Purdue University Sports Information
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Purdue head wrestling coach Scott Hinkel was named the 2008 Amateur Wrestling News (AWN) Rookie Coach of the Year on Tuesday. Joining him with first-year honors were freshmen Luke Manuel, Logan Brown and A.J. Kissel, who were all named to the AWN Freshman All-American Team.
Hinkel led the Boilermakers to a 10-8 dual record in his inaugural campaign, and the squad placed 30th at the 2008 NCAA Championships. He has been a significant part of Purdue wrestling for the last three decades, wrestling for the Old Gold and Black from 1984-to-1987, serving as an assistant coach in 1989 and 1990, again from 1993-to-2007, and then taking over as the Boilermakers’ head coach in 2007. He’s just the third coach in school history to post a winning dual record in his rookie season, joining Herb Miller and Don Corrigan, and led Purdue to more Big Ten Dual wins in 2008, than the previous two seasons combined. He also guided the Boilermakers to their first win over archrival Indiana University since 2004, as they topped the 17th-ranked Hoosiers 18-16 on February 8.
The Boilermakers took 10th at this year’s Big Ten Championships, but scored 51.5 team points, their highest total since the 2004 season and just the fourth time in the last 14 years they’ve surpassed the 50-point plateau. With four NCAA qualifiers, Hinkel’s squad amassed 14.5 points en route to its 30th-place finish, and had a pair of wrestlers reach the Round of 12 in their respective brackets and fall one win shy of NCAA All-America honors.
Manuel was one of these two, posting a 3-2 mark at nationals, including an upset win over a seeded opponent. He finished 29-9 at 165 pounds, placing in every tournament he wrestled in over the season. He earned an automatic bid to nationals with a third-place showing at the Big Ten Championships, while winning the Jim Fox Open and the NWCA National Open. He finished second at the Eastern Michigan Open and eighth at the Midlands Championships, while notching a 1-1 mark in Big Ten Duals.
Both Brown and Kissel nabbed automatic trips to the NCAA Championships as well as Brown finished fifth at the conference meet, while Kissel nabbed seventh. Brown was 1-2 at nationals and 24-16 on the season, finishing tied for fourth on the team in wins this season. He was second on the squad in takedowns with 63, and scored a 3-5 mark in conference duals over the season. Kissel posted one of the most outstanding freshman seasons in recent memory, shattering the Boilermakers’ single season falls record with 19 on the year. His total was tied for second in NCAA Division I, and has already moved him to 12th on Purdue’s career list. Kissel finished 25-17 on the season, going 2-6 in Big Ten Duals and 2-2 in the NCAA Tournament with a pin of ninth-seeded Brent Chriswell of Arizona State in the second round. He tied for the team lead in reversals (13), while finishing third on the squad in wins.
“This says a lot about the direction of our program, “said Hinkel. “To have so much success with such a young group gives us great hope for the future. We’re building something great here at Purdue, and we can’t wait to be a part of the nationally elite.”
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