We emailed coaches from all across the state about the excitement of getting back on the mat this week! Several teams are fielding their largest groups ever!

We hope everyone will take the time subscribe to our Rokfin channel HERE. We’ve released one set of preseason rankings and have one more coming before the competition begins. We did the Top Thirty in A, B, C, D and Girls just last week, plus we’ll also have our Super 60 by grade coming soon! We will be streaming some BIG TIME duals and tournaments from our Rokfin page as well! No better time than now to Subscribe! Thanks for supporting NEwrestle.

GIRLS:

“We made history today! We kicked off our very first girls wrestling team. We have 17 young ladies who showed up and answered the challenge. They are breaking new ground and going into uncharted territory. They are the trailblazers for future generations of young female wrestlers in the state of Nebraska. We are proud and ecstatic that we are able to be a part of it.”
-Nick Umscheid, McCook High School

“I’m excited for the growth of girls wrestling this year. We had almost 20 girls show up for the 1st practice. I am eager to see their progress and growth over the season. The girls are engaged in learning the sport and thrilled that they have their own state championship to compete for.”
-Kim Harrill, Millard South High School, Girls

“The girls were excited and worked hard. I was impressed with how they were not afraid to get in there and scrap. Hopefully they can help recruit even more girls to come out for the team.”
-Jimmie Foster, Omaha Central High School

“Our girls showed up today, ready to work. Excited to see how the rest of the season goes”
-James Patterson, Omaha South

“Wow what can I say…we have 8 girls out this year for Winnebago. 7 new faces and a returning 4th place finisher. Many new faces for the Winnebago Lady Indians Team who are looking to take the NSAA Girls State Tourney by storm. These girls are really hungry and want to show they are a great team this year. There are some great leaders in the room with this group of girls and there are going to be some ups and downs this season but it is exciting to have so many girls out this year.”
– Adam Tranmer, Winnebago High School

“Day 1 – Year 1 – Team 1. The GI Girls are extremely excited to contribute to the city of Grand Island’s excellent Wrestling history. They also know with each day, they will be creating their own new history as well.
-Jeff Evans, Grand Island Girls Coach

“The girls were a little nervous but I felt like they had great energy. I can’t wait to see the moves click for these young ladies. Each day we will continue to grow.”
-Brian Sybrandts, Northwest Girls Coach

“It was a great first day of the season! The kids were excited to learn and get to work. We have a great group of kids and are excited to compete in this first year that girls wrestling is sanctioned!”
-Coby Amen, Cedar Bluffs HS

“Our girls numbers have doubled each year over the past three years, with 6 on the team this year. Our girls have a great leader in Afftynn Stusse, one of the premier talents in the state.”
-Cody Wintz, Battle Creek HS girls

“From August 1st we have been recruiting within our school; girls that want to wrestle this year. Our preseason workouts we had good attendance and we have about nine girls that are committed to get this program started. They are working as hard if not harder than the boys right now and really showing that they’re hungry to compete. It’s going to be an exciting year for our program!”
-Daniel Carlson, Omaha North High School

“Our girls team is tremendous. They have adapted to the sport of wrestling and really got after it today. We saw some fireworks today and a new level of physicality from many of the girls. It’s going to be really fun to see how much this group of ladies can improve this year.”
-Derek Keasling, Aurora High School

“Minden had TWENTY girls at our very first wrestling practice. The girls worked hard and were excited to learn. We are excited for what this season will bring!”
-Jhett Ostrom, Minden HS Head Girls Wrestling Coach

“The start of a historic season in Fairbury Started today with 8 girls taking the challenge of starting a girls wrestling team in our school. We have 2 girls that wrestled last year and 6 girls who are new to the sport. Our girls coaches have done a tremendous job of recruiting these athletes and today was the start of something special in Jeff Land!!”
-Derek Garfield, Fairbury High School

“So it begins. We had some tough, hard working, coachable ladies day 1. Really excited for what their season brings.”
-Jason Susnjar, Omaha Bryan

Here is a great quote for you: After my girls team (all six new to the sport) worked the reversal for 10 minutes, one of the girls asked: “Am I supposed to end up on top?” Classic. This is going to be interesting.
– Coach Lonowski, Adams Central Wrestling, Team 1, Year 1

“We have a very motivated group of girls. The returning girls are picking right up where they left off, and our first year wrestlers are absorbing lots of new information quicker than I thought they would.”
-Evan L. Bohnet, South Sioux City Female Head Coach

“It is nice to see girls in our room getting after it. Energy is high”.
-Josh Majerus, Boone Central Girls

“Day 1 – Year 1 – Team 1” The GI Girls are extremely excited to contribute to the city of Grand Island’s excellent Wrestling history. They also know with each day, they will be creating their own new history as well.
-Coach Evans, Grand Island Girls Wrestling HC

“It was a great first day of the season! The kids were excited to learn and get to work. We have a great group of kids and are excited to compete in this first year that girls wrestling is sanctioned!”
-Coby Amen, Cedar Bluffs HS

“We had 8 girls come out for our program this year and we are looking to build on that by putting together a quality product. It is an exciting time for wrestling in the state of Nebraska and something that will continue to grow”
-Scott Townsley, Millard West High School, Girls

“I was super excited when we decided to sanction girls wrestling in the state of Nebraska. The sport has grown tremendously in the last two years and I’m very excited for the opportunities our girls are given. We will have 3 girls out this season with one returning state placer (Haylee Miller). These girls have been looking forward to the season and worked very hard yesterday. It will also be very fun to see what these young ladies will accomplish throughout the season.”
– Craig Dennis, Wisner-Pilger, Girls

CLASS A

“We have over 50 boys and 12 girls out for wrestling this season. We are excited to be back on the mats!”
-Justin Grey, Norfolk HS, Class A

“It’s the best practice we’ve had this season and that’s the goal; to get better each day and find the positive. We incorporated some new skills and drills to knock off the rust and the athletes picked everything up really well. We also talked about not letting fear sabotage our destiny.”
-Curtis Gocke, Bellevue West, Class A

“We had a great first practice to start our season. There was a definite excitement in the air, with boys and girls open to learning, and not afraid to be challenged.”
-Ryan Bauer, Kearney High School, Class A

Our first day of practice I could tell the kids are excited. Even though we didn’t have about 12 of our football players yet the rest of our team really is ready to get to compete this year. We have a lot of new kids this year that did not get to compete last year and are just ready to show that we will be competitive this year.
-Danial Carlson, Omaha North, Class A

We started with a record number of wrestlers in our room – 84! 66 boys and 18 girls showed up to practice ready to compete. I was impressed with how willing to learn the wrestlers were. From our state champions down to first year wrestlers, everyone gave the coaches their full attention and practiced hard. I explained to them all to set a goal to get a little bit better each day. We are excited to start competing in December!
-Nate Olson, Millard South, Class A

“Monday was a great day to be back without any of the restrictions from last year. The kids and coaches were excited to see the work that was put in since last year.”
-Scott Townsley, Millard West High School,Class A

“Today was a great day in Nebraska history with the start of both boys and girls wrestling…just not a brotherhood anymore!!! Embrace everyone and love what you will do on a daily basis!!!”
-Michael Jernigan, Omaha Westside, Class A

“Our team showed a lot of potential today on the mat, good senior leadership, hungry freshman and a team wanting to put Omaha south wrestling back on the map”
– James Patterson, Omaha South, Class A

“What. A. Room. I could not be more proud of our team and the incredible members who continue to establish, protect, and improve our team culture. It was the largest number of wrestlers in a practice that I’ve ever coached. Seventy wrestlers on the mats learning basic fundamentals of this life changing sport. This includes a school high five female wrestlers, seventeen freshman, and twenty individuals who had the courage to try something completely new. The overall vibe was that of focus, effort, and encouragement.”
-Jeff Rutledge, Lincoln East, Class A

“With our split practice protocols removed, practice was much more enjoyable, efficient, and interactive. Excited to see what this group can accomplish!”
-Aaron Finley, Lincoln Southwest High School, Class A

“Great first day of practice. The guys were eager to learn and focused on improving. 25 years in and I still get butterflies on the first day.”
-Jimmie Foster, Omaha Central High School, Class A

“Today always feels like Christmas! This season we have a great blend of new guys with a ton of potential and older guys who know the expectations! For us it is now all about taking care of business.”
-Jason Susnjar, Omaha Bryan, Class A

CLASS B

“I felt like we got off to a great start today. We have great numbers and the wrestlers were super excited to get the season started. I can’t wait to see the gains we make with our team throughout the season.”
-Brian Sybrandts, Northwest High School, Class B

“Our team got after it today. Our large senior class set the tone of the room. We really enjoy being back on the grind.”
-Josh Majerus, Boone Central, Class B

“Our first day of practice went great! We are 35 strong with our freshmen hungry and seniors experienced.”
-Keaton Gracey, Minden, Class B

“Our team came with great effort and attitude today. The majority of our team is preparing for the state football championship, but many of our leaders from football came to watch and help at the end of practice once they were done with film. It’s exciting to see how hungry they are. “
-Derek Keasling, Aurora High School, Class B

“There was a lot of energy with the wrestlers and coaches being ready to get practice started. We had to get creative with 60 kids in the room so we all started together and then one group of 20 moved to our old wrestling room where we had 1 mat set up. We have a strong group with a lot of experience which made for an intense practice. The kids transitioned well and we were happy with how our first practice went.”
-Erich Warner, Blair, Class B

“I really enjoyed getting to see the whole team including some veterans and a very talented group of freshmen working hard. It is great to be back at it!!!”
-Chas DeVetter Omaha Skutt Catholic High School, Class B

“We had pretty solid numbers which is promising. Last year ended with 17 kids, we started yesterday with 25 and about 10 taking some time off from football. Excited for the year.”
-Jairin Potter, Elkhorn, Class B

“Always great to get back into the wrestling room on Day 1. The energy and electricity always gets you excited for the upcoming season. The guys showed up ready to get business done.”
-Nick Umscheid, McCook High School, Class B

“Overall, our team was focused. We have a good core of upperclassmen who set the standard for our freshmen. It was a great first day!”
-Nolan Laux, Hastings High School, Class B

“Day 1 we hit the ground running. The guys came in ready to work and absolutely got after it. It’s good to be back!”
-Jake Nichleson, Ashland-Greenwood HS, Class B

“We took our first step today towards our goal of making the State Duals, and the wrestlers were ready for the grind even though it meant conditioning.”
-Nate Hancock Concordia/DC West, Class B

CLASS C

“Our guys were ready to work on day one. We have a veteran group so we were able to get right down to business and had a great first day. This team has big goals so the energy was great, they’re fun to watch!”
-Joe Schluckebier, Milford HS, Class C

“Day 1 here at Logan View took some guts. This could have been one of the more gritty opening practices I’ve decided to give any team I’ve been a part of. Our wrestlers showed big time growth in the area of toughness through day 1. I’m confident that they have developed a mindset to be ready to attack this season. Our coaching staff mentioned during practice how day 1 always just feels like coming home after a long vacation. It’s just right. It’s a breath of fresh air when wrestling season officially begins. Good luck to everyone this season! Except Milford, their head coach is a little sketchy — Kidding Joe! 😉 ”
– Cale Streeter, Logan View, Class C

“The first day of practice for each season is always special. The dawning of a new season brings so much promise and optimism. I loved my crew’s positive attitude and work ethic. The great thing is that each wrestler gets to write a new story. The journey is what I enjoy the most as a coach. Watching each athlete go after their personal goals. I love this sport and I’m very thankful to be able to take this journey with my coaches and wrestlers!”
-Derek Garfield, Fairbury High School, Class C

“We were excited to get back in the room and get back to work. The kids really got after each other and that was great to see from the coaching staff.”
-Josh Batenhorst – Tri-County Northeast Wolfpack – Class C

“Day one went well, the guys showed their willingness to work hard and put in quality reps.”
-Doug Hart, Arlington High School, Class C

“We had a great 1st practice, one bloody nose, but no injuries. That is the 1st time in 4 years we did not have a 1st day injury. Kids and coaches were really excited to get on the mat, looks like it will be a fun season.”
-Jerod Spahr, Tri County, Class C

“In my 18 years here at O’Neill we had the largest turnout of wrestlers ever. We had 5 Girls take the mat as part of our first high school team. On the boys side we have a great group a mix of young talented athletes and leadership from our upperclassman. There is a lot of excitement here in the Irish Capital.”
-Bryan Corkle, O’Neill HS, Class C

“Today was a great first day of practice at Winnebago. We have a great group of kids coming back with a lot of potential. Had a couple kids step up in the wrestling room as leaders who had a good off season and are ready to turn the corner this season. We have quite a few new kids who are excited to be a part of the wrestling team.”
-Adam Tranmer, Winnebago High School, Class C

“We had a full room yesterday and we didn’t even have the football players in there yet! We are excited to see how our lineup shakes out throughout the year. We should have a deep team.”
-Cody Wintz, Battle Creek HS, Class C

“Our team looked pretty good today. We got after it and hit the ground running with lots of well used practice time! We have some very good leadership, experience and inexperience and we have many guys with talent who are looking to do great things this season!”
-Kalin Koch, Twin River High School, Class C

“Our team came in and did a great job pushing each other as well as high energy. This team is well rounded with upperclassman leaders as well as a great sized freshman group that will go and compete and give maximal effort each opportunity given.
-Jeremy Goebel, Syracuse HS, Class C

“Our kids really got after it today. We have a long way to go to clean up our technique, but the effort is there. We have a pretty young team so we could take some lumps early, but I look forward to see how we progress as the season goes.”
-Matt Nelson, Oakland-Craig, Class C

“Our first practice was solid. It is great to get back on the mat. After practice the wrestlers helped run our Junior High meet and they did a great job. We also have some new coaches joining the staff this season.”
-Phil Payne, Centennial, Class C

CLASS D

“We had a great first day of practice! Our numbers are up. We have mostly sophomores and freshman who are ready to go to work and have a successful season.”
-Andrew Smith, Doniphan-Trumbull, Class D

“The first day of practice our team showed toughness. The team is excited and ready to make some things happen this year.
-Tyson Horn, Bayard HS, Class D

“This was our most competitive day we have had in the wrestling room, from top to bottom, and it was only the first practice. We had 21 kids in the room, and the best senior leadership. These kids are young and hungry.”
-Ryan Miller, Guardian Angels Central Catholic, Class D

“We really started off the season strong today. We have a great group of returning qualifiers from last year who have really taken on the leadership role of the team and we have a great group of young men around them who are ready to step up with them and prove themselves this year!”
-Caleb Franklin, Anselmo-Merna High School, Class D

“Good energy in the wrestling room. Everyone was ready to get after it. We have much to do before our first matches. Hope to see the same kind of energy every day.”
-Chris L. Placek Meridian Public School Class D

“Our kids were excited for the new season and it showed throughout practice with our work and tempo.”
-Cory McManigal Kimball High school Class D

“Today was one of the best practices we have had since I came in as coach last year. We are young but willing to learn and have a great senior class to lead by example.”
Mitchell Sloggett Ansley-Litchfield, Class D

“It was a fun first day of practice! The kids were excited to learn and get going. We have a young team with great kids who really want to get better and will work hard. I can’t wait to see our improvement throughout the season!”
-Coby Amen, Cedar Bluffs HS, Class D

“We had great energy at our first practice. I feel like this group may have the best team chemistry of any since I’ve been here. We have a bunch of guys who are ready to work and push each other to be the best that they can be.”
-Justin Swedburg, Axtell HS, Class D

“Day 1 of wrestling practice went very well for the Gators. The kids had a high energy level and had a purpose when they walked through the practice room doors. We have a very young team with no seniors and only one junior who I have challenged to be our leader this season. We also have a couple of sophomores who we are expecting to be leaders too. We are very excited as a coaching staff to see what these young athletes are going to accomplish.”
-Craig Dennis, Wisner-Pilger HS, Class D