Summer Bulletin Board

Summer Bulletin Board

 Oregon State Wrestlling Camps - going on now: http://www.oregonstatewrestlingcamp.com/

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 From Joe Drucker

My son Garrett took off today in the Transpac Yacht Race to HI from Palos Verdes.  Gar's on a Catamaran named Celestra-almost 100 yachts in the race, unreal send off party last Sat night.

Fastest boats from around the world to compete. Gar's in a class of 2 boats so how bad could it be-comfortable cruising class luxury ride all the way-not like the bare bones carbon fiber rockets with no amenities trying to break records. Mary & I sailed out to say farewell. Gars on the left side of the group shot from this morning & I ended  up fixing a problem on the top of the 72' mast when we got back to the dock.  My friend Wes with the boat we were on hung the banner for the boys to see at the start.. Fun...

You can follow his progress and 90 others here under Race Tracker on this website:  https://2019.transpacyc.com/

Garrett Drucker on far left

 

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From Ron Iwasaki

Q & A With Maryland Head Coach, Alex Clemsen

Alex Clemsen was named the Head Coach at the University of Maryland this past April. He previously served as the associate head coach at Missouri for five seasons. During his time at Mizzou, he helped his wrestlers earn three NCAA individual titles, 22 All-American honors and five consecutive top-six team finishes at NCAAs. Before Missouri, Alex served as the assistant coach at the University of Virginia, where he was instrumental in the success of the program.

Clemsen is a 2007 graduate of Edinboro, where he was an All-American wrestler and four-time NCAA qualifier. He finished his career with a 121-35 record, good for ninth in the school's history. He was the 14th wrestler in program history to win four Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Championships, and he was also named an Eastern Wrestling League Champion. A two-time Academic All-American, Clemsen graduated with the highest GPA of any wrestler in Edinboro history.

Clemsen and his wife, Lindsay, have two children: a daughter, Payten and a son, Porter.



Q1: You recently took over the program at the University of Maryland. Tell us a little about this process and your transition from Missouri and UVA before that.

A1: Each transition has been fun, yet uniquely challenging. When I got to UVA I was so young and hungry I did know what I did not know! Fortunately, I had a great 5 years with Coach Garland in Charlottesville, and I learned a ton. Because of my time there I was able to get my family home and spend 5 more fruitful years at Mizzou with Coach Smith. Moving home to Missouri was fun and easy on the personal side. However, I had a lot of growth still to experience professionally and Coach Smith really helped prepare me, even more, to be ready to lead a program. Now as I settle in here at College Park I have a lot of expectations for myself, our staff, and this program. It has been great connecting with past Terps, boosters, and fans. Everyone around the program is excited, welcoming, and supportive. So far it has been as easy to get going as I would hope because of all the great people here in and around the program and department.


Q2: How has your perspective changed, if at all, in the sport of wrestling from being an athlete to now being a coach at the Division 1 level?

A2: My perspective has not changed a ton to be honest. It is wrestling, not rocket science! There is no magic formula or secret method that makes you better, just hard work. Relationships really drive everything in sport and in life and I learned that early on in my time as a student-athlete at Edinboro. Other than wearing a different hat so to speak I am still the same person. I love wrestling, I believe in hard work and clean living, and I have a deep appreciation for the people around me.



Q3: What are some highlights of the University of Maryland, academically and athletically, that set it apart from other schools? What kind of wrestlers and character values do you recruit to be a successful fit in College Park?

A3: Maryland is awesome! The DMV, in general, is electric! What a place to be, so much buzz, so much history, so many opportunities. UMD is one of the best public schools in the country and we get to compete in the nation's premier wrestling league. Not sure how you can beat that overall combo to be honest. As a staff, we will be looking for young men that are competitive, hard-nosed, and clean living. If you are competitive in the classroom and on the mats, you want to work hard and fight like hell, and then live your life the right way, then Maryland Wrestling is for you.


Q4: What are your plans and some of your program goals to bring the Terps back into the hunt for developing and producing All-Americans and national champions?

A4: We are committed to building the program the right way. We want to yoke with like-minded individuals who know what it will mean to be a part of Turtle Power. In the immediate future, we are looking for young people that want to be different and be a part of a build and the new face of a program. We are focused on winning Big10 dual meets and qualifying more guys for the national tournament. By doing that we know we will produce Big10 and NCAA Champions that are earning one best degrees available.



Q5: You have been on the coaching scene since you graduated from Edinboro University and been an assistant coach at some great schools and programs. What has your journey been like to finally have your own program and serve as the head coach at a Big Ten school?

A5: My journey has been a blessed one. It has been a lot of fun up to this point and I look forward to continuing to have fun. I never feel like I work. Sure we will grind and we will put some long hours, days, weeks, and months in, but I truly love what I do every day and just feel really fortunate to be where I am today. I know that a lot of great people poured into me along the way, and that motivates me to get up each and every day and pour into our wrestlers, the staff, and people around the department and in the community.

*Bio and photos provided by the University of Maryland via umterps.com and @terpswrestling