Hutchens Leaves Lasting Mark On Eagle Wrestling

Ashland University's wrestling program has been around for almost six decades, and has had nine head coaches.

Josh Hutchens didn't have any set number goals in terms of national championships and the like when he first arrived on campus to guide the Eagles, but he leaves as one of the best head coaches in program history, having collected five top-16 team finishes and three individual championships at the NCAA Division II level in seven seasons at the helm.

Hutchens is taking an athletic director position in the Daleville (Ind.) Community School District. Daleville is located northeast of Indianapolis, and is close to Muncie.

"It's kind of always been there. I've got a master's in Athletic Adminstration," said Hutchens. "I've talked over the years about going into administration. I know it was a looming future. I've been enjoying coaching so much. Time just catches up with you."

Hutchens has the distinction of being the only Eagle head wrestling coach to have more than one individual national champion – Michael Labry at 133 pounds in 2017, and Bret Romanzak at 165 pounds and Luke Cramer at 197 pounds in 2018.

"That's the ultimate goal, that national championship," said Hutchens. "To see somebody put the work in and see somebody accomplish that, and of course, seeing it three times over, was just unbelievable."

As a team, the Eagles were 14^th, 16^th, 14^th, sixth and fifth in NCAA Division II in Hutchens' first five seasons. Seven AU grapplers had qualified for 2020 D-II nationals, but the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic canceled the tournament.

"Coming into it, I guess, I never really put a statistical goal on what I wanted to do. I try to each year remind myself why I got into coaching," Hutchens said. "I wanted to have a positive influence on people's lives. I wanted to run a program with integrity and bring students in and have them work hard and develop and use sport as an educational tool to make their lives better.

"And along the way, of course…you want to do as well as you can statistically. The three champs were great. I think we could have had more. The other part of it, we had a great experience with these people. I'm hoping they all left this program better than they came in, and that was my main goal."

"Josh is one of the top wrestling coaches in the country," said Al King, Ashland Director of Athletics. "History here is going to treat him very well. He's going to be recognized as one of the most successful coaches in program history. While his tenure wasn't particularly long, it was ultra successful. We were in a drought as far as individual national champions went when he arrived, and he took care of that. His teams peaked at the perfect time of the year and consistently placed well at regionals and nationals. That's a reflection of his preparation, his knowledge and the belief his student-athletes had in him.

"Josh is as steady a personality as you can find. That might seem like an inconsequential matter, but trust me, it's not. He helped anchor our department. You knew what you were getting from him every day. There were no surprises. These are giant shoes to fill."

Hutchens has been a collegiate head wrestling coach since 2004, having also been at NCAA Division I James Madison (2004-07) and D-II Colorado School of Mines (2009-13). He also was a D-I wrestler at Purdue, and is a member of the Indiana State High School Wrestling Coaches Association Hall of Fame.

Ashland, however, will always have a special place in Hutchens' heart.

"It's been a phenomenal ride," he said. "It's been the most enjoyable seven years of my career. The people, the competitions, the student-athletes, the co-workers, the campus. Really, it's been a fast seven years.

"I feel like it's home."