Trojan wrestlers prepare for lengthy grind

About 12 Fairfield wrestlers could be found in the padded little space known as the FHS wrestling room Thursday in an attempt to shake off the offseason cobwebs.

While practice for the Trojan wrestling program doesn?t officially begin until Monday, it hasn?t stopped a slew of dedicated individuals from meeting one day per week over the past three months. New head coach Steve Miller and a couple assistants also were on hand Thursday.

?It?s more for technique and staying fresh and not being so rusty when the season starts,? Miller said of the open room sessions. ?There have been a handful of kids who?ve made it to a lot of our open rooms, and it will pay big dividends for them.?

Although Miller is in his first year as head man at the high school level, the former FHS wrestler and 1996 graduate shouldn?t be mistaken as new to the program. Miller found success as head wrestling coach at Fairfield Middle School over the past fours years, so he?s already coached nearly every wrestler on the current high school roster. Prior to his stint as FMS wrestling coach, Miller served for seven years as a volunteer assistant at FHS under then-head coach Jeff Courtright.

Miller is looking forward to the step up in competition, and his familiarity with many of the current wrestlers and program should make for an utterly seamless transition.

But the easy transition at the top also comes with a loss of several key wrestlers to graduation. Gone is Dakota Simmons, who placed second last season at the state tournament, as well as bronze medal-winning Jeff Guttry. The Trojans also lost valuable heavyweight Michael Smithburg and middleweights Michael Hammes and Jac Pilcher to graduation.

While the loss of several accomplished wrestlers no doubt stings, it should provide many new faces with an opportunity to prove themselves on the mat this season.

?It?s a challenge that we gladly accept,? Miller said of the talent turnover. ?That?s the fun thing about wrestling ? every year you?ve got different kids stepping up.?

Although Miller has an idea of who the top wrestlers will be this season, the tight-lipped coach isn?t a believer in naming names before the spots are decided on the mat.

?I never pencil anybody into any positions. I?ve got a lineup in my head right now, but we?ll see how it all shakes out,? Miller said. ?We have wrestle-offs the week of Thanksgiving and that will determine our lineup.?

?We?ve got a good core coming back, but we?ve also got a lot of new faces that have made a lot of the open rooms. Those new faces will jump in and maybe make up a lot of that core,? he added.

Returning wrestlers who carry previous varsity experience include Jake Mineart, Aaron Gevock, Seth Davisson, Quinton Bradfield and Ammon Shaner.

A group of talented freshmen have moved from the middle school to the high school along with Miller, and the coach said he expects those freshmen to help Fairfield round out a lineup that could be the team?s first full one in ?a long time.?

?We?ve got a couple of freshmen that I?m really excited about who are going to be big-time contributors to this team,? Miller said. ?The thing I love most about these two freshmen is their attitude. They never say die, they fight every minute, and I would take 13 of those on my team. I don?t care what their talent is as long as they fight for six minutes every match or longer.?

Miller hopes to instill this hunger to be the very best in all his wrestlers. His No. 1 priority as head coach is to have his team?s photo hanging up at the state tournament ? a privilege granted to the top three teams in each class.

?There are no shortcuts to the top, but I am determined to win,? said Miller. ?I think sometimes we lose that focus and think everybody should get a ribbon. I disagree with that ? I love participation and think everybody should participate ? but I also think you should do everything you can to win within the rules. I?m going to try to really pound that into their minds.?

The Trojans will open their season with a tournament in Centerville Nov. 29.