How has your transition been so far?
The transition’s been great so far. From the administration, to the coaching staff, even the previous coaching staff. (Former head coach) Russ Hellickson, Mitch Clark, Kenny Ramsey, they’ve all helped me.

After what you built at Hofstra, was it difficult to leave?
This is a dream job, so when it opened up I knew it was something I was going to look into. The timing wasn’t great from Hofstra’s standpoint because we were really growing and the university had just fully funded us. So it was a work in progress. But we’d just been fully funded, the team was ranked fifth in the nation in the preseason [rankings] and there are great people there. I’m from there and have a lot of deep, embedded friendships there. So it was difficult from that standpoint, but this opportunity was one that fit every passion I had--my family, my faith, my coaching, and winning a national championship. It was an easy choice overall when I put everything down in writing.

What about the Ohio State job made you want to take it?
One, I like the Midwest. Plus the passion of the state for the sport of wrestling is great. And I don’t think there are many universities that year-in, year-out can dominate the college wrestling world, but I think this is one of them. Again, the state is an incredible state for wrestling. The job met my family needs. My wife is from Bloomington [Ind.] which is three hours away, so we’re close to her family. Across the board it was a great decision and a great opportunity.

What is your assessment of the current state of the program here?
I think the material is here. There are some weight classes we’re going to have to hustle and recruit. The work ethic overall in the [wrestling room] we need to tweak. We have to get buy-in to the fact that if you want to get to where we want to go, you have to sacrifice more than you’ve been sacrificing. There’s a lot of excitement and enthusiasm in the coaching staff. I like to say I’m the weak link in the coaching staff – that’s how strong I think it is. With [assistant coaches Joe] Heskett, [Tommy] Rowlands, and [Lou] Rosselli, and [Jim] Humphrey and [Ross Thatcher] staying, it’s just a group of coaches that are driven and are good people. So I couldn’t be happier with the staff and the overall enthusiasm. I think the guys are adapting well to some subtle changes.

How much does it help to have a guy like Tommy Rowlands staying on staff?
Tommy Rowlands was basically my first call when I got hired. My first question was: “How do we keep Tommy Rowlands at Ohio State?” Because he does have Olympic gold-medal dreams, and I think that will happen for him. So keeping him was a priority. He was considering going to the [Olympic] training center [in Colorado Springs, Colo.]. So I called him and after 10 minutes of speaking with him my thinking that we had to keep him increased a hundredfold. I thought we had to keep him to begin with. He’s an incredibly impressive person. So I said, “Tommy, what do we need to do to keep you?” He said, “Get Lou Rosselli.” He said, “If you get Lou Rosselli, I’m staying.” So, that was my next call. And I wanted Lou anyway, so we were thinking along the same lines to begin with because Lou was a top choice to begin with. The next logical step was we met with Gene Smith, who was integral in us getting Joe Heskett. He called Joe personally. He had a relationship with Joe through Iowa State and he knew what type of person he was–a four-time academic All-American, a four-time All-American wrestler. Joe was a perfect fit and Gene wanted him as well. He was another Ohio boy who can help us keep Ohio kids in state.

What will be the most important things to do in the first months to get your way of doing things instituted?
I think the staff was first. Getting a staff of respectable coaches, coaches who can really keep the enthusiasm of what we want to get in place here. Two was assessing the team. What our needs are, and trying to get a pulse on the mentality of the team. We needed to find out who’s in. Who are the right people? Are they all in? Three I’d say is establishing good relationships in the state. We’re in the process of doing that now. We’re going to get out to five different areas of the state with our staff and meet the coaches. We want to let them know we’re here to service the state. In the 90-day plan, those are the three things that I want to do. Lastly, we want to get a database together. We have to organize our people to support us. [The] alumni and business people who want to help. That will assist us in growing Ohio International, the freestyle [wrestling] program that we’re going to keep in place here and hopefully grow and be a lot stronger than it has been.

When Jim Tressel started as football coach he talked about building a fence around Ohio when it came to recruiting. Is that something you would aim to do as well?
I’ve heard people say that and I’ve used it. I’ll follow Tressel as much as possible. In fact, he came over yesterday to talk with one of our recruits on a whim. It was very kind of him. But yeah, we’re going to win with Ohio people. This is the premier state in the country [for high school wrestling]. You got Ohio, Pennsylvania, and some of the eastern states, but Ohio, year-in, year-out produces some of the top high school wrestlers who are winning national championships on the college level. So we really do want to fence in the state. Keeping Rowlands and Heskett was crucial, I feel, to getting that done.

Removing wrestling from the equation, what would you want people to know about you?
I think in general this is a practice field for the next life. This is the dress rehearsal. I’m very family oriented. My family and faith are very important to me. My hobby is gardening, which I’ll admit [laughs]. I think, in general, through some of the difficulties I’ve had in life, I have a good hold on what’s important in life. As bad as I want to win a national championship as coach, I also want to impact lives positively, which was one of the things that made me want to come here. This is a place you can really impact lives if you run your program the right way. But yeah, I’m just a family person, who has strong faith and feels there’s something better than this in the next life.

Who are the members of your family?
My wife [Lynette] and I have been married going on 12 years. I have a son Jordan who’s going to be 13, and a son Jake who’s 11. I lost a son, Teague, who would be seven now. And my daughter, Mackenzie, is five. They’re all in New York now. I just got a house so I’m looking forward to getting them out there.

Teague passed away from a heart ailment when he was five-years-old. How did you and your family cope with that tragedy?
You know, I was raised Catholic and I didn’t really understand a one-on-one relationship with God. Losing my child, suddenly, at the dinner table, he was running around the house playing and died of basically a massive heart attack due to an infection he had in his heart that we didn’t know about. I think, in despair, in tough times, people find out what they are all about. You learn more about yourself from your losses than your wins. And it was a time when I had to manage my feelings, and my wife’s feelings and my children, who were there and watched. I saw the love of people and compassion through the community. It made us a stronger family. My faith obviously helped. At a moment when you love something beyond words, a child, and you lose them suddenly, to me it was–why am I here, where am I going, and what is my purpose in life? It gave me incredible perspective. It gave me a reason to look to find those answers. And I really looked for a year and a half. I really researched Jesus Christ, per se, and started understanding there’s something after this. Without the loss of Teague, I don’t know that I’d have come to that point in my life where I thought I better figure this out. To me, I think I found the answer and it really helped me get through it.

What kind of kid was Teague?
He was an amazing kid. An incredible, incredible kid. I mean, every parent loves their children beyond words. But he was someone who had impact wherever he went. He would ask a woman how old she was just on a whim. Or he would ask someone for a buck on the street. He was just a very interesting personality. Very fun to be around. He was with me all the time. He traveled with me. He wasn’t even in kindergarten yet, but he went on all the road trips with me. Wherever I went, he was with me. In fact, the day he died was President’s Day. He went to practice with me and was with me all day. He loved wrestling, loved football, and he wanted to shine. He has an older brother, Jordan, who shined, and he was ready. He was going to start officially wrestling the next year and was going to play football. I actually held him out a year later and he was mad about it. I think the irony of the whole thing is that he impacted my life more than any human being I’ve come across in a short five years.

How is your family handling this move and this transition so far?
They are so excited. The ninth-grader, Jordan, it’s a tough time for him to be leaving and he’s a little concerned; but overall I think he’s excited. My 11-year-old and my 5-year-old are excited. My wife is so happy. Overall, it’s an incredible opportunity. It’s a great area and it’s a very exciting time. Going back to Teague, it’s a difficult time, too, because he would have really loved it here. As a family, we’re going to have a great life out here.

Do your two sons compete in wrestling?
Jordan was diagnosed with the same heart condition that we thought Teague died of, so initially we pulled him out of everything. He’s just getting back into athletics now because a genetics specialist told us that Teague didn’t die from what we thought he died from. So it wasn’t genetic. Jake, my 11-year-old, won the New York state [championship] this year. It was a great moment for the family, not for the success of winning it, but it was just really important to him. He had very strong feelings for his younger brother and he really felt Teague was watching him and he wanted to win it for Teague. I know that sounds kind of corny, but that’s just how he is.

What have you tried to tell your sons is the most important element to being a successful wrestler?
I think in general faith is important in any aspect of life. I feel that now. I think if you have the underlying foundation that no matter what happens in life you have something to hold onto that is bigger than you. With my children, and even with the team, I think having something that’s bigger than you is important, because things are going to get rough in this life. I tell my kids now. They’ve lived through it. You’re going to win. You’re going to lose. You’re going to fall on your face, but you have to get back up. Understand what’s ahead. No matter how hard you train, you’re going to face adversity. Then, just a consistent, hearty work ethic. Nothing happens by accident. Anything you get, you’re going to have to work at it.

When did you start wrestling, and what got you involved?
I got involved because I couldn’t make the basketball team [laughs]. That was my passion, that was my love. I played from second grade to seventh grade and I loved it. I soon began to realize that I wasn’t growing and everyone else was, and I got cut. My brother started wrestling in ninth grade, and I was in seventh. And he said, “You’re going to wrestle.” And I said, “No, I’m not. I’m not putting on one of those uniforms. No way, no how. I’m not wearing a singlet.” But the first day in the room, I was sold. I loved the fight. I loved the one-on-one, it was in my hands. I just fell in love with the energy required to be good at it.

You started wrestling in college at Syracuse before transferring to Iowa. What went into that decision?
College-wise, my brother Frank was at Syracuse. We had a great relationship. Looking back now, I would guess I took the easy way. It was comfortable. That’s a common mistake. I shouldn’t say mistake, it really wasn’t, but it was comfortable and easy. I had a built-in workout partner, leader, and friend. I guess looking back, ultimately, I guess I wasn’t ready to take that step to the University of Iowa at that age. It was a maturing process and regardless, it worked out for me.

What wrestling accomplishment of yours are you most proud of?
Probably winning the regional tournament as a sophomore [in high school]. You know, I’ve won some decent tournaments in my life, but I would say as a young person in 10th grade with so much fire. It was a big match, I was the underdog. I’d say winning when I wasn’t expected to win, you know, I expected to win, but outsiders didn’t think I would. That was probably the biggest win I ever had. Frank Matozzo from Locust Valley in 10th grade. I still remember. It’s pretty pathetic [laughs].

You were at Iowa during a period of time when they dominated college wrestling. What was that like?
First off, that’s going to happen here. But yeah, I left a full scholarship at Syracuse, showed up in a hotel, and enrolled in school [at Iowa]. When I got to Iowa, it was like, “Wow.” I thought I had worked pretty hard, but it was different. It was another perspective and a different standard. [There were] just great people who were hungry to be successful. There was a coach who was the catalyst to it all to keeping that standard high. It was really fun. I never remember thinking it was a drag. It was difficult, the training was hard, but I don’t look back on it and remember those type things. It was well worth the work.

Your coach at Iowa–Dan Gable–is probably the most well-known American wrestler. What kind of coach was he?
I’m reading a book now that was recommended to me by Jim Tressel. It’s called “Good to Great.” As I read through it, I see a lot of similarities in what Jim Collins, the writer of the book, sees in these companies that went from good to great. Great leadership, but the right people. Gable, just to me, surrounded himself with the right people. His assistant coaches, student athletes, the way he recruited. He just attracted the type of person who would not accept losing. He just set a standard. It’s all about the right people, and the right people are out there.

Has his influence stayed with you?
A lot of things have stayed with me. One of the mistakes I made as a young coach was trying to run Hofstra like it was Iowa from a training standpoint, and I didn’t have the people to run it that way. I also think as much as I respect coach Gable, there are some areas where I’d maybe add my own style. A little more individual technique, and some other little things. But to have wrestled for Gable and learned was important to me. A lot of the annual plan and the way we plan, is an Iowa-type, Gable-esque model.

How do you think you’ll feel when you wrestle Iowa this year and see him across the mat in the opposite corner?
Tom Brands, the new head coach, was my teammate for three years. Most of the Big Ten coaches had an affiliation with Iowa. I either wrestled under them, or competed with them. So I’m really looking forward to competing with Iowa, Tom Brands, and Dan Gable. I believe, completely, without any hesitation, that Ohio State can be a dynasty in the sport of wrestling. I think it’s one of the few programs in the country that can win the national championship consistently. I’m not trying to put undue pressure on anybody, but I think it’s a reality in this state at this university.

-Jay Hansen