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Stunning...

 

Boskin gone, could his old HS coach step in? Hello Artis Climber??

 

http://clevelandbanner.com/stories/raider-wrestling-hasunexpected-opening,59418

 

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CLEVELAND HIGH SCHOOL head wrestling coach Josh Bosken resigned his teaching and coaching positions Thursday, leaving the storied 12-time state championship Blue Raider program looking for a new top man for the second time in 10 months.

 

BANNER FILE PHOTO, JOE CANNON

 

Posted Friday, May 26, 2017 11:23 am

 

By JOE CANNON [email protected]

 

Shockwaves were sent throughout the Bradley County wrestling community Thursday with the announcement a 12-time state championship program has an unexpected vacancy at the helm.

 

After a decade with the Cleveland High wrestling program, including the past 10 months as the Blue Raider head coach, Josh Bosken abruptly resigned his teaching and coaching positions.

 

An email release from the Cleveland City Schools’ main office at 3:01 p.m. Thursday, stated:

 

“Mr. Josh Bosken, Cleveland City Schools teacher and Head Wrestling Coach at Cleveland High School, has tendered his resignation from our district effective on Friday, May 26, 2017. Dr. (Russell) Dyer (director of schools) thanks Mr. Bosken for his contributions in the classroom and to our stellar wrestling program and wishes him all the best in his future professional endeavors. Mrs. Autumn O’Bryan, principal of Cleveland High School, will launch a search for the next Head Coach for Cleveland High School Wrestling in the near future. Cleveland City Schools will have no other comment regarding this resignation.â€

 

While the school system declined any further comment on the circumstances surrounding the resignation and Bosken did not return a phone call and text requesting information, a key Cleveland High benefactor did offer a statement.

 

"The circumstance at the high school (that led to his resignation) was not one involving moral turpitude with any of the students. We are hoping the coach will return to the Kids Club, where he did such a fine job," said local businessman and Raider wrestling enthusiast Allan Jones.

 

Along with his duties with the high and middle school teams, Bosken spent much of his career working with local youth through the Higher Calling Wrestling Club.

 

He took over as head coach of the Raider varsity program last August after the surprise departure of head coach Jake Yost, who spent four years at the Raider helm, including winning three straight traditional and dual state championships. Yost left to take a position with the McCallie wrestling program in his home town of Chattanooga.

 

Despite taking over just as the school year started, Bosken led the talented Cleveland squad to a No. 1 state ranking after knocking off archrival Bradley Central in a pair of one-point outcomes during an unbeaten regular season.

 

However, the Raiders had to settle for runner-up finishes at both the TSSAA State Duals and Traditional championships, as the Bears gained revenge to claim their 25th and 26th state titles earlier this year.

 

Cleveland finished the 2016-17 season with a 24-1 dual meet record, defeating two of the state's top private schools in Father Ryan and Baylor, on the way to a memorable finish in the Al Miller Cleveland Duals with a 34-33 win over the Bears in the championship match.

 

The Raiders also won the Knox Halls Invitational, as well as the Region 4 crown. Their lone loss came to Bradley in the TSSAA state duals championship match.

 

Bosken was a Tennessee State Wrestling champion in 2003 at Science Hill High School in Johnson City.

 

After graduating from Lee University, he was hired as a special education teacher at Cleveland Middle School and began working with the Raider wrestling program in 2007.

 

For the second time in less than a year, Cleveland will begin its search for a new leader for its storied mat program.

 

The new head coach will take over a program considered one of the favorites to claim the state championship in the upcoming season.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Out of state coverage...

 

http://www.gulfcoastnewstoday.com/stories/tigers-tangle-in-tennessee,50698

 

Tigers tangle in Tennessee

 

• BCHS wrestlers wrap up summer camp competition with top-10 southeast finish

 

Tiger takedown: BCHS wrestlers polish competitive skill sets at summer clinic.

 

Posted Wednesday, June 14, 2017 5:46 pm

 

Tina Covington

 

BAY MINETTE, Ala. — The Baldwin County High School Wrestling Team wrapped up a successful week at the Chattanooga Wrestling Camp. More than 400 wrestlers took part in the camp representing teams from across the region. The BCHS team, under coach Jason Heath, finished in ninth place out of 18 teams.

 

As part of the camp, wrestlers could compete in team or individual events. They were also able to participate in eight technique sessions taught by top coaches from around the country. The clinic also included Educational Coaches Seminars, Takedown Tournament, motivational speeches, Athletic & Life Skills training, Q&A with staff and other fun events.

 

The BCHS Wrestling Team is looking for new members to help fill several weight classes. If interested, contact Coach Heath at [email protected].

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  • 2 weeks later...

Cleveland moving on... Head strategist, Jeff "Artis Climber" Price??

https://wdef.com/2017/06/22/cleveland-high-school-names-joey-knox-new-wrestling-coach/

CLEVELAND HIGH SCHOOL NAMES JOEY KNOX NEW WRESTLING COACH

By: Rick Nyman

Submitted: 06/22/2017 - 2:34pm

(press release) Cleveland High School has selected Joey Knox as the next Head Coach for the Blue Raider Wrestling program. Coach Knox has been with the wrestling program as an assistant since 2013. During his assistant coaching tenure, the team has secured six Team State Championships, including five individual State Champions and 20 State Medalists.

Cleveland High School Principal, Autumn O’Bryan, states, “Coach Knox has brought the skills from his stellar wrestling career and has earned the respect of his colleagues, parents, our student athletes, and the wrestling community because of his relationships with his student athletes and his technical knowledge on the mat. He is a dynamic teacher, a fierce competitor, and a quality coach. We are excited for the future of Blue Raider Wrestling.”

Prior to coaching, Coach Knox had a very successful wrestling career at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga where he received his Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration. He was a Southern Conference Champion in 2009 and a Southern Conference Runner-up in 2008. He was a two time NCAA Qualifier with numerous tournament championships. In high school, he was a two time Georgia State Champion, four time State Medalist, and a two time High School National All American at Fargo.

Cleveland City Schools Director, Dr. Russell Dyer, says, “I am excited about the selection of Mr. Joey Knox as the next Head Coach of Cleveland High School Wrestling. Coach Knox has a commendable reputation as a classroom teacher and cares deeply about the wrestling program and athletes at Cleveland High School. I am confident in his skills and abilities to lead this stellar program to new heights.”

Cleveland High School Athletic Director, David Turner, states, “Coach Knox has been a vital part of our success in the past and has an excellent vision for Cleveland High School Wrestling. He is well respected within the wrestling community and has extremely high standards of success. He is passionate about our student athletes and strives daily for them to achieve their maximum potential.”

Coach Knox states, “I am very grateful for this opportunity. Wrestling has always been a very important aspect of my life. My appreciation cannot be expressed for the great relationships I have built through Cleveland Wrestling. I am extremely excited to follow in the history of excellent coaches and the future of Cleveland High School Wrestling.”

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Ky Press for Cumberland U and camp...

http://www.kentuckynewera.com/sports/article_f4a6e3d0-5706-11e7-b55b-ab49def9f9c7.html

Christian County hosting Champ Camp for wrestlers

From New Era Staff Reports 

Jun 21, 2017  0

The Christian County High School wrestling team is welcoming one of the country’s top coaches and a former NAIA All-American when it hosts Champ Camp on Aug. 5 at Lyle Dunbar Gymnasium. The camp, which will last from 8:15 a.m. until 5:30 p.m., will feature Cumberland University wrestling coach

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 James Hicks, who was named the coach of the year in his conference in 2016 and competed on the national championship team at Dana College in 2006.

Also appearing as a special guest at the camp will be Johnny Papesh — a former four-time Ohio high school state tournament competitor 2010 NAIA runner-up and two-time All-American at Campbellsville University. They will join County coaches as clinicians during the camp. Cost is $20 for CCHS wrestlers and $35 for non-Christian County grapplers. For more information, contact DeCoreus Leavell at 270-305-1169 or [email protected].


 

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Top Athletes in Middle Tennessee recognized...

http://www.tennessean.com/story/sports/high-school/2017/06/26/meet-middle-tennessees-top-high-school-athletes/103055290/

Boys Wrestler Of The Year

Riverdale’s Nick Boykin

Joe Buglewicz / For The Tennessean

NICK BOYKIN, Riverdale, Sr.

Why chosen: Boykin defeated Wilson Central’s Michael Kramer in the Class AAA final to conclude his career with 140 consecutive wins and three straight state titles. He repeated as Tennessean Boys Wrestler of the Year.

Finalists: Raymond Eason, Father Ryan, Sr.; Gabriel Elkin, MBA, Sr.; Eli King, Father Ryan, Sr.; Matthew Sells, Blackman, Sr.

________________________

Trevor Brown of the Bros included in article on n Sammy Henson 's 17th ranked recruiting class...

http://www.register-herald.com/sports/college_sports/adams-getting-an-early-start-at-wvu/article_9f6b5c2f-7c1f-5ec9-adfa-f7643e1ee129.html

_______________________

Thirty Mocs Athletes Make All SoCon Academic Team


https://www.google.com/url?rct=j&sa=t&url=https://wdef.com/2017/06/27/thirty-mocs-athletes-make-socon-academic-team/&ct=ga&cd=CAEYACoTOTUyMzc0NzYyNjg2NTk2NDYzNDIaYzgxNTU0NzRmYzNhMjU0Yjpjb206ZW46VVM&usg=AFQjCNF4__zvhfW1Fe5GC7Blz-cZo8Z_IQ

 

Edited by Sommers
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Honors for Bleaken of Cumberland U...

http://www.lebanondemocrat.com/Football/2017/06/27/Four-named-to-Cumberland-Sports-Hall-of-Fame

Corey Bleaken were selected for induction into the Cumberland Sports Hall of Fame’s class of 2017 after being a three-time All-American at Cumberland and won the program’s second individual national championship, taking the title at 157 as a senior. The Clifton, N.J., native earned the prestigious Gorriaran Award as the NAIA most outstanding wrestler in the national tournament in 2011, becoming the only Cumberland student-athlete to garner the award. He posted a 27-7 mark as a senior and finished with 101 career victories.

He placed third in 2007 and seventh in 2009 at 149 to earn All-America accolades in each of those campaigns, collecting 40 wins on the mat during the 2007 campaign and 24 in 2009. Bleaken was a first team All-Mid-South Conference selection and earned NAIA East Region most valuable wrestler honors in 2011, as well.

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Congrats to Bradley hs athletes...

http://clevelandbanner.com/stories/record-setting-year-for-signees,61634

year for signees63 area athletes heading to college ranks

BRADLEY CENTRAL standouts TJ Hicks (left) and Knox Fuller (right) fist bump on the day of signing national letters of intent to wrestle at the NCAA Division I level. Hicks will wrestle for UTC, while Fuller will hit the mats for Army. They combined for seven individual state titles.

BANNER FILE PHOTO

Posted Saturday, July 1, 2017 9:59 pm

By JOE CANNON Assistant Sports Editor

Most every high school athlete dreams of being able to continue to play at the next level.

For a record number of area players that wish is coming true.

The recently completed school year saw 57 area athletes sign national letters of intent.

A half dozen area athletes that graduated from 2013-16 swell the total tally to 63 locals that will join the collegiate ranks this fall.

“I can’t ever remember having this many kids signing scholarships at Bradley, or in the county as a whole,” declared Bradley Central sports historian Gary Ownbey.

Bradley led the way with a school-record 23 signees, while Cleveland High had 19, Walker Valley 18 and Polk County three.

This year’s signees include a trio of state wrestling champions — Knox Fuller, TJ Hicks, Colton Landers — who are a joining a NCAA Division I programs.

Just the second Bradley wrestler to win four state individual titles, Fuller is heading to the United States Military Academy in West Point, N.Y., to wrestle for Army.

Hicks and Landers are going to wrestle for former Bear two-time state champion and Blue Raider head coach Heath Eslinger at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

Hicks carries with him three TSSAA state titles for the 26-time champion Bears, while after back-to-back state runner-up trophies, Landers claimed his first state crown in February.

The dynamic duo will join forces with four-time Raider state champ Chris Debien, who capped a strong sophomore season at UTC by claiming the 133-pound Southern Conference Championship and earning a NCAA National Tournament berth.

Tennessee Wesleyan University has eight Bradley County athletes heading to Athens, with five of them coming from a record breaking  Bear track program.

Five locals are crossing the Tennessee River to play for Bryan College in Dayton.

Success on the collegiate level is nothing new for local athletes and with a record number of signees ready join the competition this fall, the mantel of excellence is in good hands.

———

[email protected]

2016-17 College Signees

Bradley Central (23)

Player    Sport    College

Byron Mantooth    Baseball    Tusculum

Kealey Collins    Bowling    TWU

Cole Copeland    Football    UTC

Emma Kate Brown    GBB    Milligan

Halle Hughes    GBB    Lee

Kailey McRee    GBB    CSCC

Olivia Williams    Golf    C-N

Jenn Corbitt    Softball    Motlow State

Amber Bigham    Track    TWU

Alex Finley Track    TWU

Josh Hill    Track    TWU

Madison Nolen    Track    TWU

Nita Vaske    Track    TWU

Cason Still    Track    Lee

Savannah Carroll    VB    CSCC

Julia Gaither    VB    CSCC*

Monica Johnson    VB    CSCC*

Reagan Morrison    VB    CSCC

Knox Fuller    Wrestling    Army

TJ Hicks    Wrestling    UTC

Austin Mathews    Wrestling    Cumberlands

Ryan McElhaney    Wrestling    Cumberland

Whitney McConnell    XC    CSCC

*2016 graduate

Cleveland High (19)

Player    Sport    College

Jake Griffin    Baseball    John Hopkins

Ezequiel Jeserum    Baseball    Bryan

Noah Sills    Baseball    Tusculum

Dylan Turner    Baseball    Cumberland

Jordan Lopez    BSoccer    Bryan

Tommy Marino    BSoccer    TWU

Skyler Davis    Football    E-CCC

Amber Morman    GBB/VB    WAU

Sophia Stamatiadis    GBB    CSCC

Cade Caprara    Golf    CSCC

Carson Griffin    Golf    CSCC**

Lauren Lee    Softball    ETSU

Adam Foster    Swimming    Sewanee

Marissa Riley    Track    Cumberlands 

Jessi Towe    VB    CSCC

Colton Landers    Wrestling    UTC

Blaine Boley    XC    CSCC

Matilda Lee    XC    CSCC

Parker Tullier    XC    CSCC

**2013 graduate

Walker Valley (18)

Player    Sport    College

Tucker Mendenhall    Baseball    CSCC

Grayson Rountree    Base/FB    E & H

Bryce Nunnelly    Football    UTC

Mya Patel    GSoccer    Bryan

Isabel Swafford    GSoccer    E & H

Kelsey Cassada    Golf    TWU

Caleb Craig    Golf    CSCC*

Zach Kilby    Golf    CSCC**

Colton Humbard    Golf    CSCC

Dani Sowder    Softball    Hiwassee

Ali King    Softball    Vol State

Kyla Downes    Track    Wms Baptist

Zach Nicodemus    Track    Bryan

Hannah Calfee    VB    CSCC

Kate Essenburg    VB    CSCC

Dakota Murphy    VB    Bryan

Megan Malone    VB    Bryan

Tyler Hollis    XC    CSCC

*2016 graduate

**2013 graduate

Polk County (3)

Player    Sport    College

Michael Rongey    Golf    CSCC***

Aubrie Bowman    Softball    Walters State

Kallie Hawkins    Softball    Walters State

***2015 graduate

TJ Hicks and Knox Fuller

BANNER FILE PHOTO

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A great man getting proper recognition...

http://www.tullahomanews.com/welsh-to-be-inducted-into-tn-chapter-of-national-wrestling-hall-of-fame/

Welsh to be inducted into TN chapter of national wrestling hall of fame

Posted on Friday, July 7, 2017 at 5:50 pm

0

By ZACH BIRDSONG

Sports Editor

 

Tullahoma native Pat Welsh will be honored for his decades-long commitment to helping young athletes succeed both on and off the mat. On Monday, the Tennessee Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame announced that Welsh is among this year’s class of inductees.

Welsh will be honored, alongside five others, as a Lifetime Service Honoree. In addition, the event will also feature the presentation of the Outstanding American Honoree award.

All of the 2017 inductees will see their names etched in the Stillwater, Oklahoma Hall of Fame and all will be recognized at a banquet taking place on Aug. 27 at the Nashville Airport Marriot.

“Pat, like most real wrestling people, is a humble man,” said P.A. Bowler, the Tennessee Chapter President of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame. “He never sought the spotlight. He’s been a quiet contributor in whatever capacity he was needed. He’s been a tournament director, scorekeeper, mat mopper, mentor, cheerleader and coach. He’s done it all and if you are on the periphery of wrestling you may not even know him.”

That humbleness was evident when Welsh expressed his gratitude for being selected as inductee into this year’s class.

“It’s a great honor and one that I never would have expected,” Welsh said. “It’s a great honor and more importantly, it’s an honor for our booster club, the Tullahoma Takedown Club, because I represent them, it’s certainly not just me.”

After graduating from college, Welsh got his introduction to wrestling when he coached at Battle Ground Academy in Franklin in 1976. That first year he was at BGA, the head wrestling coach asked Welsh to help with the middle school program. Welsh accepted that offer and a year later, was the new wrestling coach at the high school.

“I took that job and to be honest, I wasn’t the most knowledgeable person about the sport,” Welsh said. “I went to a coaching clinic that lasted a week in Iowa that Dan Gable, the great Olympic wrestler, taught. At that time, wrestling wasn’t where it is today, especially in Tennessee. There were plenty of coaches who know more, but I felt like I was on par.”

Pat Welsh talks to youth wrestlers, helping coach and gives advice. Welsh helped establish the Tullahoma Takedown Club for younger wrestlers in the area.

After leaving his teaching position in 1979, Welsh made his way back to Tullahoma, working for Builder Supply Company. He thought he was done with wrestling, however through his family he was able to make his way back to the sport.

When his oldest son, John, was in elementary school, Welch was approached by Ken Hagan, who knew of Welch’s coaching background at BGA. Hagan, who wrestled in college, including a national tournament appearance, wanted to know if Welsh knew of anybody who was interested in youth wrestling as Hagan’s son was interested in the sport.

From there, Welsh and Hagan worked on founding a program for youth wrestlers in the area, the first in Middle Tennessee. That’s where the Tullahoma Takedown Club was born, introducing youths to the sport of wrestling, while competing in several different tournaments.

Since that small initial class, the program has grown and aided the development of several wrestlers at the high-school level. The Tullahoma High School wrestling program started during the 1969-70 school year, but up until 1998, the school had just seen three state place winners, all of whom moved to Tullahoma from other states, according to Welsh.

“All three of them had wrestled as kids. We didn’t have the luxury of that,” Welsh said.

After starting the Tullahoma Takedown Club with fewer than 20 kids attending, the program has grown to nearly 50 children who now attend. That participation in the sport at the youth level has resulted as positives when wrestlers enter their high school careers.

“From 1998, we’ve had well over 30 state placers including four state champions,” Welsh said. “It wasn’t me and wasn’t the people who helped me. It was the fact that we gave those kids the chance to have the same opportunities that the Chattanooga primary kids did.”

That success hasn’t gone unnoticed, as Bowler pointed out. After Welsh helped establish the Takedown Club, many area communities, including Murfreesboro and Nashville, started to implement their own youth wrestling programs.

“Pat has been instrumental in the establishment and growth of wrestling in the Tullahoma area,” Bowler said. “Because of that success, wrestling has been promoted and grown in many rural and more urban areas to try to compete with and be modeled after Tullahoma.

Bowler said Welsh’s impact on the sport and the athletes themselves runs deeper than he likely realizes.

“On a high school level, Tullahoma has a long-standing reputation of being fierce, tough competitors. They have had many state champions and more than their fair share of state placers. Most of them got their start in the Tullahoma kids club that Pat founded in 1991 and has been involved with ever since,” he said. “That may be his biggest contribution, instilling a passion and commitment to so many kids and adults over the years to a sport that helps shape children into strong, confident adults who know what hard work, sacrifice, commitment, and putting the team before yourself is all about.”

Thinking back on the first class of young wrestlers, Welsh noted that several of those grapplers have found success off of the mat. Out of those participants, Welsh said that two went on to receive master’s degrees, one earned a law degree, two  are now medical doctors, two more completed their Ph.D.s and one now coaches at a Division-I wrestling program.

Pat Welsh talks to youth wrestlers, helping coach and gives advice. Welsh helped establish the Tullahoma Takedown Club for younger wrestlers in the area.

Also on that list is Cody Cleveland, a two-time state champion and a four-time state medalist. Cleveland was the last Tennessee-raised NCAA Placer who became an All-American and now is an assistant coach at the Naval Academy.

“I was there his (Cleveland) first tournament and he got in a horrible pinning combination and he tried to call timeout,” Welsh recalled. “It’s really neat to be a small part of a kid’s life who started calling timeout while he was getting pinned and ends up beating a guy from Michigan in what’s called the Blood Round of the NCAA. You either place and become an All-American by winning that (Blood Round) match or go home with nothing.

“Now he’s coaching at the Naval Academy. His office overlooks the Chesapeake Bay. It wasn’t me. He got an opportunity to be on level with other people. I am really, really proud of that.”

The banquet honoring the 2017 Tennessee Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame Inductee will take place on Aug. 27 at the Nashville Airport Marriot. Tickets are $60 for the event and anybody with interest in attending, should reach out to Bowler at [email protected].

Chuck Bean, Matt Gorham, Robert Jemison, Fred Rigsby and David Scott will all join Welsh as Lifetime Service to Wrestling Honorees. Scott Wells is the Outstanding American Honoree in this year’s class. Wells was a two-time heavyweight state champion at Brentwood Academy, and became an NFL Pro Bowler and eventually Super Bowl Champion with the Green Bay Packers.

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For those who knows coach Cobb... 

Benedictine College Athletic Director Charlie Gartenmayer has announced the hiring of Marcus Cobbs to become the next head wrestling coach at Benedictine

http://victorysportsnetwork.com/Clip/news/marcus-cobbs-named-new-benedictine-wrestling-head-coach.htm

Coach Cobbs spent time as an assistant coach at Cumberland University while also serving as the interim head coach at Concordia (Neb.) University

Edited by Sommers
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State wrestling champion Fortner starting over at UTC

http://knoxfocus.com/2017/07/state-wrestling-champion-fortner-starting-utc/

By design on July 9, 2017No Comment

By Steve Williams

Hunter “HT” Fortner says he likes hard work. So much, in fact, the Gibbs High graduate left behind a football scholarship offer from the University of the Cumberlands in Williamsburg, Ky., and became a preferred walk-on in the UT-Chattanooga wrestling program.

While waiting a couple of weeks for official scholarship papers to arrive to be signed, Fortner chose a different path to take in his athletic career.

“I missed the hard work on the mat and I missed wrestling – so I’m just going to go wrestle,” recalled Fortner, who won the TSSAA Class AAA state championship in the 182-pound weight class in February after leading Gibbs to the football playoffs at quarterback.

Tim Pittman, Gibbs’ wrestling head coach, had some contacts with UTC Head Coach Heath Eslinger, and they got me a visit with Coach David Hoffman, the assistant, said Fortner.

No wrestling scholarships were left at UTC, but Fortner said he has been told he will have the opportunity to earn one later.

“They have a big class of over 13 freshmen coming in and 30 wrestlers are on the team,” said HT.

Fortner finished as the second winningest wrestler in the history of Gibbs’ program with 151 victories. He was 51-2 his senior season with both losses coming against defending state champions from Georgia.

In football, HT had played middle linebacker for Coach Brad Conley as a sophomore and junior before the Eagles needed him at quarterback last fall. After having been the team’s leading tackler, he became the team’s leading rusher as a running quarterback.

Fortner’s makeup as a wrestler and linebacker contributed to him being tough to stop when carrying a football.

His QB days would have been over had he stuck with football at the Cumberlands.

“They just switched from the triple option to the read option, so they were going to throw a lot more,” said Fortner. “They were talking about sticking me at slot wide receiver or (using me) as a defensive guy.”

Chattanooga, a NCAA Division 1 member, has a traditionally strong wrestling program and the Mocs have been dominant at times in the Southern Conference.

“They should have about seven guys ranked in the Top 15 in the nation this year starting off,” said HT.

Fortner has found offseason workouts against some of UTC’s talented and strong upperclassmen to be quite a challenge.

But he hasn’t lost his fighting spirit. In fact, he has set some lofty goals for himself at UTC.

“My first goal will be to start, the second goal to win So Con and the third goal to be an All-American (by placing in the top eight at the nationals),” he said. “The So Con had only three to do that last year.

“I’m looking to wrestle at 174 or 184 in college right now. I’m sitting at about 180.”

Fortner, who doesn’t want to take a redshirt year, believes he was at his best as a high school wrestler on his feet and when he was on top.

Now he feels like he’s pretty much starting over.

“Normally they say it usually takes three to six months for a freshman to get competitive,” said HT. “I don’t know. I’m a month in and I’m still getting whooped.

“It’s just so much different – from going to the big guy in high school to the smallest guy.

“I’m really the only new guy they brought in that’s over 170 pounds.”

Scottie Boykin is one of the veterans who has been working over the young Fortner on the mat this summer. The 197-pounder from Murfreesboro Riverdale is a former Southern Conference champion and two-time NCAA tournament qualifier.

“He’s a complete stud,” said HT. “He messed up his elbow last year and got a medical redshirt, so this is his last year of eligibility. I expect him to be an All-American. He’s a really good guy. I practiced with him before I went on vacation.”

Boykin has given the newcomer encouragement.

“After he whooped me, he told me I did a good job fighting,” said Fortner. “He said I brought it today for sure. He said to keep doing it and ‘you’ll be taking me down like that. You’ve got to get better every day.’”

Fortner, who finished with a GPA around 3.6 in high school, plans to major in nursing, get a nursing degree and be a RN. “Maybe work toward being a nurse practitioner,” he added. “That’s what I want to do.”

HT said he’s definitely going to miss the Gibbs community. “I like coming home and driving the roads again. It’s just always going to be something about it.”

Fortner has twin brothers, Kalib and Lian, who will be freshmen football players at Central this year and another brother, Carson Reep, who will be a lineman on the eighth grade team at Gibbs.

A lot of Gibbs fans surely will be missing HT too and wishing him the best.

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 video

https://www.facebook.com/groups/blackmanwrestling/permalink/10155033435874608/

Four teams affected by this set back...

http://www.dnj.com/story/news/2017/07/10/murfreesboro-blackman-middle-school-fire-wrestling-building/463466001/

"We had everything over there," Bray said.

Fortunately, new competition mats the team recently acquired were not in the building. They were at the high school.

"I've already had friends from all over — Northern Illinois, Penn State — calling and asking how they can help, talking about doing clinics as fundraisers," Sacharczyk said.

For now, it's a waiting game to assess equipment and structural damage. 

"It shows you what a great sport wrestling is," Bray said. "We battle each other tough, but when you need anything, it's like family."

--------------------------------

More...

A fire at Blackman Middle School late Sunday night seriously damaged a building that housed four wrestling programs and their equipment.

There were no reported injuries in the fire at the school on Blaze Drive.
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A fire at Blackman Middle School late Sunday night seriously damaged a small building used to hold ...more
Mariah Timms / DNJ

Murfreesboro Fire and Rescue Department Assistant Fire Chief Kim Lawson said Monday afternoon that the fire appeared to be accidental.

“The cause of the fire appears to be accidental and originated in the area of an exhaust fan mounted on the west wall of the building,” Fire Marshal Carl Peas said.

The building is a total loss, Peas said in a statement. Rutherford County Schools officials said no other buildings were damaged. 

"This stinks," Blackman assistant wrestling coach Eric Sacharczyk said.

After a mandatory "dead period" during which all school-affiliated sports activities were put on hold, Sunday would have been the first day anyone could have started practicing for the upcoming year. 

The Blackman High wrestling team wasn't the only program affected. Four teams use the building as their practice facility.

"You've got youth program, middle school program, high school and MTSU all practicing in that building," Blackman coach Ronnie Bray said. "Basically there are four teams displaced right now. It's something we'll have to figure out."

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A fire at Blackman Middle School late Sunday night seriously damaged a small building used to hold ...more
Submitted

The teams that use the facility will be scrambling for somewhere to practice.

"We're so stretched for space," Blackman athletic director Scott Lawless said. "Right now we don't know about repairs of how long it would take. We may have to be creative.

Items such as practice mats, score clocks, uniforms and team benches were destroyed in the fire.

"We had everything over there," Bray said.

Fortunately, new competition mats the team recently acquired were being stored at Blackman High. 

"I've already had friends from all over — Northern Illinois, Penn State — calling and asking how they can help, talking about doing clinics as fundraisers," Sacharczyk said.

 

Edited by Sommers
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