “I’d watched his progress. He’d call me out of the blue every once and a while and ask for advice. “(With Drew) there was a certain level of familiarity with the program,” said Cysewski. “He grew up in our program and sees the positives that he got out of coming to Northwestern. He wanted to be challenged at a higher level. He had a background in getting good kids to those other colleges and at Northwestern, it’s getting the higher level kid to come here and wrestle in the Big Ten.” With Cysewski and Pariano running the ship at Northwestern, an opening arose on staff and Storniolo came knocking on the door. Storniolo reluctantly landed his first coaching job out of college at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Va., and it wasn’t exactly what he envisioned after not placing as the second seed at the 2007 NCAA Championships. Matt Storniolo (left) spent two seasons coaching at Old Dominion with Steve Martin (right) before being hired at Northwestern in July (Photo/Danielle Hobeika)“I never saw myself taking a position like I did at ODU,” he said. “I felt like I ended up there because things didn’t work out so well my senior year. I didn’t have too many options and of the ones I did, that was the most appealing. I know coach (Steve) Martin was working hard and had the ball rolling in the right direction and I thought it was time for me to move on from Oklahoma after my senior season. “(ODU) was an excellent program for me to start off with, I can’t say anything bad about my time there. It gave me the chance to end up with a guy like Ryan Williams, who got me on to that finals stage that I didn’t get as a competitor and it opened up doors in getting me into the Big Ten.” Williams became the first Monarch to reach the NCAA finals since 1992 and only the second in the program’s history at the Division I level. Storniolo was a big reason as to why. “The first time we wrestled, he took me down and rode me for 30 minutes,” said Williams, who is settling into his first season as a graduate assistant at ODU. “I laid on my stomach for 30 minutes. For me, bottom was one of my best positions ... and there’s this guy. I knew he was definitely going to help me ride on top.” Cysewski found Storniolo’s personality and immediate plus, not to mention, a need for a coach to work more closely on the mat with the Wildcat middle weights. Williams can speak on personality first hand. “A lot of it was a confidence thing with me,” Williams said. “Matt is a great coach. He’s good on breaking down and looking at your wrestling and knowing what you need to do. The biggest thing he did was put scrambling into technique for me. (Coach) Martin is big on technique and Matt broke it down for me so I could understand it.” “He's the right weight class,” said Cysewski. “We need some good people in that area to work with the middle weights. He's excellent on his feet and a great communicator. We've had the guys work with him already and just the way he communicates with the guys.” Matt StornioloWith the preseason workouts still picking up speed, Storniolo’s had a chance to get his hands on a few of the Wildcat wrestlers already, including sophomore Jason Welch, a wrestler who looks to immediately reap the benefits of Storniolo’s presence. “I’m really excited to have the opportunity to roll around with Jason,” said Storniolo. “He’s my favorite to wrestle because our styles are really similar. I wish I could video tape practice, because it’s really fun to watch. We’re like two ferrets attacking each other.” “It'll help Jason reach his goals in being a national champ here,” said Cysewski. “It can really help guys like Jason, he's got good basic stuff, but has the funky stuff too. Matt can definitely help him in certain areas and when to pull the trigger in certain situations. Andrew (Nadir) is going to be great, Robert Kellogg is going to benefit. It's one of those things, he'll coach anyone who wants to work with him.” Storniolo’s impact on Welch is already expected to be with the athletic scrambling style the California native brings to the mat. But with school just starting up, Welch’s first tussle with Storniolo didn’t go the same as Williams’ did. “It would have been,” said Welch. “But (Storniolo) let me go because he was getting bored on top. I feel some of my weaknesses are his strengths and that’s going to benefit me. It wasn’t bringing in a coach whose strengths were the same as mine, but it’ll be great for me the next few years.” Jason Welch (Photo/Tech-Fall.com)Welch will have a full year with Storniolo before suiting up for Northwestern again. “I’ll be redshirting and then I’ll hopefully come back and win (the NCAA Championship) three times,” said Welch, who also mentioned rumors of a transfer were “blown out of proportion.” “As far as the wrestling goes here (at Northwestern), it’s awesome,” Welch said. “The only downfall for me is it snows and it’s far away from home, but everything else is cool. I’m excited Storniolo is here now. “I was really excited because I heard a lot of good things about him from (Jake) Herbert and (former Penn State All-American) Mark McKnight. They had a lot of good things to say about him. He surfs, too,” said Welch. Pariano thinks Storniolo has the tools to make a good college coach and they were tools he noticed long before an application came across Cysewski’s desk. “He really took that experience that was given to him at Old Dominion and made the most of it,” Pariano said. “I saw it at The Midlands when he was real passionate about things. There were some seeding issues first thing in the morning and he was barking. “If you didn’t care and it wasn’t your life, you’d just roll with the punches and he doesn’t do that. It’s not just the NCAA tournament (with Williams), you have to view what a guy is like in the room,” Pariano said. Pariano’s already had a lot of time with Storniolo, helping groom the former Sooner for his first paid coaching position. “Matt and I have gone through with a process on exactly how to do things. He’s wide-eyed and ready to go every day. You have to have people that are ready to learn and they’re ready to move up in the ranks and Matt has. He has very quickly. With Williams last year, you saw the drive (Storniolo) had,” said Pariano. “You can see it in a guy’s eyes. I want guys like Matt, guys like myself. They make wrestling their lifestyle. Matt said in his interview, ‘I want this to be my profession’, and that was it for us,” said Pariano. “There are a lot of things I bring to the table, and there are a lot of guys here eager to learn and they’ve already started picking my brain,” Storniolo said. “I know the guys at ODU really enjoyed my personality and how I treated them and I’m going to bring that same approach to Northwestern. “(The kids) are not just a number or a weight class to me, I’m going to invest myself into them,” he said. Unlike Pariano who started out in Division III, Storniolo would prefer to stick to the Division I coaching ladder. “I really enjoy working with the Division I athletes,” he said. “Not to take anything away from Division II or III, but I wrestled Division I and that’s where I started coaching and that’s where my passion lies -- being on the big scene with the top athletes.” But should more success come Storniolo’s way, will he be looking to jump ship at the better offer after one or two seasons? “I’m really excited about my current position at Northwestern and I plan on being here quite a while, but down the road, you can’t rule out any opportunities. I love it here. Tim and Drew are a thrill to work with and we have a lot of fun in the office,” said Storniolo. Storniolo’s living situation is also ideal. He’s in what Pariano calls “a grown up wrestling house.” It’s Herbert, Storniolo, volunteer assistant Will Durkee and his former Virginia teammate Tim Foley, McKnight soon to enter the fray -- or as the guys call it -- the hallway. It’s four blocks from Wrigley Field. There’s even some loose change on the floor with a note that reads “Tim Foley’s life savings.” So maybe five 20-somethings isn’t exactly fully grown-up, but there’s a lot of wrestling knowledge under one roof and in the practice room in Evanston. Pariano still puts much praise on his former coach and current mentor, Cysewski. “Working with Tim is phenomenal,” said Pariano. “I know certain guys have done it, but I don't think it's that common, you wrestle for a guy, then you go off, get your Masters and get a head coaching job and get some experience when you're in charge of things, then you come back and you're working for him, it's a rare situation.” But as the NWCA Coaches Leadership Academy explained at the Convention, Pariano’s sentiments about coaching as a profession are filled with passion. “You have to be organized, you have to be intelligent,” he said. “It's no longer a sport where you're just ramming your head against the wall and the coach is just saying work harder. It's not about ramming your head, it's about being smarter than your opponent. If you're not trying to watch video and pick up technical aspects of the sport as well as knowing when your athlete needs to push harder and once in a while, take a break, you're not doing your job right. “I laugh when a lot of kids say they just want to be a coach, they have no idea,” said Pariano. “Matt knows how much goes into it. The organization, the recruiting, the organization of recruiting, keeping countable hours, it’s so much further than just working out.” If you want to be a college wrestling coach, Northwestern’s program proves there’s more to the work than just working out.

Spencer Myers was recruited by many of the nation's top college wrestling programs and had a difficult decision to make. But in the end, he decided that the University of Maryland provided everything he was looking for in a college experience. Spencer Myers (Photo/Don Herb)"Maryland offers everything I need academically and athletically," said Myers, through an e-mail to InterMat. "I felt at home at Maryland and got along well with the coaches and the wrestlers. This is important to me because I'll be living with them for the next five years. At Maryland, I believe they can help make me a four-time national champ, a great student, and a well-balanced person." Myers, a Pennsylvania state runner-up this past season at Selinsgrove High School, is three-time NHSCA Nationals finalist. He won the national title as a freshman and finished runner-up at the event the past two seasons. He was also a Junior Nationals All-American in freestyle this past summer in Fargo, placing fifth at 215 pounds. He is ranked as InterMat's No. 60 senior recruit in the country. Myers also said having the opportunity to work with Maryland head coach Kerry McCoy, one of the greatest U.S. heavyweights in history, factored into his decision. "I need to be able to wrestle big guys and be able to create angles for my shots," said Myers, who competed at 215 last season but projects as a college heavyweight. "Coach McCoy has the experience with wrestling against bigger opponents also. I would love to win four national titles at 285 and since Coach McCoy has won two, he knows what it takes and the technique needed. Working with Coach McCoy will make all the difference in my success as a wrestler." Myers, who is also a football and track standout, is relieved that the recruiting process is over and now he can focus on accomplishing his high school wrestling goals, which include winning the district, regional, and state titles, going undefeated and earning the No. 1 ranking, and breaking the Pennsylvania falls record. He also wants to finish his senior year with a 4.0 grade point average. Kerry McCoy"As this (recruiting) process began, I wasn't sure what to expect," said Myers. "It was very overwhelming at times. It was a huge decision in trying to find the right fit for me. Although there are many great places where I'm sure I would have felt at home, I believe I made the best choice. However, through this process, I had the opportunity to meet some great coaches and gained a lot of respect for the coaches and their programs. It will be awesome to be around them for the next five years. The hardest part of this whole process was telling the other coaches about my decision as I didn't want to let them down. Overall, I’m glad that I was fortunate enough to have this experience." As for college wrestling goals, Myers has many things he would like to accomplish during his time in College Park, Maryland. "I know I have set my goals high, but if I put my mind to it and do what is required, I can achieve my goals of becoming a four-time time national champ," said Myers. "Yes, I know that has only been accomplished once, but I know I can be the next. If one person can do it, so can another. I will also work to be a four-time ACC champ and ACC Wrestler of the Year. Academically, I want to be an Academic All-American and strive for a 4.0. My last goal is to be able to kick Coach McCoy's butt before I end my career."

WEST POINT, N.Y. -- Former Williams College head coach Rafael Vega has joined the Army Wrestling staff, Athletic Director Kevin Anderson and head wrestling coach Chuck Barbee announced. Vega comes to West Point following his seven-year tenure at Williams College that included All-American honors on the mat and in the classroom. “We are excited to welcome Rafael to the Army Wrestling program,” said Barbee. “He has developed talent at every level not only in the wrestling room but in the classroom as well. He is a hard worker and excited about this opportunity to work at the U.S. Military Academy. He understands the challenges and his tireless work ethic as an instructor and as a recruiter is going to be a great benefit to our program.” While at Williams, a Division III school in Williamstown, Mass., Vega coached four All-Americans and 14 Academic All-Americans. Among those wrestlers he guided were Ryan Malo, a national finalist, Corey Paulish, a fourth-place finisher as a sophomore, Tom Priare, a national finalist and three-time All-American and John Dolan, also a three-time All-American. The Ephs led Division III wrestling with a 3.54 grade point average, a figure that was in the top 10 of all sports at that level. Under Vega, Williams won the New England Wrestling Association title last year, placed in the top-three in the conference on five occasions and in the top-six six times while producing 30 All-New England wrestlers. “Rafael comes from a strong academic school so he has an idea of the type of young men we recruit,” said Barbee. “His experience, coupled with his success as a scholastic and collegiate wrestler, was really what set him apart from some other quality candidates.” Prior to joining the Williams staff as an assistant in 2001, Vega served as a volunteer at Mount Anthony Union High School and as a coach and clinician at Bruce Baumgartner’s World Class Camp for two years. As a high school wrestler in Vermont, Vega was a USA Wrestling All-America, chosen to represent the U.S. in the Dapper Dan Classic and secured Junior Olympic European championships in both freestyle and Greco roman. Vega chose Edinboro University and was nationally ranked in all four of his seasons. Twice, he finished third at the Eastern Wrestling League championships and was a two-time NCAA qualifier. The Edinboro Wrestling Rookie of the Year, Vega twice placed at the nationally renowned Midlands Tournament and was a three-time Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference finalist. Vega also starred internationally, winning the Tour de Monde Junior Olympic Czechoslovakian freestyle and Greco Roman championships and the Tour de Monde Junior Olympic German freestyle and Greco Roman championships.

Boiling Springs, N.C. -- Gardner-Webb wrestling head coach Richard Wince is pleased to announce the addition of Rocco Caponi to the wrestling coaching staff. Caponi brings a wealth of experience with him to Gardner-Webb as he was a member of the wrestling team and a team captain at the University of Virginia from 2004-2009. While at Virginia, Caponi qualified for the NCAA Tournament four times and was a three-time individual ACC Tournament Championships en route to picking up 111 career wins. Caponi, who graduated from the University of Virginia in 2008 with a bachelor’s degree in Studies of Women and Gender, is also the creator, camp director and clinician of the Rocco Caponi’s National Champ Camp, which was held in June 2004. “I’m delighted to have Rocco in the program,” stated Coach Wince. “He brings the qualities we normally want to see in an assistant coach, namely, great physical talent and ability, sound teaching and pedagogy, and a great work ethic. He is also bright, imaginative, and what I would call a ‘colorful character,’ something increasingly rare in college coaching. With his distinctly eclectic world view, he will help bring the whole ‘total educational experience’ of our athletes to a higher level.” While at Gardner-Webb, Caponi will be pursuing his master’s degree in Sports Science and Pedagogy.

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Since completing his career at Northwestern in March as a two-time NCAA champion, Jake Herbert has been on a mission to meet the next challenge in his life: becoming a world champion freestyle wrestler. It began in April with his U.S. National Championship and continued when he came away victorious at the USA World Team Trials in the 84-kg weight class. Herbert earned a spot on the World Team and the right to compete at the World Championships Sept. 21-27 in Denmark. Before departing on his quest to become a world champ, Herbert chatted with NUsports.com to explain his expectations for the trip and what his training regimen has consisted of since qualifying for the USA World Team in June: "I can't believe the calendar has already hit September and I'm less than 20 days away from wrestling for my first world title. The closest comparison I can make is that it's like Christmas day -- you wait and wait for it and then all of a sudden it's here before you know it. I plan on taking advantage of the moment and enjoying everything that goes along with it. I've been working my whole life for this and even though I know it won't be my last chance to prove that I am the best in the world, I still don't want to let this one slip away. Being at the Olympic training center with a full-time focus on freestyle wrestling has improved my technique and comfort level with freestyle more quickly than I ever imagined. Every training session we have an Olympic gold medalist from '84, '88, '92, '96 and 2000 working with our team. Just when you think you have one aspect of wrestling mastered, bam, you move into something totally different and work with your heroes like John Smith, Mark Schultz, Zeke Jones, Brandon Slay and Mike Zadick. They can offer just the littlest pieces of advice that make such huge difference in your wrestling and those are the things that make the diffidence between winning gold at the World Championships and not placing. Most importantly I know I am ready to wrestle harder and better than I ever have because I know I'm peaking at the right time physically and mentally. I've been in constant contact with my coaches at Northwestern and they've been phenomenal in supporting me throughout the process. Honestly I need to thank every single person that has helped me along the way, from my first wrestling coach, my family, everybody at Northwestern, the Overtime School of Wrestling and the Olympic Training Center that has taken time to just help me even if it's just offering a "good job" or showing me a new technique to try. Every little bit helps and we all hope the end result will be me standing in the middle of the mat exhausted but with a World Championship medal around my neck. -Jake"

NORMAN, Okla. – Oklahoma Head Wrestling Coach Jack Spates announced the 2009-10 wrestling scheduled Wednesday. “As always, this is a very challenging schedule,” Spates said. “The competition at the Brockport/Oklahoma Gold Classic has been bolstered with 2009 national runner-up Ohio State joining the field. We have added the Las Vegas tournament and will also compete in the Virginia Duals this season. This is a schedule that will challenge our young men and prepare them for the NCAAs.” The Sooners will kick off the season by holding the annual Red/White intrasquad scrimmage on Nov. 5 at the McCasland Field House in Norman before official competition begins Nov. 11 on the road at Central Oklahoma. Oklahoma will host its home opener on Nov. 22 against the Pac-10’s Arizona State. The 15-match season also includes seven home duals versus Oklahoma City and North Carolina State (Nov. 28), Oklahoma State (Dec. 1), Cal Poly (Jan. 3), Iowa State (Jan. 22), Chattanooga (Feb. 12) and Oregon State (Feb. 14). The dual versus Chattanooga will mark the third annual Beauty and the Beast event, where Sooner wrestlers will compete alongside the women’s gymnastics team at the Lloyd Noble Center in Norman. Spates’ squad will challenge for its 11th straight Brockport/Oklahoma Gold Classic title on Nov. 14 in Brockport, N.Y. Also on this season’s slate is the Cliff Keen Invitational in Primm, Nev., held Dec. 4-5 and the Virginia Duals held Jan. 8-9 in Hampton, Va. Other road contests include Big 12 matchups at Nebraska (Feb. 4) and Missouri (Feb. 6). OU will close its schedule on the road with its second matchup of the season versus in-state rival Oklahoma State on Feb. 21 in Stillwater, Okla. For the first time since 2002, Oklahoma will play host to the 2010 Big 12 Championships in Norman at the McCasland Field House on March 6. Omaha, Neb., will host this season’s NCAA Championships March 18-20 at the Qwest Center. “One of the highlights of our year will be hosting the Big 12 Championships in Norman,” Spates said. “We won the championship last time we hosted in 2002. We are eager to once again bring the Big 12’s best to Norman.”

The CCC Wrestling team announced its 2009-2010 schedule, which includes five home matches and trips to the Reno Tournament of Champions and the NWCA National Dual Meet Championships in Cedar Falls, IA. The Cougars who finished 3rd last season at the NJCAA National Championships, begin the year at home against in state rival Southwest Oregon CC at 7 pm on November 7. Also included is the Clackamas Open, held annually in Oregon City in Randall Hall Gymnasium, on January 16th at 10 am. The night before the open, the Cougars will welcome any and all Alumni for Clackamas' match up with NJCAA runner up North Idaho College at 7 pm. The season is capped off with the Region 18 Championships in Des Moines, WA at Highline CC on February 13 which is followed by the NJCAA National Championships on February 27-28th in Des Moines, IA.

The David G. Bunning ’88 Head Coach for Harvard Wrestling Jay Weiss recently announced the addition of Sean Harrington to his staff for the 2009-10 season. “I have worked with Sean for a number of years with our involvement with the Massachusetts Junior National team and with his club” Weiss said. “ He is one of the most passionate and hard working individuals I have come across in the sport of wrestling. I am extremely excited to welcome him in to our program and have no doubt that he will have a huge impact on our student-athletes in many ways.” A native of Dracut, Mass., Harrington has been involved in the sport of wrestling as an athlete or coach for the last 20 years. He was a two-time All-American at the University of Massachusetts – Lowell and later coached for the River Hawks from 1997-98. Harrington returned to competition as a member of the New York Athletic Club and went on to train at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo., for four years. He served as the Massachusetts Junior National Wrestling team coach in 2008-09. He is also a member of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame Committee. Harrington, who graduated from UMass-Lowell in 1997 with a degree in business administration, currently owns and manages BrickHouse Wrestling Fitness LLC, a wrestling and fitness company in Lowell, Mass.

Travis Paulson

As the wrestling season's start is fast approaching, InterMat will be taking fans across the United States of America on a tour of scholastic wrestling. Between now until the middle of November, InterMat will introduce you to the top senior wrestlers in the 49 states with scholastic wrestling. From Alaska to Florida, and from Maine to California, you will gain exposure to the potential stars of future NCAA Championships. Did you miss a Wrestling 49 article? Check out the archives. With the graduation of 10 former state champions in 2009, it opens up a new class of seniors itching for a spot on top of the podium. This year features five returning champions, including two-time champion Sean McMurray of Portage and one-time champion and three-time finalist Brandon Wright of Warren Central. Frankie Porras, Michael Duckworth and Anthony Hawkins round out the other returning champions. Two wrestlers in the top ten have already committed to wrestling at the next level after graduation. Braden Atwood has committed to Purdue and Sean McMurray has committed to wrestle for Michigan State. 1a. Sean McMurray School: Portage 09-10 Projected High School Weight Class: 160 Projected College Weight Class: 165 Scouting Report: McMurray heads into the 2009-10 season looking to finish off one of the greatest careers in Indiana history. After finishing seventh at 112 in 2007, McMurray captured state titles at 135 in 2008 and at 152 in 2009. In 2009-10 he looks to join the likes of recent Indiana products Andrew Howe and Reece Humphrey as a three-time IHSAA state champion. McMurray has just verbally committed to wrestle for Michigan State next year. 1b. Brandon Wright Brandon WrightSchool: Warren Central 09-10 Projected High School Weight Class: 125 Projected College Weight Class: 125 Scouting Report: Wright will begin the 2009-10 season in a new environment this year after his transfer from Indianapolis Cathedral to Warren Central. The former Cadet National freestyle champion will look to finish off his career with a second state title. He has been runner-up at 103 in 2007, champion at 112 in 2008, and runner-up at 119 in 2009. Ironically, all three of his previous state championship match appearances came against Purdue recruit Camden Eppert. He is also the son of four-time Division II national champion Tim Wright. 3. Frankie Porras School: Hobart 09-10 Projected High School Weight Class: 140 Projected College Weight Class: 141 Scouting Report: Porras has been a consistent performer starting early on. He qualified for state as a freshman and then finished second as a sophomore to three-time champion Josh Harper before capturing his first title last year at 130 pounds. Last summer saw Porras finish eighth at Cadet Nationals in freestyle while, this spring he finished fifth at the NHSCA Junior Nationals and also went 7-1 at the Brute Scholastic Duals. 4. Michael Duckworth School: Union County 09-10 Projected High School Weight Class: 189 Projected College Weight Class: 184 Scouting Report: As a sophomore, Duckworth had a monumental challenge in the state finals. That challenge was now NCAA runner-up Andrew Howe. While Duckworth did not win that match, he was the only wrestler that day that Howe did not tech fall or pin. This year at state Duckworth had to fend off landmines everywhere from Braden Atwood in the quarterfinals to avenging a loss to Bryce Grimes in the finals. This spring Duckworth also placed fifth at the NHSCA Junior Nationals. 5. Ryan Stahl School: Mishawaka 09-10 Projected High School Weight Class: 152 Projected College Weight Class: 157 Scouting Report: Stahl had a great spring and summer of wrestling after his runner-up finish this year. He first finished eighth at the NHSCA Junior Nationals. Then he came one match from placing in Junior Greco and proceeded to place eighth in an absolutely loaded weight class in freestyle. Among his wins was a pin of highly touted Destin McCauley of Minnesota. 6. Anthony Hawkins School: Crown Point 09-10 Projected High School Weight Class: 125 Projected College Weight Class: 125 Scouting Report: Hawkins has steadily improved each year at state, from being a qualifier as a freshman, to fourth place as a sophomore, to state champion as a junior. 7. Sammy Bennett School: Anderson Highland 09-10 Projected High School Weight Class: 152 Projected College Weight Class: 157 Scouting Report: Bennett will be looking for the ever-elusive state title this year. His freshman year he was a state qualifier at 140 pounds and as a sophomore he lost in the state finals at 145 pounds. This past season he lost to eventual state champion, Daniel Young, in the semifinals and finished third. This spring he placed fifth at the NHSCA Junior Nationals. 8. Christian Lentz School: Mishawaka 09-10 Projected High School Weight Class: 215 Projected College Weight Class: 285 Scouting Report: Lentz took full advantage of his first full year of varsity action by placing second in the state this past season. He went 4-2 at the Junior Duals wrestling heavyweight, but will be back down to 215 pounds this season. 9. Brandon Nelsen School: Lawrence North 09-10 Projected High School Weight Class: 119 Projected College Weight Class: 125 Scouting Report: Nelsen has finished in the top four of the state all three years so far, but never reached the finals. As a freshman he finished fourth and as a sophomore and junior brought home third-place medals. He has also placed fourth in Junior Nationals in freestyle at 105 pounds in 2008 and sixth at the NHSCA Junior Nationals. 10. Braden Atwood School: Delphi 09-10 Projected High School Weight Class: 189 Projected College Weight Class: 184 Scouting Report: Atwood finished fourth and fifth in the state the past two years. He also finished fifth in Cadet Freestyle in 2008 at 171 pounds. He went 6-1 at the Brute Scholastic Duals, including avenging his quarterfinal loss to Michael Duckworth. His only loss was to Jahwon Akui of Illinois. Atwood has verbally committed to wrestle for Purdue next season. Honorable Mention: Brock Norton (Fort Wayne Carroll) Nathan Cleveland (Lowell) Derek Bevans (Yorktown) Zach Stevens (Merrillville) Mason Berryman (Anderson Highland) Tony Lovejoy (Fort Wayne Bishop Luers) Zach Corpe (Elkhart Memorial) James Travis (Merrillville) Alex Surma (Munster) Michael Johnson-Jones (Warren Central)

This year's senior class in Pennsylvania is loaded with talent. Of InterMat's top 100 recruits, 17 are Pennsylvania natives, including four of the nation's top six wrestlers. Jordan Moss (Photo/The Herald, Sharon, Pa.)One wrestler that has flown under the radar because of the abundance of talent in Pennsylvania is Jordan Moss of Sharon High School, a three-time Pennsylvania state placewinner and a 2008 state champion. On Wednesday, Moss made a verbal commitment to the University of Pittsburgh. He also considered Michigan State, Hofstra, Edinboro, Old Dominion, and Clarion. "I decided to go to Pitt because of its education, coaches, and it's close to my family," said Moss, who has a career record of 121-8. "Family means a lot to me and I love to have them at my back. Pitt has a family-like environment with all the culture and everything that is down there. I just feel comfortable. Another thing is too many PA wrestlers leave PA. And I take pride in my state. Another is I am a fan of the Sixburgh City of Champions. It doesn't get much better than the black and gold." Moss plans to compete at 145 or 152 pounds this season and projects at 157/165 pounds in college. "My college goals are ultimately to be a national champ and All-American," said Moss. "My second is to come out with a good degree and have a job making money straight out of college. I want to major in something in the business field."

Huskers.com has announced an addition to the wrestling page with the start of the NU Wrestling Blog. This is another place to visit when looking to stay up-to-date and follow everything surrounding Husker wrestling. On this blog, you will find some interesting news, notes and tidbits surrounding the team as we approach the 2009-10 season. The goal for this is to help you stay in tune daily with what's going on with the Huskers and get inside the program. The blog will include anything that you might find interesting, but maybe isn't newsworthy or lengthy enough for its own press release. You can expect all kinds of notes, learn about the upcoming opponents and hear what the coaches are saying throughout the season. On match days, check out the blog for the latest updates as the Huskers get ready to take the mat. In addition, there should be a lot of exciting news as the NCAA Championships get closer. This year's national meet takes place at Qwest Center Omaha from March 18-20 and is co-hosted by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. During the season, you should be able to find something new numerous times a week. It will continue in the offseason, but may slow down just a bit depending on what's happening around the program. E-mail bgries@huskers.com if you have any questions or suggestions about the blog. Please bookmark the page and check back frequently. The direct link can also be found in the menu on the right side of the wrestling page on Huskers.com.

Nebraska's Mark Manning heads overseas this week to serve as a coach of the 2009 U.S. Freestyle World Team at the 2009 World Wrestling Championships in Herning, Denmark. Manning and Oklahoma State's John Smith were chosen to lead the United States squad by USA Wrestling in April 2009. The 10th-year Husker head coach was selected by the USA Wrestling's Freestyle Coach Selection Committee and will work with USA Wrestling National Freestyle Coach Zeke Jones during the week-long championship from Sept. 21-27. Manning has extensive coaching experience on the international level, including head coaching responsibilities for the 2001 U.S. Freestyle World Team. He was an assistant coach on the 1997 U.S. World Team and a staff member of numerous other U.S. World and Olympic teams. Last season, Manning led Nebraska to a share of the 2009 Big 12 Championship before finishing fourth at the NCAA Championships. This year's Husker team returns four national qualifiers, including 157-pound national champion Jordan Burroughs.

Shanon Slack (1-0) made his professional debut this past Saturday night at the Iron Will Fighting Championships in Johnstown, Pennsylvania against Noe Quintanella (5-5). Shanon won by unanimous decision in the three-round fight. Shanon is now 1-0 as a professional and Quintanella dropped to 5-5. Next up for LionHeart fighters is Paul Bradley (11-1), who will make his Strikeforce debut on September 25 in Tulsa Oklahoma.

LEWISBURG, Pa. -- Tickets for the most anticipated home wrestling match in Bucknell history will go on sale Wednesday morning. The Bison host 22-time national champion Iowa and EIWA foe Rutgers in Sojka Pavilion on Friday, Nov. 27, and fans can purchase tickets from the Campus Box Office starting at 11 a.m. Wednesday. Tickets for the event can be obtained by calling the Campus Box Office at 570-577-1000 or visiting its Web site, www.bucknell.edu/boxoffice. There will be three levels of tickets for sale. Fans can purchase tickets for a chair-back seat along the side of the basketball court for $10 (adult) and $5 (child). To obtain a bleacher seat along the shorter ends of the basketball court a ticket is just $5 (adult) and $3 (child). A children’s ticket covers youth ages 18 and under. Additionally, a select number of premium mat-side seats will be available for sale. Ticket prices for these seats that will be stationed alongside the mat are $50. Select tickets for Bucknell faculty, staff and students will be located in the bleacher seats in the north end of Sojka Pavilion. The tickets will be good for all three matches. Bucknell and Iowa start the day off at 4 p.m. The Hawkeyes and Rutgers will then face each other before the Bison and Scarlet Knights square off in an EIWA match to wrap things up.

Charlottesville, VA -- When setting out to change the world of wrestling Riot Sports Marketing (RSM) founder Jim Harshaw didn't realize just how strong of a response would greet him. Several interviews and media appearances later, he has realized that his idea has touched a nerve deep that resonates within the core of all wrestling fans. RSM solves the issues of low attendance, lack of recognition, poor community support and not enough funding for the sport.. By applying the innovative strategies and tactics that are increasingly popular in small business, RSM is helping clients rally their fans, excite the community, gain media coverage and raise more money. Recently one university head athletic director called Riot "The future of sports marketing" after reviewing the system that RSM is putting in place for them. This institution's intent is to utilize this for their entire athletic department. "I have been studying small business marketing for years and successfully implementing these tools in the organizations I'm apart of with surprising results. There is an opportunity to take this process and spread it throughout the wrestling world." Harshaw, a member of the National Sports Marketing Network (NSMN) and the American Marketing Association (AMA), now offers the service to clients nationwide. With the decline of wrestling due to Title IX wrestling is at a turning point; the Riot system aims to entrench high school and college programs in their communities to the point where they are essential to the fabric of athletics programs. RSM is well on it's way to revolutionizing wrestling. Harshaw is in discussion with a major wrestling organization in terms of a partership that will leverage their combined resources to the benefit of the wrestling community. More details to be released upon further discussions. Riot Sports Marketing offers a year-round marketing system that grows attendance, increases media coverage and maximizes fund raising for high school and college wrestling programs.