Questions for the Coach Part I

The other day a parent called me about Twinsburg's Wrestling Program. The parent wanted to know a lot about the program. She wanted to know why her kid should wrestle as opposed to play another sport. Here are a few things I told her about the middle school program.


















Some In-School Responsibilities:

Recruiting a Team... This includes talking to gym teachers, meandering through the halls to meet students, and speaking with football coaches about who would be a good addition for the wrestling squad. Sometimes the office will give recommendations, other times it is a concerned teacher or parent who give our coaching staff a heads up about a potential athlete.

Grades... The beauty of this sport is that it attracts a wide variety of athletes. On one end of the spectrum I have a group of students who are Honor Roll types. They are the ones who like the challenge of the sport. More times than not these students are the easiest ones to work with. Then there are the students who require closer supervision. For instance, there were five wrestlers on last year's squad who required a daily grade check for each of their classes. If a classroom assignment was not completed, these wrestlers received a consequence and had to sit out of practice until the assignment was complete. The fact is that some wrestlers require more effort than others... Wrestling is an extra activity, and athletes must be reminded that the true priority is the classroom.

Citizenship It doesn't make much of a difference if an athlete is a winner on the mat, but a loser as a person. Athletes should be reminded about the importance of citizenship. Should a team or school rule be violated, then an appropriate consequence should be given.

Wrestling's Life Lessons... Lord knows that in life we are dealt both ups and downs. The key is to learn how to accept life's victories, and rebound from our set-backs. There is no other sport like wrestling to teach those lessons to young adults. Furthermore, we live in a society where people tend to play the blame game. It is always someone else's fault. The sport of wrestling requires a higher degree of accountability than almost any other sport. You are on the mat. In the end, you will dictate your success or failure. In some cases, success can even be measured beyond winning and losing. Some times a psychological victory is simply measured as to "How You Did???"

Every Member is Valued... Everybody remembers the movie Rudy. It's about a kid who was too small to play football at Notre Dame. Yet, through hard-wrok and perseverance Rudy finally got his big chance to play. As a result, Rudy won the respect and admiration of his teammates and movie viewers alike. I honestly believe that every member of the team should be valued in our sport. Whether an athlete is good or not is not the true measure of importance. Any kid who can handle wrestling practice, should at the bare minimum be respected. While we always strive to promote victory through character and hard-work, we should always recognize effort. Everyone has something positive to offer in our room!

Special Congratulations to the Twinsburg Football team and coaches on their outstanding performance against #4 Brunswick. A special note to all the wrestlers who helped make that victory possible including: Brandon, Zach, Dion, Michael, and John. Keep up the good work!