As a faculty member, I am almost always pleased when I hear about another group that is working to establish itself on campus. I think that we have an excellent buffet of choices for the students to choose from when deciding to become active on campus. We have organizations that speak to the need to understand and become active in politics, organizations created to recognize academic quality in several disciplines, organizations designed to further understanding of particular professions, and organizations that allow for the pursuit of a particular interest. 

A few months ago, I became aware of a movement on campus to form a wrestling club, and to be honest, few future organizations have excited me as much as this one. A reason why I am excited about this club is simply because I love the sport. And, for the record, I am not talking about the professional, theatrical version of “sport entertainment” wrestling. I am talking about beautiful, historical, demanding, blood, sweat and tears wrestling of Dan Gable, Bruce Baumgartner and Rulon Gardner. I have loved this sport since middle school (meaning Ancient Greece). It is one of the most demanding, beautiful, amazing and awe-inspiring sports ever invented. And, for you MMA enthusiasts, note please, that many of the greats in that sport have their basis in wrestling.

But, my love for the sport is not the only reason why I am thrilled that a wrestling club may be coming to campus. Given the proximity of Monmouth College to Iowa, the wrestling capital of the world (no exaggeration), as well as the quality of high school wrestling in Illinois, the possibility of recruiting quality wrestlers to MC seems incredible to me. Likewise, given the proximity of MC to the Iowa border, I am always surprised when there are few students from that state in my classes. This could open doors into fertile ground of potential students. 

However, the most important reason why I am excited about the formation of a wrestling program on campus is because of the quality of student that it is likely to draw. In my experience, wrestlers are amongst the most cerebral athletes. Whether it is due to the strategy on the mat, or the mental stamina required to succeed I do not know, but wrestlers are intelligent. 

Wrestling on this campus makes sense for a great many reasons. Here is hoping that the resurgence of wrestling on this campus is met with open eyes, minds and arms. The tangible benefits to this campus are likely to be high, with the possibility of drawing more students from Iowa, students likely to succeed in academic environment we offer here, and to retain the interest of the former high school wrestlers already on campus (a potential retention tool). 

Given the upside of wrestling on campus, it comes as no surprise to me that Trevor Newton, a young man with high academic promise and who has already made his presence on campus known in several organizations, and who is the major force in the rebirth of the wrestling program, was named this year’s Freshman Man of the Year. As someone whoknows wrestlers, I suspect that this is the beginning of something good for Monmouth College.  

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