Fourteen days ago Aden Valencia, with the Stanford “S” on his chest, let out a primal roar after he scored the winning takedown to realize his dream of winning an NCAA National title. After getting his hand raised he had multiple choices for his first celebratory embrace. The coaches were waiting with open arms and… Continue reading Newsletter 3.17: The Critical Moment
Category: Uncategorized
Newsletter 3.16: Tipped (NCAA Recap)
At the beginning of the season, I wrote a newsletter about the idea of a tipping point (Newsletter). I was thinking about how progress works in a program. Most of the time, it does not announce itself. It builds quietly through ordinary days, hard practices, small improvements, and a lot of belief. Then, if enough… Continue reading Newsletter 3.16: Tipped (NCAA Recap)
Newsletter 3.15: Post-It Notes (ACC Recap)
Post-it Notes are littered on one of the walls in the coaches office with small quotes that reflect the time period we were inspired to write them. The tradition was started by Coaches Brucki and Hidlay, and when I saw what they were doing I thought it was a great idea and started doing the… Continue reading Newsletter 3.15: Post-It Notes (ACC Recap)
Newsletter 3.13: Conviction Over Consensus (Stanford 28-6 Over #12 UNC Win Recap)
It was a fun trip to Chapel Hill. The team wrestled well and earned a 28–6 win over No. 12 North Carolina on their home mat. That is not easy to do in this conference, and I am proud of the way our guys competed. I will get to the match breakdown in a moment.… Continue reading Newsletter 3.13: Conviction Over Consensus (Stanford 28-6 Over #12 UNC Win Recap)
Newsletter 3.10: Servant Leadership & A Call To Action
Friends of Stanford Wrestling, Our new athletic director, John Donahoe, talks often about servant leadership. In a traditional leadership model, the leader sits at the top of the organization. They define the vision, set the goals, and everyone below works to serve that leader in pursuit of the mission. Servant leadership flips that structure. The… Continue reading Newsletter 3.10: Servant Leadership & A Call To Action
Newsletter 3.2 First Four Competitions 25-26
My college coach used to joke, the key to happiness in life is lowering your expectations until they are already met. I guess I was not very coachable on that one, as my expectations were sky high heading into the early part of the season. But this first month has tested us. We have had… Continue reading Newsletter 3.2 First Four Competitions 25-26
2025 NCAA Championship
“2025 NCAA Championship” Every year I walk away from the NCAA championships in astonishment of how freaking hard the tournament is. This year alone two former national champions didn’t place. An Olympic Gold Medalist lost! This got me thinking about the numbers and odds that an individual actually achieves the goal of becoming a National… Continue reading 2025 NCAA Championship
ACC Championships Preview
Sign up for the newsletter sent to your email: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdyWema1uSlohoL_PU-mMU8w2-8MAfJeJo1tkgorX9NIffqwg/viewform The real March Madness is here! Before the newsletter here's what you need for the ACC tournament: When: March 9, 2025 Where: Cameron Indoor Stadium-Duke University Setup: Two Mats All Eastern Standard Time: 10:00 am: First Round Matches-Two Mats- Odd# Bouts on Mat 1, Even… Continue reading ACC Championships Preview
Why Show Up? Bonus Newsletter
Why “show up”? If I have learned one thing since my arrival at Stanford, it is that this program has been through a lot and remains resilient. The Keep Stanford Wrestling (KSW) movement was a powerful one. One that showed the strength of the Stanford Wrestling community in so many ways. “Saving” the program was… Continue reading Why Show Up? Bonus Newsletter
Do Something, Anything, Even if it’s Wrong- CKLV
“Do something…anything…even if it is wrong.” -Airmark Pools Mantra Growing up my dad ran a company that built and maintained swimming pools called Airmark Pools and I spent most summers from middle school through college working for him. Due to the seasonality of swimming in New Jersey the work was a lot like farming in… Continue reading Do Something, Anything, Even if it’s Wrong- CKLV