Transcript The Case for Clemson Wrestling Seizing The Moment! (A Unique Opportunity in Time) Prepared by: The Clemson Wrestling Alumni Steering Committee Alan C.

The Case for Clemson Wrestling
Seizing The Moment!
(A Unique Opportunity in Time)
Prepared by:
The Clemson Wrestling Alumni Steering Committee
Alan C. Leet - The College Sports Council
With Support from:
National Wrestling Coaches Association, The US Olympic
Committee, NUWAY, and USA Wrestling
1
Thank You

For Hosting Our Wrestling Reunion Going Into Our 4th Year

For Recognizing Noel Loban and Sam Henson in the Athletic Hall of
Fame

For Taking Time to Meet Today
2
The History of Clemson Wrestling

Term of Program: 1977-1995

2 Olympic Medalists

1 World Championship

3 Individual NCAA Championships

8 All-Americans

1 ACC Team and 28 Individual ACC Championships

Numerous Military Officers and Successful Business Leaders
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What are the National and Regional
Trends in the Sport of Wrestling?

The Popularity of Wrestling in South Carolina and the Southeast is
Growing

Despite the Sport’s Popularity Intercollegiate Wrestling
Opportunities are Very Limited in the Southeast

High School Wrestlers are an Under-Recruited Talent Pool Nationally
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Popularity of Wrestling in South Carolina
and the Southeast

Scholastic wrestling ranks sixth of all boys sports in terms of participation at the
high school level with over 272,000 participants nationwide.

There are approximately 4,800 high school wrestlers in the state of South Carolina.

Between FL, GA, and SC, there are approximately 22,000 scholastic wrestlers and
only one NCAA Division I wrestling team.

Wrestling is a growing youth age group sport, with over 50 club teams in South
Carolina, and athlete participants ranging in age from Elementary School to High
School.

Wrestling’s popularity crosses geographic and socio-economic boundaries—
illustrated by strong South Carolina High School programs in both public and
private schools located in the “Upstate” and “Lower State”.
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Despite the Sport’s Popularity
Intercollegiate Wrestling Opportunities are
Very Limited in the Southeast

South Carolina has only one NCAA Division I Wrestling Program (the Citadel), and
only four other Intercollegiate Wrestling Programs (Anderson, Newberry, Limestone
and Spartanburg Methodist).

There are no NCAA Intercollegiate Programs in Georgia, Alabama and Florida.

In contrast, Intercollegiate Wrestling is very well represented to our North, with
many Intercollegiate Programs in North Carolina (11), Virginia (8), Maryland (4)
and Tennessee (3).

As a Result, Most of the State’s and Region’s Elite Wrestlers Are Forced to Give Up
the Sport, Compete at the Club Level or Attend an Out-Of-State College or
University at significant additional expense.
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High School Wrestlers are an
Under-Recruited Talent Pool Nationally
High School
Participants
College
Opportunities
Percent HS
to NCAA
1,009,279
64,879
6.4
2. Basketball
540,207
16,911
3.1
3. Track and Field (outdoor)
572,123
24,418
4.3
4. Baseball
472,644
29,816
6.3
5. Soccer
391,839
21,601
5.5
6. Wrestling
272,890
6,522
2.4
7. Cross Country
239,608
13,015
5.4
8. Tennis
162,755
7,960
4.9
9. Golf
157,756
8,299
5.3
10. Swimming/Diving
131,376
8,868
6.7
179,581
5.1
Sport
1. Football
TOTALS
3,620,648
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Clemson Uniquely Positioned
to Add Wrestling

Wrestling Offers Clemson the Ability to Win Championships and Build a
Nationally Competitive Program

There are Modest Costs and Facility Needs

It Helps Clemson Achieve its Mission Statement and Goals

ACC is on the Rise, and so it is a Natural Extension of Conference Programs

Clemson has a Strong Wrestling Alumni Group
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Clemson Positioned to Win Championships
Build a Nationally Competitive Program
 Numbers Advantages:
 Only 79 Division I Wrestling Programs – Versus 302 Division I Cross Country
Teams, 291 Golf Teams, 258 Tennis Teams and 197 Soccer Teams
 Elite Wrestlers are the Most Under-Recruited Student-Athlete!
 Elite Academic Institutions Are Succeeding in Division I Wrestling:
 Cornell, Lehigh, Penn, Michigan, Illinois and Wisconsin are Perennial Top 20
Programs
 Stanford, Harvard and Lehigh have had National Champions in recent years
 Elite Wrestlers Succeed in the Classroom—Nine of the 20 NCAA Finalists in
2011 Are Also Academic All-Americans
 Clemson Would “Own” the Southeast and Be an Attractive Program/Location to
Student Athletes From the NE and Midwest
 American University, Cornell and VT provide case studies for how quickly an NCAA DI
Wrestling Program can reach the Championship Level
 Clemson Wrestling has done it before—achieving National and Olympic success in
Wrestling without the support infrastructure that now exists
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Modest Cost and Facility Needs
 Cost of Division I Wrestling Program Among Lowest of Collegiate Sports
 Principal Cost is Coaching Staff - - Head Coach and One or Two Assistants
 Operating Costs for ACC Wrestling Programs: Less Than All Other Men’s Athletic
Programs at Clemson – See attached analysis
 Team Size: Typically 25 to 30; Ten Athletes Travel
 With ACC, Southern Conference and Other Teams in Region, Bus Travel is
Feasible
 Modest Facilities Requirements; Existing Clemson Facilities would Accommodate
Wrestling
 Full Scholarship Support (9.9 per NCAA Rule) Not Essential
 Most Programs Not fully Funded; Option to increase scholarship support over
time
 Ivys and Duke Are Competitive Without Scholarships
 Unlike Some Sports (e.g., Soccer), Not Necessary to Recruit Foreign StudentAthletes to Be Competitive
 Camps and Clinics a Meaningful Source of Income to Support Program and Coaches
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CLEMSON OPERATING EXPENSE DATA(1)
2009/10 REPORTING YEAR FROM U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, OFFICE
OF POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION WEBSITE
Varsity
Teams
Men’s Teams
Participants
Operating
Expenses per
Participant
Women’s
Teams
Participants
By Team
Operating
Expenses per
Participant
By Team
Total
Operating
Expenses
Baseball
32
$15,038
$481,215
Basketball
15
$58.851
$882,770
115
$38,845
$4,467,215
$4,467,215
11
$6,494
$71,435
$71,435
Rowing
-
-
-
80
$2,149
$171,930
$171,930
Soccer
25
$4,169
$104,228
27
$3,752
$101,292
$205,520
Swimming and
Diving
24
$3,197
$76,726
37
$2,659
$98,368
$175,094
9
$10,851
$97,661
8
$16,866
$134,925
$232,586
46
$3,704
$170,389
64
$3,100
$198,383
$368,772
15
$13,948
$209,227
$209,227
245
$5,765
$1,412,431
$7,764,070
Football
Golf
Tennis
Track and Field,
X-Country
Volleyball
Total Operating
Expenses
Wrestling
(ACC Avg.)(2)
277
$22,930
$6,351,639
35
$2,644
$92,554
$481,215
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(1)
Does not include coaches’ salaries and scholarships.
(2)
Represents an average of the data reported by the six ACC schools with wrestling programs.
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$35,593
$498,306
$1,381,076
Helps Achieve Clemson’s
Mission Statement and Goals

“The mission of the Athletic Department is to sponsor broad-based athletics
programs that provide educational, athletic and equitable opportunities for all
students and staff….”

Adding Wrestling moves Clemson’s athletic program offerings—in terms of the
number of sports sponsored—closer to the “broad based” approach employed by
Clemson’s peer schools in the ACC (noting that BC, UNC, Maryland, Duke and NC
State offer 27, 24, 22, 22, and 18 sports programs, respectively)

Adding wrestling addresses a very inequitable landscape in South Carolina for
dedicated wrestlers wishing to compete at the collegiate level; the opportunity at
the collegiate level does not fairly match the interest at the high school level when
it comes to wrestling

Adding wrestling offers Clemson the ability to demonstrate excellence in
achievement through Conference, National and Olympic Championships (as was
the case in Clemson Wrestling’s earlier lifespan)
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Atlantic Coast Conference Wrestling
A Growing Force to be Reckoned With!
 Six Member Schools Participate in Wrestling—Duke, Maryland, NC State,
Virginia, Va. Tech and UNC
 Maryland, Virginia and Virginia Tech Have Been Top 25 Programs in recent
years (e.g., VT placed second at the 2011 National Duals Beating Okla.
State and Wisconsin in the process)
 Nationally Prominent Coaching Talent Recently Recruited by Va. Tech,
Maryland, UNC and Virginia
 Duke—Without Scholarships—is sending Wrestlers to the NCAA
Championships (and had a National Runner Up in 2010)
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Clemson Wrestling Alumni – An Organized
and Committed Support Group

There are 250 Former Varsity Wrestlers not Including Former Club Wrestlers

The Group is Mature, Organized and Motivated—Able to Mentor and Support
Student Athletes

Taking on the Scroll of Honor Fundraising Effort, the Group is the First to
Complete its Campaign for the USMC Monument

The Wrestling Alumni Group is Currently Setting up an Official Website
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What Can Wrestling Offer Clemson?

Championships!

HUGE National Exposure and Access to Funding

Attract the Highly Motivated Student-Athletes
that can Succeed in the Classroom

A Proving Ground for Military and Corporate
Leaders

Diversity
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Consultative Sources
Chris Boyer – Sr. Assoc. AD
Kerry McCoy – Head Coach
Steve Erber – Asst. AD
Rob Cole – Head Coach
Jon Jaudon – Assoc. AD
Tony Roby – Asst. Coach
Dave Martin – Sr. Assoc. AD
John Smith – Head Coach
Debbie Yow – Asst. AD
Carter Jordan – Head Coach
Tim Curley – Athletic Dir.
Jan Bortner – Assoc Head Coach
Valerie Richardson – Asst. AD
Steve Garland – Head Coach
Derek van der Merwe – Sr.
Assoc. AD
Tom Borrelli – Head Coach
Beth Miller – Asst. AD
C.D. Mock – Head Coach
John Barrett – Assoc. AD
Brendan Buckley – Head Coach
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Jon Jackson – Athletic Dir.
Clar Anderson –
Head Coach
Consultative Sources
Mike Moyer – Executive Director
Jordan Griffith – Senior Director
Rich Bender – Executive Director
Leo Kocher – President and
University of Chicago Professor & Wrestling Coach
COLLEGE SPORTS COUNCIL
Scott Blackmun – CEO
Dave Dean - Founder
John Mitchell – SC Director
Cliff Fretwell – GA Director
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Discussion/Comments?
Next Steps?
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