Who are the people that are passionate about your program? Coach JohnMark Bentley discusses the difficulty of finding donors and the importance of surrounding yourself with the right people that can help you build your […]
Understanding Different Types of Pressure with Nick Mitchell – Grand View Univ.
Do you have athletes that are slow to react off the whistle? Watch as Coach Nick Mitchell discusses the benefits of teaching your wrestlers how to interpret different types of pressure.
Quad Pod Positioning and Setup with Austin DeVoe – Colorado School of Mines
Watch as Coach Austin DeVoe explains and demonstrates the importance of positioning in the Quad Pod. The feet should be outside of the shoulders with the knees slightly bent and the head straight up. It […]
Are You Building a Better You? with Chet Scott – Built to Lead
Watch as Chet Scott explains why it’s necessary to build a “better you” to be an effective leader. The way coaches regulate or react to a room influences the type of team they have. He […]
7 Ways to Develop Mental Toughness in Your Wrestlers
By: John Klessinger, Head Wrestling Coach – South River HS (MD) I have spent a significant part of the last 18 years answering the question – how do you develop mental toughness? I have read […]
Far Side Claw with Tyson Reiner – Golden Eagle Wrestling Club
Watch as Coach Tyson Reiner explains and, with a student-athlete, demonstrates this far side claw move. This is a first move off the whistle and coach emphasizes the proper shoulder and arm position.
Defining Commitment with Jeff Janssen – Janssen Sports Leadership Center
Jeff Janssen discusses defining commitment with your athletes and obtaining their feedback. It is important to question where they feel their commitment level is in regard to practice, social life, and acceptance of their role on […]
Helping Students-Athletes Manage Mental Health with Dr. Lee Dorpfeld – Univ. of South Florida
Coaches are usually around their athletes every day, are the first to see an athlete in distress, and have the first opportunity to help. Most people want help but have trouble asking for it. However, […]
Short Offense: Good, Better, Best Warmup Drills with Kevin Ward – Army West Point
Watch as Coach Kevin Ward explains and demonstrates the importance of snapping and applying pressure when defending against a shot. He breaks down his principles of short offense as good, better, and best. A front […]
Defending a Collar Tie with Mark Manning – Univ. of Nebraska
Watch as Coach Mark Manning explains and demonstrates defending a collar tie. He teaches pressure and if the opponent has you in a collar tie you must have a thumb lock on the opposite arm […]
Safety in Sports Includes Mental Health Care
Medical professionals agree that about 20% of high school athletes and 30% of college athletes have or will have a serious anxiety or diagnosable mental health disorder that causes some degree of impairment in their […]
Bottom Position Flick with Chris Pendleton – Oregon State Univ.
Watch as Coach Chris Pendleton explains, and a wrestler demonstrates timing the flick on the whistle. When in the down position, your head should be up looking at the referee’s hand. Sometimes the ref’s hand […]
Tapering and Breaks with Jack Spates – (Retired) Univ. of Oklahoma
Watch as Coach Jack Spates discusses the importance of tapering and breaks in today’s wrestling. Tapering allows the body to get refreshed and invigorated which allows for greater success.
Bottom Position: Sit Out Hip Heist Drill with Troy Nickerson – Northern Colorado Univ.
Watch as Coach Troy Nickerson explains and wrestlers demonstrate this bottom position sit out hip heist drill. The wrestlers work the move individually and then partner up.
Shoulder Bouncing with J Jaggers – Ohio State Univ.
Watch as Coach J Jaggers explains the shoulder bouncing motion to use for a go-behind in a short offense as a way to score. Your right side is going to slam almost to the shoulder […]
Challenging Athletes Without Destroying Their Confidence with Dr. Greg Dale – Duke Univ.
Dr. Greg Dale explains that it is key to hold athletes accountable but do so without destroying their confidence or undermining their dignity. He talks about the difference between being intense and being emotional as […]
Developing a Culture
By: Jen Welter Originally Published in: Winning Ways of Women Coaches Provided by: Human Kinetics You must give players a voice in shaping the identity and setting the tone. With the most powerful teams I […]
Branding Your Practices with Mark Branch – Univ. of Wyoming
Watch as Coach Mark Branch explains that branding is not just for your program, but it should be for what you do in your training and practices. Create your team’s identity on how you train […]
Best Conditioning Drill with Nick Williams – Retired Coach
Watch as Coach Nick Williams explains that the Barrel Rolls (or ‘Monkey Rolls’) Drill is the best conditioning exercise for his team. He believes this drill is best for duplicating the effort that is required […]
Pitfalls in Development with Tervel Dlagnev – Nebraska Wrestling Training Center
Watch as Coach Tervel Dlagnev explains that most kids are team people and “buy in” to the program. You cannot let one special seed sway how you operate your program, as this can cause a […]
Counterattack: Teach the Sprawl with Dave Crowell – Nazareth Area High School (PA)
Watch as Coach Dave Crowell discusses and demonstrates teaching the sprawl as an effective counterattack move. He will show how he teaches his wrestlers the sprawl so that they can work the technique and skill […]
What Are We Doing to Create a Championship Culture? with Robert Grasso – La Jolla Country Day School (CA)
Robert Grasso asks the question, “what can we do to create a championship culture?” Every team has a culture – are you working to develop the kind of culture you want? Robert states that if […]
Setting Goals
By: Dan Gould & Cliff Mallett Originally Published in: Sport Coaches Handbook Provided by: Human Kinetics Setting clear goals helps coaches and athletes achieve success. Goals offer direction and purpose for our day-to-day activities; in […]
Advice for the Wrestling Parent with Brian Smith – Univ. of Missouri
Watch as Coach Brian Smith explains that he wants wrestlers who are in it for themselves and not just for their parents. He persuades parents to encourage and support their wrestlers in the classroom and […]
Defining Mental Toughness with Jack Clark – Univ. of CA, Berkeley
Watch as Coach Jack Clark discusses mental toughness and how the term is valued and used a lot but has no clear definition. He states how critical it is that definitions are consistent within an […]
Strength & Conditioning: In-Season Box Jumps with Ben Durbin – Iowa State Univ.
Watch as Coach Ben Durbin explains, and a wrestler demonstrates these lower body plyometric movements, in-season box jumps exercises. Reverse lunge box jumps work on body control and the quad muscles. This is a great […]
Mule Kick Ankle Pick with Marcus Hoehn – Thoroughbred Wrestling Academy
Watch as Coach Marcus Hoehn explains, and wrestlers demonstrate the Mule Kick Ankle Pick. The goal is to force the opponent’s head down and feet out by getting the hip in front and breaking the […]
Adversity Is Part of the Journey with Seth Greenberg – ESPN
Watch as Seth Greenberg explains that adversity ‘visits the strong and lives with the weak,’ so the only option is to deal with it. He encourages no whining, no complaining, no excuses, and no regrets. […]
Why Should Coaches Coach?
Coaches at high levels at prestigious programs need to win to keep their jobs. Winning consistently makes recruiting easier, keeps the fan base energized, the administration and boosters happy, and the financial bottom line healthy. […]
Leg Defense Tips with Nick Mitchell – Grand View Univ.
Watch as Coach Nick Mitchell discusses his philosophy on leg defense and demonstrates a few of his favorite tips for developing this skill in practice.