Fresh off its 19th wrestling state championship and second traditional title in a row, Gilmer High returned to the Noah Harris Center for the summer.
Much like its winter sports brethren, GHS spent four weeks in June practicing, attending camps and facing other schools. Improving was a key component for head coach Josh Ghobadpoor and essential if the Bobcats hope to continue its storied excellence.
“Coming into summer I had the mindset of knowing we’re going to have to build some kids up who were maybe a little below average to average,” Ghobadpoor said. “We want to take those average kids to make them better than average, and get those above average guys to be studs. We have to make that transition this year to be able to compete.
“In an area that’s loaded like ours where you have three (Gilmer, Pickens and Lumpkin) of the top five teams in Class 3A, if you don’t compete well, you’re not going to state (duals). Some of the best won’t be going to state this year. It’s going to come down to hard work and being committed.”
GHS received quality mat time at Lander University, which hosted a dual camp that also offered sessions to sharpen technique. The camp attracted 40 teams from 20 states. Fifteen Bobcats were able to make the trip, and Bregan Berry went undefeated and competed in an all-star dual to end the camp. Teammate Carson Farist lost once in overtime at the camp to one of the top wrestlers in attendance.
Ghobadpoor noted that participation fluctuated throughout June as athletes split time between other sports, vacation and jobs.
“As a coach, if you have 15 kids there, you want 20,” he said. “If you have 20 kids there, you want 30, especially with the number of wrestlers we field during the season,” he said. “Summer is a tough time, and we’re trying to figure out how to get our participation up after graduating so many tough kids. Hard work is going to have to be a foundational part of our program.”
After attending the Lander camp, GHS made its way to Fannin County to wrestle the host Rebels, Pickens and Union County.
“I would have liked to have seen better participation, especially with the work we put into that schedule for the summer. We took 15 to Lander, then turned around and took six wrestlers to Fannin,” Ghobadpoor said.
“We need to do better there. We need the commitment from our kids, because if we don’t have that, we will start getting beat by teams we’ve traditionally beaten. As a coach, I know that, and I have to relay that to the kids. We want them to enjoy their summer and be kids, but they have to understand it (four years of high school) is a tight time frame.”
GHS also hosted two camps over the summer. One was for experienced wrestlers, while the other was catered to beginners. Carrollton and Murray County high schools also made their way to Ellijay for a day of practice and live wrestling.
Ghobadpoor assessed the summer overall, noting, “The wrestlers who were at every event probably got around 30 varsity matches in June, which is more than half of what they would get over several months of the wrestling season. It was really beneficial. We got a wide variety of competition from a lot of schools. The practice time was invaluable, and we were just trying to build those bridges.”
He added, “I was really proud of the kids who showed up. We had a handful who were at every single thing, and I was excited for that and what that’s going to do for them. We have to get all of our kids on board. They’re so used to being successful, but now those kids who were watching are going to be the ones who have to step up. We (coaches) see how this team can come together with the weights and everything. We have the personnel, it just comes down to if they’re going to do it.”
GHS wrestlers received July off and will return for mandatory practices in October.