GRIT athlete, Owen Lamb, is a Redshirt Sophomore at
the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley, CO

It has taken some time, but slow cooked meals are always the best.  We have been cooking with a good recipe in the GRIT room for 10 years now and it turns out the end product is pretty darn good.  Here’s the questions:  Will the oven timer go off in time for th 2019 NCAA tournament?

At the D2 level GRIT will be lead by returning All American Konor Schmidt.  Konor will most definitely be in a title hunt come March.   Diego Calderon, Max O’Donnell, and Eric Contreras will all follow Konnor’s lead while at Western State this season. Cole Yung, will be the lone GRIT athlete at Cornell College in Iowa.

At the D1 level GRIT is proud to say we have 5 wrestlers competing at four different top notch programs.  Owen Lamb welcomes his brother Brody at the University of Northern Colorado.  While  just down South, Tommy Stager enters his redshirt freshman year at the United States Air Force Academy.  The chilly winds of Laramie will welcome in GRIT’s 4 x Colorado State Champion, Jacob Greenwood.  Jacob and his lovely bride Shayla have made their home in Laramie where Jacob is learning how to live in a neighborhood for the first time!  He says to go ahead and pan on buying tickets to the Big Twelve and NCAA’s as his goal is to compete in his freshman campaign.

GRIT fans and family can plan on catching an early season preview at both the Cowboy Open and UNC Open in November.  We could possibly see 8 GRITsters in one or two brackets at these events.

Danny Murphy, former Rocky Mountain High School State Champion, continues to pursue his wrestling dreams as a Hawkeye at the University of Iowa.  His insane work ethic will be sure to eventually, and hopefully soon, land him a roster spot.  Maybe we can talk him into coming to our local opens were he can show off some Iowa style wrestling.

DENVER, CO – FEBRUARY 17: Poudre wrestler Jacob Greenwood celebrates his 5A 145lb championship after defeating Dylan Martinez.

GRIT’s High School Preseason training starts on September 3rd.  That’s right, we always love to labor on Labor Day!  GRIT is proud to be represented at the high school level by such a diverse group.  During the Freestyle/Greco season we had 10 different high schools represented in the GRIT room.  This says a lot about the growth of our wrestling culture here in Northern Colorado.  This fall we have some amazing high school potential in the room.  Many standouts from surrounding high schools will be training hard to compete for State Titles in February!

Dean Noble (Poudre High School)  and Dante Chirichigno (Highlands) are coming off of impressive showings at the USA Cadet/Junior Nationals in Fargo, ND. Both wrestlers were very competitive out there in both Freestyle and Greco.  Watch for both boys to be poised,  “GRIT Style” point scorers this high school season.

Recent new comer Toby Gavette, (Eaton High School) who is coached by former GRIT coach, Tony Mustari, competed in Freestyle and Greco overseas this summer in Austria. Toby gained a ton of great experience and will be an extra strong leader this fall because of it.

We have several 2018 State Placers coming back to train in the GRIT room this preseason.  All, in the hunt for a 2019 Colorado State Title.

GRIT Athletics is proud to announce two big moves within our organization.  We have added a new Senior Level wrestler in local UW Cowboy graduate Bryce Meredith.  Bryce was a 3 x Division I, All American while competing for the Pokes.  He will now put on a GRIT singlet as he chases bigger dreams in World and Olympic medals.  We are so excited to add Bryce as our premier Senior Level athlete and Team Technician.

Moving Up!  Lifetime GRIT wrestler, Job Greenwood will forgo his senior year of high school eligibility as he pursues his freestyle wrestling career.  Job was selected as on of seven high school seniors from across the United States to be a member of the USA Wrestling Elite Accelerated Program (EAP).  He moved to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs in June of 2018 and will live on campus as he trains fulltime through the summer of 2019.  What an opportunity for Job and GRIT Athletics!  As you know the US Mens Freestyle team has been the best in the world for the last two years and expects to win another World Team title this year.  His training at GRIT has put him in position to train with the absolute best coaches and wrestlers in the world.  Juggling a busy competition schedule along with college recruiting visits will make time fly.  Job currently is scheduled to compete internationally in Iran, Russia and Cuba this season.  We look forward to having Job in the GRIT room in the future to share stories, world class techniques, and inspiration through his journeys.