The Wrestle Back Podcast

Let’s gets started!! 2024 NCAA National Wrestling Championships.

Hi everyone, I wanted to share with y'all that The Wrestle Back Podcast has garnered close to 6,000 views since its start in late March of 2023, and needless to say, it's all thanks to you all. I really appreciate y'all tuning in, liking, and sharing out my interviews, and as always, I would like to extend a special thank you to all of my guests who have been willing to hop on and discuss their careers along with this great sport. We will have more interviews in the works soon, so please stay tuned.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everyone from The Wrestle Back Podcast.

https://youtu.be/j004JzUWbqk?si=CUZtB852pmkpkyt0

Hello everyone, I am pleased to announce that the twenty-fourth episode of The Wrestle Back Podcast has been uploaded to the YouTube channel. A special thanks to James Hicks for joining me for an interview. I hope you all enjoy it!

The Wrestle Back Podcast Episode Twenty-Four: James Hicks Hello everyone, In today's episode, I am joined by Cumberland University Head Wrestling Coach James Hicks. Please watch along as we discuss how he found wres...

Announcement: Hello everyone, I am excited to announce that I will be interviewing Cumberland University's head coach, James Hicks. Hicks has served as head coach at Cumberland University since 2016. Before that, he served as head coach for Darton State College in Albany, Georgia.

However, before he began his coaching career, Hicks wrestled for Campbellsville University in Kentucky. As a tiger, Hicks was a three-time NAIA qualifier and Daktronics NAIA Scholar Athlete. He was also a member of the 2006 NAIA National Championship Club at Dana College in Blair, Nebraska. During his time as a collegiate wrestler, he was also ranked as high as sixth nationally.

After finishing out his wrestling career at Campbellsville, Hicks became an assistant coach for his alma mater. In his four years as assistant coach, the Tigers produced several national champions: 19 NAIA All-Americans, 47 National Qualifers, 10 East Region Champions, 17 Mid-South Conference Champions, and seven NAIA Scholar Athletes.

After his time at Campbellsville, Hicks made the move to Darton State in Albany, Georgia, where he served as head coach for three years. While at the helm in Albany, Hicks produced two national champions and six junior college All-Americans. While at Darton State, Hicks was also named Region III Eastern District II Coach of the Year in his last two seasons.

After a very successful career at Darton State, Hicks made the move to Cumberland University in Tennessee. In his first year at Cumberland, three students earned All-American honors, and Hicks led the Phoenix to the Mid-South Conference Tournament championship. On top of many more eventual All-Americans, in 2022, Hicks had his first NAIA National Champion, Cole Smith, who had a perfect 29-0 record for the year. Ever since taking over at Cumberland, the Phoenix have finished in the top 10 in the last three years, and this past year, four wrestlers claimed Mid-South Conference Championships.

All in all, Hicks has an incredible resume in both his wrestling career and coaching career, and with that comes a unique story. With that said, I am extremely excited to get the opportunity to interview him. I hope you all enjoy it!

Photo Credit: Cumberland University Athletics and RISEUPwrestling.

https://youtu.be/zVRvteJPJEo?si=rms46kSIpQaGvRPX

Hello everyone, I am pleased to announce that the twenty-third episode of The Wrestle Back Podcast has been uploaded to the YouTube channel. A special thanks to Scottie Boykin for joining me for an interview. I hope you all enjoy it!

The Wrestle Back Podcast Episode Twenty-Three: Scottie Boykin Hello everyone, In today's episode I am joined by Scottie Boykin. Please watch along as we discuss his prep career, collegiate career, and what the sport of ...

Announcement: Hello everyone, I am excited to announce that I will be interviewing two-time SoCon champ, three-time NCAA qualifier, two-time World Team Trials qualifier, two-time U.S. Open Freestyle All-American, and assistant wrestling coach for the Air Force Academy, Scottie Boykin. The Murfreesboro native has an impressive and historical resume, and with that comes a unique story. With that said, I am excited to get the opportunity to interview him. I hope you all enjoy it!

Photo credit: UTC Athletics.

https://youtu.be/GJ2JSX-HZe8?si=k0T3X8SeAOQaII9g

Hello everyone, I am pleased to announce that the twenty-second episode of The Wrestle Back Podcast has been uploaded to the YouTube Channel. A special thanks to Howard Langford for joining me for an interview. I hope you all enjoy!

The Wrestle Back Podcast Episode Twenty-Two: Howard Langford Hello everyone, in today's episode I am joined by Howard Langford. Please watch along as we discuss how he found wrestling, his road to becoming an All-Ameri...

Announcement: Hello everyone, I am excited to announce that I will be interviewing NCAA All-American, two-time SoCon champ, and UTC Hall of Famer Howard Langford. The Cleveland native has an impressive and historical resume, and with that comes a unique story. With that said, I am excited to get the opportunity to interview him. I hope you all enjoy it!

Photo credit: UTC Athletics.

Hello everyone, I am pleased to announce that the twenty-first episode of The Wrestle Back Podcast has been uploaded to the YouTube Channel. This is a two part interview, I will attach a link to part two in the comment section. A special thanks to Guy Harris for joining me for an interview. I hope you all enjoy!

The Wrestle Back Podcast Episode Twenty-One: Guy Harris | Part One Hello everyone, In today's interview, I am joined by Guy Harris. Please watch along as we discuss how he found wrestling, his collegiate career, and his lege...

Episode Preview: For our twenty-first episode, I will be interviewing Guy Harris. The UTC Hall of Famer has a wealth of experience and achievements, and with that comes a unique story.

The Clearwater, Florida, native attended Clearwater Catholic High School, where he originally played basketball, but after being cut from the basketball team, Harris swapped out the basketball shoes for wrestling shoes, and thus a new journey began.

Three years after making that decision, Harris was a state champion for Clearwater Catholic High School, and after finishing out his high school career, Harris made the move to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga to continue his academic and athletic career.

As a Moc, Harris was a four-year letter winner (1989–93) and was part of four consecutive Southern Conference championship teams. Harris is most notably known for his legendary run to gain All-American status at the 1992 NCAA Wrestling Championships. After winning the SoCon trophy at 142 pounds, Harris was headed to Oklahoma City.

Harris was pinned in an opening pigtail match against second-seed and eventual runner-up Chris Owens; however, despite the loss, Harris went on a four-match run through the consolation bracket, which was highlighted by an 11-6 win over No. 8 seed John Dasta of Clarion in the blood round. This victory put Harris in the seventh-place match, solidifying his status as an All-American. This feat made Harris the fourth NCAA Division I All-American for UTC.

The year after, Harris went on to win his second SoCon championship, this time at 150 pounds. This accomplishment further added to his impressive list of acolytes. In 2009, Harris was inducted into the UTC Hall of Fame, making him the 20th former wrestler to be inducted into the hall of fame.

All in all, Guy Harris's story is one of a kind, and I am extremely excited to get the opportunity to interview him. I hope you all enjoy it!



Photo credit: UTC Athletics

Announcement: Hello everyone, I am excited to announce that I will be interviewing NCAA All-American, two-time Southern Conference champion, and UTC Hall of Famer Guy Harris. Harris, a name synonymous with UTC wrestling, has a wealth of experience and achievements, and with that comes a variety of anecdotes. With that said, I am extremely excited to get the opportunity to interview him, and a full episode preview will be available soon. Photo credit: UTC Athletics