`First family of wrestling’
JAKE KNIGHT
For The Birmingham News
As a young man, Bob Cuthbertson pictured his future family.
“I grew up loving football, wrestling and baseball, “he said. “Football was my first love.
“I always envisioned, when I’d have a family, my boys would all play football.”
The vision was well on its way when Bob had six boys with his wife, Teresa. Plans changed when the oldest, 25-year-old Rob, became an all-state cross country runner in high school while wrestling some.
Scott, 23, followed Rob’s wrestling lead and earned two state titles. Jeff, 22, went one better, winning three state titles.
At that point, the Cuthbertson wrestling dynasty was well established, and the Cuthbertson clan became better known as Alabama’s “first family of wrestling.”
“We (the younger brothers) were kind of the guinea pigs, “said Michael, a senior at Scottsboro High School. “My older brothers would come home and we’d roughhouse a lot.”
The oldest three brothers’ initial interest in the sport sparked Michael to start wrestling as a third-grader. The youngest, twins Kyle and Chase, started wrestling in kindergarten.
Nine years later, Michael (45-0) contends for his fifth consecutive state wrestling title at the Pelham Civic Complex in the AHSAA state championships this weekend.
Freshmen Kyle (46-4) and Chase (48-1) go for their second state title each.
The brothers have 11 state titles among them heading into the state tournament.
“Chase is my best friend, and the best drilling partner I could have, “Kyle said. “You can’t get any better than that.”
Despite their success on the mat, Chase and Kyle still struggle to top Michael at home.
“We try to gang up on Michael, but he still beats us up, “Chase said. “We’ll get him some day.”
All three are ranked first in the state with Chase at 119, Kyle at 130 and Michael at 160.
This year, Michael could become the first wrestler in AHSAA Class 5A history to win five state titles. Four years ago, the AHSAA allowed seventh- and eighth-graders to join varsity wrestling squads if the middle school they attended fed into only one high school. Michael went on to win as an eighth-grader.
“None of that would have been possible without my dad, “Michael said. “He’s been the driving force of it all.”
Michael’s success came with a lot of adversity, the least of which were torn tendons and ligaments his sophomore and junior years.
During Michael’s freshman year, Bob noticed symptoms of hypoglycemia emerging in his son. Bob’s notions were right, but Michael still showed symptoms of the low-blood sugar condition even after getting his blood sugar up.
“It was truly like being knocked out on his feet, “Bob said.
After Michael barely won the state championship his sophomore year, Bob and Teresa took him to an internist who discovered Michael suffered from exercise-induced migraines. The Cuthbertsons studied Michael’s condition and tinkered with his diet, which resulted in an injury/migraine-free senior season.
When away from practice or matches, the Cuthbertson boys incessantly work on their moves. They even spend their summers attending intense wrestling camps.
“People think because their last name is Cuthbertson, they’re automatically good, “Scottsboro coach Chris Staton said. “But they don’t see the hours of training that go into what they see on the mat.”
In the fall, Michael plans to follow his father and older brothers’ footsteps by going on a two-year mission trip for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
“I plan on coming back and going right back into wrestling, “Michael said, “if I can get back into shape.”
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