Ellijay native set to lead 19x state champion wrestling program
A titan of Georgia high school wrestling has a new man leading the program.
Caleb Waddell was hired as Gilmer High’s new boys wrestling head coach. He is only the third person to hold that title in a quarter of a century, and will fill the void left by Josh Ghobadpoor, who accepted a head coaching position in Lumpkin County.
“This position is a huge hire and an important position because of the tradition that has been created, built and continued for over 25 years,” said county athletic director Paul Standard. “We interviewed outstanding and very successful head coaching candidates. We wanted the right fit for the job.
“At the end of the day, coach Waddell was the perfect fit for his background. He’s a Gilmer graduate, and a highly successful and outstanding coach and man during his time here, both as a wrestler and coach. He went on to have a collegiate career at UTC and came very highly recommended from people in the wrestling community.”
Waddell, 23, is an Ellijay native and 2020 GHS graduate. A heralded wrestler on the mat, Waddell is wrapping up his first year in education. He is a teacher at GHS and was an assistant coach for the 2024-25 wrestling season.
While eventually leading the GHS program was always a goal for Waddell, it came sooner than expected.
“This is a dream and a blessing,” he said.
“I’m super blessed to be a part of this program and now to be in the head position. I don’t have the experience I thought I’d have when I walked into this, but I have the support of everyone in this program, as well as from the faculty, admins and alumni.
“I have no real worries. Nothing changes. We’re going straight to work. Nothing is going to change, because we’re on a great trajectory right now. They’re on such a good path right now, they’re working so hard and doing everything right.”
GHS is a program that prides itself on being “homegrown.” The vast majority of wrestlers make their way from Gilmer youth wrestling to Clear Creek Middle before becoming state champions at Gilmer High. Waddell is definitely not the exception.
“I’ve been involved with Gilmer wrestling since first grade, and have been around coaches Walt Monroe and Doug Haynes since then,” he said. “From first through eighth grade, they were there, along with Bo Dorsey too. They really helped mold me into a man. I grew up with them and call them my second dad. Coach (Josh) Ghobadpoor, I wouldn’t have been nearly as good as I was my sophomore year without him. He pushed me to another level.”
Waddell was a three-time state finalist at GHS and won a pair of championships. He ended his career with a 190-18 record, going 51-2 and 63-3, respectively, as a junior and senior. He earned All-American status at Fargo Nationals and received a wrestling scholarship from the University of Tennessee — Chattanooga.
However, a string of devastating injuries derailed Waddell’s college career. He only wrestled a handful of matches his freshman through junior seasons.
“I was in the starting lineup and blew my knee out my freshman year and had to get pretty much a full knee replacement. After that, I never felt like I was back to 100 percent competing wise,” Waddell said. “My sophomore year, I won a wrestle off to break into the starting lineup, and had to have bicep tenodesis surgery after detaching my bicep from my shoulder.
“It was really downhill from there. My junior year, I felt like I was around 50 percent and only wrestled one match. I found out I had six bone spurs in my neck with stenosis. The doctor said that was unacceptable for someone my age, and he wrote my medical retirement.”
Waddell was Ghobadpoor’s assistant head coach last season. He came in with plenty of energy and learned early that it needed to be throttled. The high-intensity environment of UTC had fully engulfed his mindset, but that was not the approach needed at GHS. He also took in some lessons about building a successful team.
“Coming from the highest level (collegiately in the NCAA’s Division I), it was a good thing and a bad thing,” Waddell said. “I knew what to expect and what it takes to get yourself there, but I also have to be in reality. There were some scenarios where that was a good thing, and in some others I had to tone that back a little. Kids have more than just wrestling going on.”
He added, “And there’s a lot more that goes into it than just wrestling. We hard worked our way into being good, and we have to continue to do that. You could really see that this past year. Gaining wrestlers’ trust was another big thing. If you don’t have it, you’re not going to have their full effort. Once you have it, they’ll go out there any lay it on the line for you.”
Waddell will meet with GHS wrestlers as a team in the coming days. The Bobcats will be on the mat for June attending camps and wrestling exhibition matches.