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Neil has been the head coach at a club out of Romulus called "The Clique" for a number of years.  He has had numerous state placers and state qualifiers, and is off to a great start in Eagle Nation.  Michigan Prep and Neil discussed numerous topics and philosophies.  Thanks for taking the time to chat with us Neil!

 

 

Team Goals: 

• How long have you been coaching?

• I have been coaching for about 11 years. 

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• How did you decide to get into the wrestling coach profession?

• Ever since I was a kid I wanted to be a martial arts teacher. Wrestling coaching ended up being a natural fit.

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• What are your overall goals for the team this season?

• My goals for the team this year are to try to improve their technique as much as possible with the time that I have with them before and during the season and to try and give the seniors a good final year.

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• Are there any specific team or individual goals you're aiming for?

• I would like to get my returning 106 state qualifier to the podium this year.

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• How do you plan to measure the team's success this year?

• Since taking over the program only a short time ago we are in a rebuilding phase. We will be focused heavily on the process and not on the outcome of dual meets.

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Roster and Talent: 

• Who are some of the key returning wrestlers to watch this season?

• Danny Vaneeckhoutte is a returning state qualifier who has only gotten better and better since last year. I also have high hopes for Malachi Rodriguez in his senior year. 

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• Are there any promising newcomers you're excited about?

• We have a few newcomers who are showing a lot of promise. When you are coaching wrestling with kids who start out in high school you always wish you had more time with them.

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• How has the team's roster changed since last season?

•  I don't know much about the roster last year but we have some new faces who are new to wrestling I have high hopes for.

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Challenges and Opportunities:​

• What are the biggest challenges your team faces this season?

• The biggest challenge that Erie has is the overall size of the team. I will be rebuilding the program from youth-high school and it will be a process. 

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• Are there any specific opponents or tournaments you're looking forward to?

• I don't like to place any special value on any specific tournament or opponent. We will be focused on doing better then we did at every previous match. Competitions should be treated like prototype tests for the final product we hope to have in the post season. 

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• How do you plan to overcome any obstacles or setbacks that may arise?

• Work around the obstacles.

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• What are the biggest opportunities for your team this season?

•  Our biggest opportunities this year will be to give a fresh perspective to our training, work ethic and team loyalty.

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Coaching Philosophy: 

• What is your coaching philosophy?

•  I tend to be very "outside the box". I have been heavily influenced by various coaches I have involved in my family's life over the years such as Ben Askren, Mitch Clark, and Mike Krause. Tim Roberts and I had many long talks over the years. I would say if I had to nail it down it would be to coach to the athlete and their personality and physiology. Be ready to find unorthodox methods in technique and training. Do not discount everything that is old, but do not hold on to anything that is not working anymore for the sake of "tradition". I prefer to be a results motivated coach, meaning if it's working we keep doing it. If it is not working stop doing it. Some coaches get an emotional attachment to strategies or techniques that may have worked for them but will not work for the athletes in front of them. Worse, some would literally rather a kid lost doing what they told them rather then opening their minds to new approaches that can win.

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• How do you motivate your wrestlers to reach their full potential?

•  The best way to motivate kids is to find the perfect balance of drill sergeant with Mr. Miyagi from the Karate Kid. And be ready to customize that approach for each individual personality. I have seen coaches overuse drill sergeant to the point kids just stop responding. I have seen them use it on kids who do not respond to it at all. But at the same time I have also seen coaches who don't have the ability to drop the hammer when it becomes nessacary. You can be intense in your coaching while shouting encouragement to do better rather then tearing people down. That lesson I learned from Mike Krause. 

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• What role does sportsmanship and character play in your program?

•  Sportsmanship is not optional. I tend to think of a match I watched where Bo Nickal tech falled his opponent and then reached down to help the guy up, patted him on the back and got his hand raised. That elevated him so far above what the scoreboard says. You want to be the team that is feared on the mat but appreciated off the mat. 

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• How do you balance the demands of academics and athletics for your wrestlers?

• Academics is the primary focus. I have gotten kids scholarships to college and it needs to be emphasized as the final goal, the gold at the end of the rainbow. 

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Local and National Wrestling Scene: 

• What are your thoughts on the current state of high school wrestling in the area?

• I am familiar with this area as my kids wrestled in this league for most of their lives. The team on top of our area has done a great job of being a program that draws in kids from outside of their town. You can either complain about that or you can do your best to be a program that people want to stay with. I will choose to do the latter. 

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• How do you see the sport of wrestling evolving in the coming years?

• I look forward to seeing what the new rules will do to evolve wrestling. I anticipate that the bottom position will not be a place that people gravitate to with the points being so much more easy to acquire in the neutral and top position. I have coached some in the new rule set and the matches tend to be more technical and less "grindy". I like that.