Post by National Honor on Jan 23, 2012 19:53:06 GMT -5
Orange is a good example of how a program can turn around under the right leadership. Once a successful AA program thanks to local AAU and other clubs that fed the high school program, their recent history was rather dismal. The "go get em" battle cry that coach John Kayajanian utilized to get 'ready made' wrestlers to win was not enough when the well ran dry. Coach Kayajanian did not have the wrestling background or savvy to institute a successful program on his own, and he failed to hire an assistant who could compensate for his own lack of wrestling know-how.
What followed was several years of parent-athlete complaints and meetings with the ultimate goal of getting a competent coaching staff in place. However, Marc Cole, the athletic director at Orange, failed to take action. There were allegations of cronyism and nepotism (the assistant coach), kids were leaving for other programs (Taylor Reuss), and other parents were looking to find competent programs to send their kids to.
Finally, in some rare moment of lucidity, Kayajanian realized his own limitations and brought in Coach Dick Glover. Coach Glover is a VA high school and Woodberry legend. He had precisely what John didn't - a deep knowledge and understanding of the sport of wrestling - he was a real wrestling coach and a great one at that. The program immediately took a step in the right direction. Soon after hiring Glover, John Reigle, Danny Artusio, and Kyle Artusio were brought aboard. The Artusio brothers were VA state placers and UVA wrestlers. They are a great combination of wrestler and coach. John Reigle was a PA wrestler and outstanding teacher of wrestling technique. Between the Artusios, Reigle, and Coach Glover, the wrestlers now had a complete set of coaches to develop and lead them.
The end result is that Orange has made a smooth transition to AAA this year, beat everyone but Colonial Forge in the Commonwealth district, and won several tournaments. Their future never looked better. The wrestlers and parents are anxiously awaiting when the program is fully turned over to both the Artusio brothers and Coach Glover.
Moral of the story - no matter how bad it is, it can be fixed!
What followed was several years of parent-athlete complaints and meetings with the ultimate goal of getting a competent coaching staff in place. However, Marc Cole, the athletic director at Orange, failed to take action. There were allegations of cronyism and nepotism (the assistant coach), kids were leaving for other programs (Taylor Reuss), and other parents were looking to find competent programs to send their kids to.
Finally, in some rare moment of lucidity, Kayajanian realized his own limitations and brought in Coach Dick Glover. Coach Glover is a VA high school and Woodberry legend. He had precisely what John didn't - a deep knowledge and understanding of the sport of wrestling - he was a real wrestling coach and a great one at that. The program immediately took a step in the right direction. Soon after hiring Glover, John Reigle, Danny Artusio, and Kyle Artusio were brought aboard. The Artusio brothers were VA state placers and UVA wrestlers. They are a great combination of wrestler and coach. John Reigle was a PA wrestler and outstanding teacher of wrestling technique. Between the Artusios, Reigle, and Coach Glover, the wrestlers now had a complete set of coaches to develop and lead them.
The end result is that Orange has made a smooth transition to AAA this year, beat everyone but Colonial Forge in the Commonwealth district, and won several tournaments. Their future never looked better. The wrestlers and parents are anxiously awaiting when the program is fully turned over to both the Artusio brothers and Coach Glover.
Moral of the story - no matter how bad it is, it can be fixed!