TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Highlands Today

Young Coach Earning Respect Of Streaks

Brian Gjurgevich, Highlands Today file photo

Sebring's Warren Giller (left) wrestles in a match earlier this season.

ADVERTISEMENT

By CHRIS HOFFMAN

Highlands Today

Published: January 21, 2009

SEBRING - Being a head coach is so much more than just strategies and filling out paper work.

Earning respect from the group of kids that call you "coach" is the key to any good skipper's success.

First-year Sebring wrestling coach Josh Miller recognized the respect issue from the moment he put the whistle around his neck.

"It's a lot different being a young coach than one that is much older and has more experience," said Miller, a 2004 SHS graduate. "I've had to work on handling the relationships with my wrestlers, which has sometimes been up and down.

"I knew I had to earn their respect if we were going to be successful, but I can honestly say that the kids have been very respectful and in a sense I've grown along with my wrestlers this season."

Miller has the clout that earns respect among his team; even if he isn't far removed from the high school ranks as most coaches.

The Sebring coach was a district and regional champion, while taking fourth place at state in his senior season for the Streaks.

Last season, Sebring had trouble fielding a full squad, which led to numerous unwanted forfeits that turned this team sport into an individual one, but Miller has been a solid recruiter and has nearly filled every weight class with the right kind of kids he wants on his team.

"I wanted kids who had the desire to be wrestlers," Miller said. "And I couldn't have asked for a better group of kids than the one's I've been blessed with this season.

"This first season as coach has been so much fun for me and it's going by way too fast. We've had a couple of bumps in the road, but we've held together as a team and I'm happy with our progress."

Senior captain Dustin Drummond is well on his way to improving on his 2008 record, where he finished 34-8, and has given Miller the leadership he needed with such a young squad.

"Dustin is the one that all the other wrestlers look to for guidance," Miller said. "As a wrestler, he's on the right track to earning a trip to the state finals."

Drummond, who is 24-1 this season, lost his first match during last weekend's Martin County Invitational and has been nursing a sore shoulder for the past two weeks, but will be ready when Sebring faces off against archrival Avon Park at 7 p.m. on Thursday.

"I was cutting weight and I was physically drained when I lost over the weekend," Drummond said. "I fell confident going into the match against Avon Park and into the Spiegel. My shoulder is banged up but I'm getting past the pain."

The SHS senior gave high praise to his new coach and says that he has helped turn the program around.

"He's really helped keep us motivated and fine tune our skills, especially heading toward districts," Drummond said. "He's steered the young kids and kept us focused on our individual and team goals."

Miller and his Streaks have been to many meets with the Devils and he is well versed in Avon Park's team.

"Avon Park has a solid lineup and we are going to have to be at our best if we're going to beat them," Miller said. "Avon Park has the upper hand in the higher weights and our strength is in the lower weights, so it'll be interesting to see who comes out on top."

Juniors Michael Pollaty and Shane Liske have continued to improve and seniors Jimmy Pollaty and Alex Kennedy have helped provided a solid foundation for Miller to work with as he rebuilds the Sebring wrestling team.

Freshmen Jermey Qualls (130) and Brytton Williams (215) have shown a lot of promise and lead the way for the underclassmen this season for the Streaks, which boast a lineup of seven freshmen.

"Jeremy and Brytton are both football players so they're really athletic and have picked things up really quickly," Miller said. "They've really exceeded my expectations with how they've matured on the mat and I'm looking forward to how they'll do against Avon Park and at the Spiegel Memorial Tournament."

How to prepare an underclassman to face off against a much more seasoned opponent is always a touchy subject, but Miller has been grooming his wrestlers to not back away from a challenge.

"The old saying is that if you want to be the best you have t beat the best," Miller said. "I just tell the kids that they have to work they're way up. You're not going to win them all, but as long as you go out and get better every time you compete then that's all you can ask."

At this weekend's Spiegel tournament, Miller doesn't have lofty expectations except that this experience is vital for his new wrestlers and will help see where the veterans are before the regular season winds down.

"I'm hoping we get a couple of individual championships this weekend at Speigel," Miller said. "You can't ask for too much right away. We're still in a building process and I hope to also find some future leaders from the younger kids."

Chris Hoffman can be reached at 863-386-5837 or choffman@highlandstoday.com.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT