We had our first great practice today.  I felt like most of the boys really got after it today.  There were three freshmen that I was real impressed with today and if they continue to come to practice and work hard good things will come.  The two lighter weight freshmen were really getting after it during drilling.  The other freshman is Tyler,  he weighs about 160 and was very impressive with his athleticism and takedown defense.

Another interesting match up was our returning state runner up and our returning state champ.  They got after it for 3 minutes.  It was a great battle and one we need to see everyday.

If we continue to see an increase in intensity we will better and better results!

Wow!  The season is finally here!  It’s the time of year for skipped meals, extra runs, and a bunch of black eyes.  IT IS WRESTLING SEASON! 

We are looking to have a really big year.  We finished 8^th last year at the traditional state tournament, and a top 5 finish is the only thing that will be acceptable this year.  We do have some big shoes to fill from our graduated seniors, but I think we have the guys that can step up and tie those laces.  We are looking for McCafferty, Peacock, Bremner, Duvall, and Henry to be guys that we can count on to score points for our team. 

We have a core group of boys that will be the leaders of our team.  This group is going to be the ones we count on to get us pins, tech falls, and majors.  This group is lead by our returning state champ and state runner-up.  Jonatan Rivera put in some serious work over the spring and summer.  He finished 2^nd at the Southeast Regional Freestyle tournament in May, and went 5 – 2 at USA Wrestling’s Junior Duals as a member of Team Georgia.  Ryan Maus is coming off a very impressive showing at the Super 32 this past weekend.  He went 4 – 2 and had some impressive wins.  Both of his losses were in over time and could have gone either way.  We are looking for both of these wrestlers to continue their dominance this season. 

Another wrestler who put in the hard yards this summer was Jonathan Herrera.  Herrera competed all summer long with Team Georgia, and came away with some impressive credentials.  Herrera was a Southeast Regional placer in both Greco-Roman and Freestyle and He was also a Greco-Roman state champion!  Jonathan also competed on the Team Georgia Junior Duals team with Rivera and had over a .500 record while wrestling with some ankle injuries.

Three other wrestlers gained some valuable experience last year competing at the varsity level.  Allen Logan and Chris Murdock are returning state qualifiers. The both had very solid seasons last year, and we expect nothing less than state placements out of them this season.  Rashud Moore is the third wrestler to look out for.  He was sectional qualifier last year and was a match away from going to state as a sophomore.  As we get Rashad’s skill caught with his raw power he is going to be a scary wrestler for his opponents to deal with.

As you can see if we can get this talented group of grapplers to wrestle to their potential we will be force to reckoned with in the county, area, and state.  Coach Rivera and I have the first week and half of practice planned.  From there it will based upon what our wrestlers need.  We are going to do a better job of having them done by 6 o’clock everyday but as my wrestlers know I am always willing to stay and help them put in extra work to achieve their goals!

So come get behind this talented team, and we will see you guys on the 7^th at our social!