AA Spotlight: Leta Previews the B1G
Dec 30 | Wrestling
By Anthony Hernandez
ScarletKnights.com
A lot has changed in the world of wrestling since 1960.
Exposure for the sport continues to grow, while headgear now gets strapped on at the youth level from the time kids are able to stand.
Despite the many years and differences, there is still one thing Rutgers wrestling All-American and former coach Mike Leta would like to see changed: his name as the highest placewinner in program history.
With the Big Ten era beginning Friday night versus No. 1 Iowa at the RAC and a slew of home grown Scarlet Knights with big expectations, that change may be on the horizon.
"The recruiting here at Rutgers has really gotten a lot better than when I was coaching," said Leta, whose third-place finish at the 1960 NCAA Championships is the best in program history. "It's paying off dividends. We're a small state, but almost every high school in the state has wrestling. We have a great system and we've got tons of kids wrestling."
The clichéd phrase of "back in my day" fits all too well with Leta's experience as a wrestler.
Unlike today, with wrestling beginning at the early youth level, Leta began competing as a freshman at North Plainfield High School and rolled it into a successful collegiate career that included two trips to nationals, an EIWA Championship (1960) and an All-America season.
The wrestling landscape in New Jersey has grown considerably since then, which continues to make the Garden State one of the biggest wrestling hotbeds in the nation.
"Back when I was in high school, there were no schools that had six, seventh and eighth grade teams and there were maybe two camps in the whole state," Leta said. "Now kids go to private clubs, private trainers - they're getting so much more than just their high school coaches. I think that keeps making our wrestling better."
But there is no denying the tremendous impact the Big Ten will have on the program. Rutgers joining the league is arguably the best thing to happen in its athletic history.
For wrestling, the Big Ten represents the highest level. Leta is confident Rutgers can enter and compete right away.
"I think we're going to be competitive in the Big Ten. It's not like it's a strange thing wrestling these teams, we've seen them before," Leta said. "It's going to be a process, but we're going to keep getting better and better and better. All college sports are about the recruiting, and being in the Big Ten is certainly going to help us keep the Jersey kids around. It will all come around - success breeds success."
The No. 23 Scarlet Knights' (9-0, 0-0 Big Ten) first measuring stick will be a tall one. RU welcomes No. 1 Iowa to the RAC on Friday, Jan. 2 in a match that will be televised nationally on BTN.
After the Hawkeyes leave town, No. 2 Minnesota (Jan. 11), No. 4 Penn State (Jan. 16) and No. 7 Ohio State (Feb. 1) will all pay Rutgers a visit.
There's no doubt the Scarlet Knights will be battle tested more than ever by the time the calendar flips to March.
By then, Leta hopes to see a few more changes in the Rutgers record books.
"I've been waiting a long time for somebody to finish higher than me," Leta said. "It was really nice to see [Anthony] Perrotti come through last year and I know Scott's been waiting a long time for that. The more the kids see that level of wrestling, the better we're going to be. I'm glad to see it and I'd like to see even more things happening for the program."
