High school wrestling: Larry Kaufman named new Wadsworth head coach

The Wadsworth wrestling team didn't have to go far to find its next coach. Larry Kaufman called himself a Grizzly for life. The 1990 graduate took third at 189 pounds at the state tournament as a senior. After one year as an assistant at Highland, where he completed his student teaching, and two years as the head coach at neighboring Chippewa, Kaufman returned to the Wadsworth wrestling program. That's where he's spent the past 30 years. "It's been a huge part of my life for the last 40 years," the 54-year-old said. "What Coach G (John Gramuglia) started in building the program, he made people feel special. He demanded a lot, for sure, but he built a program of excellence through hard work." Kaufman, who will be introduced in an event at the high school Thursday, will become the Grizzlies' fourth coach in five seasons. Becoming the head coach at his alma mater wasn't necessarily something Kaufman thought was in the cards. That all changed when Louden Gordon resigned after two seasons in early July. "When Louden resigned in the middle of the summer, I was asked if I'd be willing to take the helm here," Kaufman said. "I committed to it, and I'm really excited about the opportunity. "We've got a lot of work to do. We have a young team, but a lot of tradition at Wadsworth. Hopefully, I can instill some of those things I learned through the years." The Grizzlies graduated all four state placers in Jacob Earnest (2nd, 285), Kyle Jardine (4th, 157), Kolten Mellon (5th, 144) and Blake Frantz (7th, 132). Wadsworth had six underclassmen district qualifiers in Noah Wiles (106), Tyler Brugh (120), Noah Crowley (138), Carter Martin (150) and Blake Hoover (175). Wrestling under Gramuglia shaped Kaufman's philosophies. He's hoping to deliver those lessons to the current Grizzlies with an emphasis on building from a strong basis of fundamental values. "We're going to work hard and do the right things," Kaufman said. "I've got good assistant coaches that will be in charge of the technique. I'm going to be the guy to set the tone in terms of leadership, accountability and work ethic. "There's a lot of dynamics to wrestling that go beyond the techniques." In addition to coaching wrestling, Kaufman teaches accounting, business entrepreneurship and personal finance at the high school. Kaufman's coaching career began by mentoring his children — Isaac, 30, Ellie (Miller), 27, Ian, 22, and Eli, 19 — in youth wrestling at Wadsworth. This winter, he will complete a journey by holding the only position he hasn't had in 30 years with the program. "I coached my kids through youth," Kaufman said. "I've held jut about every position at Wadsworth except this one. This is the first time I've been the head coach. It's a new role for sure and I'm definitely excited for it and happy to be entrusted with it." Contact John Urchek at jurchek@medina-gazette.com.