Our highly touted OL recruit Alex Birchmeier wins 2nd VA state wrestling championship at heavyweight. Alex is only a junior and will have another year to attempt to be a 3x VA state champion. Congratulations Alex!
Alex Birchmeier Wins 2nd State Wrestling Championship
- Thread starter tlbakernc
- Start date
I know some coaches prefer linemen who are basketball players but ones who are wrestlers generally seems to be able to play earlier due to hand strength, leverage, etc.
How about toughness and perhaps a bit of a mean streak?
IMHO, Wrestling is much tougher than football. The conditioning is much more intense and you have to beat on guys your size for the most part. If he’s a multi-time state champion wrestler, I’m sure he’s tough as hell - mentally and physically.
Steelers had a guy that was a collegiate wrestling champion that never played football until he they drafted him. Made All Pro as offensive guard, IIRC. Tragically ended up with CTE and died young. Think it was suicide after a run in with police.
Carlton Haselrig. Gone too soon.
From Wiki:
Carlton Haselrig - Wikipedia
Carlton Lee Haselrig (January 22, 1966 – July 22, 2020) was an American heavyweight wrestler and NFL player. Haselrig wrestled for University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown. He is the only person to win six NCAA titles in wrestling, three times in Division II and three times in Division I. His Three-Peat of Division II & Division I NCAA National Championships were won in 1987, 1988, and 1989. All six championships were won for Pitt–Johnstown.[1] Haselrig then moved on to professional football, where he played five seasons in the NFL, becoming a Pro Bowl guard in 1992. In 2008, he made his mixed martial arts debut in Atlantic City, New Jersey
Haselrig won the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) state high school championship in 1984 despite not wrestling during the regular season due to Johnstown High's lack of a wrestling team.[2]
Haselrig was the 1985 Junior Greco-Roman World Champion, and the 1986 Junior Freestyle World Champion, while competing for the United States in the heavyweight division.
While in college Haselrig would defeat future NCAA and Olympic champion Kurt Angle.[3] In 2009, he was inducted into Pitt–Johnstown's Athletics Hall of Fame.[4]
The Pennsylvania native began his collegiate career as a football player at Lock Haven, but a knee injury before the start of his freshman year prevented him from ever suiting up for a game. During winter break, he decided to transfer to his hometown school and take classes at Pittsburgh-Johnstown, which did not have a football team.
With that move, Haselrig set in motion the most prolific career in NCAA wrestling history — one that ended in, of all places, the NFL.
He would finish in third place at the NCAA Division II meet his freshman year in 1986, then go on to win both the Division I and Division II titles in his sophomore, junior and senior seasons, to become the only wrestler in history to win more than four NCAA titles.
Wow, didn’t know his high school didn’t even have a team yet he won the state title.Carlton Haselrig. Gone too soon.
From Wiki:
Carlton Haselrig - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
Carlton Lee Haselrig (January 22, 1966 – July 22, 2020) was an American heavyweight wrestler and NFL player. Haselrig wrestled for University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown. He is the only person to win six NCAA titles in wrestling, three times in Division II and three times in Division I. His Three-Peat of Division II & Division I NCAA National Championships were won in 1987, 1988, and 1989. All six championships were won for Pitt–Johnstown.[1] Haselrig then moved on to professional football, where he played five seasons in the NFL, becoming a Pro Bowl guard in 1992. In 2008, he made his mixed martial arts debut in Atlantic City, New Jersey
Haselrig won the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) state high school championship in 1984 despite not wrestling during the regular season due to Johnstown High's lack of a wrestling team.[2]
Haselrig was the 1985 Junior Greco-Roman World Champion, and the 1986 Junior Freestyle World Champion, while competing for the United States in the heavyweight division.
While in college Haselrig would defeat future NCAA and Olympic champion Kurt Angle.[3] In 2009, he was inducted into Pitt–Johnstown's Athletics Hall of Fame.[4]
The Pennsylvania native began his collegiate career as a football player at Lock Haven, but a knee injury before the start of his freshman year prevented him from ever suiting up for a game. During winter break, he decided to transfer to his hometown school and take classes at Pittsburgh-Johnstown, which did not have a football team.
With that move, Haselrig set in motion the most prolific career in NCAA wrestling history — one that ended in, of all places, the NFL.
He would finish in third place at the NCAA Division II meet his freshman year in 1986, then go on to win both the Division I and Division II titles in his sophomore, junior and senior seasons, to become the only wrestler in history to win more than four NCAA titles.
Also didn’t knower went to Lock Haven for football but hurt his knee before playing.
Mike Reid was a captain on both the Nittany Lions undefeated 1968 and 1969 teams that went 22-0. In his senior year (1969), he won the Outland Trophy as the best College football interior lineman in 1969, and also was awarded the 1969 Maxwell Award and finished fifth in the Heisman Trophy balloting. Reid also wrestled at Penn State and in 1967 he won the Eastern heavyweight wrestling title.
Reid was the first-round selection (#7 pick overall) of the Cincinnati Bengals in the 1970 NFL Draft.[4] In the team's third season, it won the AFC Central Division and made the playoffs. In 1971, Reid established himself as one of the NFL's best pass rushers by recording 12 sacks, a figure he repeated in 1972.
Source: Wikipedia
Hard to beat the wrestling/football achievements of Dave Joyner.
DR. DAVID JOYNER, Penn State ‘71 was a three-time EIWA champion and an NCAA runner-up at Hwt in 1971 with a career mark of 100-9-4. A 2-time Wrestling Captain, Dave also co-captained the 1971 Nittany Lion football team that went 11-1 and finished 5th nationally after beating Texas, 30-6. Joyner was a National Football Foundation Scholar-Athlete and an inductee into the GTE/CoSida Academic All-American Hall of Fame.
He was also a Consensus All-American in football for the 1971 season.
en.wikipedia.org
DR. DAVID JOYNER, Penn State ‘71 was a three-time EIWA champion and an NCAA runner-up at Hwt in 1971 with a career mark of 100-9-4. A 2-time Wrestling Captain, Dave also co-captained the 1971 Nittany Lion football team that went 11-1 and finished 5th nationally after beating Texas, 30-6. Joyner was a National Football Foundation Scholar-Athlete and an inductee into the GTE/CoSida Academic All-American Hall of Fame.
He was also a Consensus All-American in football for the 1971 season.
1971 College Football All-America Team - Wikipedia
And he was a Judas Iscariot it to boot!Hard to beat the wrestling/football achievements of Dave Joyner.
DR. DAVID JOYNER, Penn State ‘71 was a three-time EIWA champion and an NCAA runner-up at Hwt in 1971 with a career mark of 100-9-4. A 2-time Wrestling Captain, Dave also co-captained the 1971 Nittany Lion football team that went 11-1 and finished 5th nationally after beating Texas, 30-6. Joyner was a National Football Foundation Scholar-Athlete and an inductee into the GTE/CoSida Academic All-American Hall of Fame.
He was also a Consensus All-American in football for the 1971 season.
1971 College Football All-America Team - Wikipedia
He is also in the Hall of Fame.....you did not mention that. The Song Writers Hall of Fame in Nashville.
Carlton Haselrig from Johnstown. He won 6 NCAA titles (you could compete in the D2 and D1 tournaments in the same year back then). Also was a PIAA championship even though his school didn't have a wrestling team and he only competed in the post-season. Unfortunately he had major substance abuse problems. Made All-Pro in year 3, but was out of the league after 4 years with the Steelers and a year with the Jets. He had numerous run-ins with police, including one where it took 9 officers to subdue him, and another where he was shot in the leg. He died in 2020 at age 54 of liver disease.
Haselrig was the wrestler. Not sure of cte though as he died a few years ago but did have some strange police run ins. He did donate his brain though to research. As it comes to Steelers lineman and strange death take your pick….Justin Strzelczyk fiery crash, Terry Long antifreeze. If you remember Haselrig was wearing his helmet backwards while riding motorcycle.
I think you had to win the D2 tournament to be invited to the D1 tournament back then.
Anyway you shake it, Haselrig was a hell of an athlete. But lived a very troubled life.
His uncle (I think) was a long time PIAA ref.
And now they don’t allow athletes to enter both so his records will never be broken.
I believe the kid from VA is going to enroll early so I think this State Title was the end of his wrestling run.
Alex is going to be an early entry in 2023. Unfortunately he won’t get the opportunity to win his 3rd title at heavyweight.
Some guy did a blog about this - you didn't have to be a champ and the criteria varied somewhat (D3 wrestlers could also get invited). Very few competing on that basis won D1 Championships, even 4-time D2 champs. As far as I can tell, Carlton was the only one to win 2 championships in the same year more than once. The rule stopping D2/D3 wrestlers from being invited was informally called the Haselrig Rule. Seems to me like they were upset that an honored guest to their party was a bit too successful.
I think his uncle is Bruce Haselrig.
Wade Schalles perhaps in 1972 and 1973?
Clarion had 2 individual NCAA D1 champs in 1972 -- Wade Schalles and Gary Barton
1972 NCAA University Division Wrestling Championships - Wikipedia
And 3 Clarion individual D1 champs in 1973 -- Don Rohn, Schalles, and Bill Simpson
1973 NCAA University Division Wrestling Championships - Wikipedia
Clarion was not part of the team scoring in either year, which is kind of a shame.
You're right. Schalles won the College Division twice and D-1 twice in 1972-73. Interestingly, Barton did not win the College Division in 1972 (he placed 3rd). Barton was the coach at my high school when they last won the state tournament.Wade Schalles perhaps in 1972 and 1973?
Clarion had 2 individual NCAA D1 champs in 1972 -- Wade Schalles and Gary Barton
1972 NCAA University Division Wrestling Championships - Wikipedia
And 3 Clarion individual D1 champs in 1973 -- Don Rohn, Schalles, and Bill Simpson
1973 NCAA University Division Wrestling Championships - Wikipedia
Clarion was not part of the team scoring in either year, which is kind of a shame.
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