NCSA recetnly caught up with University of Indianapolis Wrestling coach, Jason Warthan. Jason just finished his first season at UIndy posting a 10-9 record. Here’s what Jason says about his program.
1. How would you describe yourself as a coach?
I think my best asset as a coach is my ability to communicate with my athletes. Having good relationships with my wrestlers is also important to me and it starts with good communication.
2. What’s unique about the experience at your school?
The size of the university: The University of Indianapolis currently has around 5,000 students. The student to teacher ratio is around 12:1. The average class size is 18. Our lecture halls in the science building will hold around 75 people but the average size of a lecture is around 35 students. The smaller class sizes allows the students to have a unique experience with their professors.
The location of the university: We are located about five miles south of down town Indianapolis. There are plenty of things to do in the city. I always tell our recruits and prospective students that Indianapolis has something for everyone. The location also plays a role in employing our students after graduation.
The academic programs: The University of Indianapolis offers numerous challenging and respected degrees for undergraduates and graduates. UIndy takes pride in helping our graduates obtain successful careers after graduation.
The athletic programs: UIndy offers 20 total sports for men and women, ten sports for each. We are consistently gaining national recognition on the athletic front, ranking 5th among 293 NCAA Division II schools for overall athletic success in the 2008-2009 school year.
UIndy is growing and constantly improving: The university works hard to meet the growing needs on campus. Last year the university added a dorm and they are currently working on an indoor fieldhouse for student athletes.
3. What do recruits need to know about you?
I am a former greyhound. I have tasted both success and failure as a student athlete at UIndy. I use my experiences to better myself as a coach and mentor. I also rely heavily on my support system for most of my coaching decisions.
I love wrestling and it is a priority in my life but it is not my biggest priority. I am a husband and a father of two. I believe it is really important that my athletes know that I am a Christian and a family man.
4. What do you look for in recruits?
It is important for us to have a team that shares similar goals. Obviously the more success they have had the more attractive they become as recruits. But we are also looking for athletes that want to succeed on a national level and push their teammates to improve.
We also look for athletes that are going to be successful in the classroom. We want our athletes to graduate from UIndy and strive to be academic all-americans.
5. What is the one thing every recruit needs to do with the recruiting process?
Don’t wait around for a school to contact you. If you are interested in wrestling at the next level then be proactive in your search. If you know what you are looking for in a university, do a little research and contact the coach and let him know. There is so much information on the internet that there is no excuse to wait for letters or phone calls. Coaches like when athletes show interest in their program. If the school is not a good fit for you, most coaches will help you in your search.
6. What sort of questions do you really like to hear from recruits?
I am a big picture guy, so I like it when I hear questions that revolve around academics and their future at UIndy.
Most of the time the recruits seem pretty nervous and let their parent(s) ask most of the questions. It is really nice when the recruit will take the lead from their parents and do the majority of the talking.
7. What turns you off when you?re recruiting a student athlete?
When scouting an athlete we are not only looking at their wrestling skills but we feel like attitude and sportsmanship are equally important. We make sure we watch how athletes prepare, how they handle themselves in competition, especially in tough situations, and how they conduct themselves in victory and defeat.
We also get feedback from coaches. We specifically like when coaches mention qualities like leadership, unselfishness, dedication as well as a being a good student, and a hard worker. If a coach does not think highly of his athlete then it is usually a deal breaker.
8. What do you think your program is the most successful at?
UIndy has consistantly produced Division II national qualifiers, all americans, and NWCA all-academic team members. The past two years we finished seventh amoung all Division II in team GPA. We also had four athletes make the NWCA Division II Academic Team.
I feel like UIndy holds true to the Division II model. At the University of Indianapolis student athletes compete in athletics without sacrificing academics. We understand that most of our athletes’ wrestling careers will end at this level and it is important to prioritize correctly. UIndy offers a unique experience.
9. Why should a recruit consider your program?
We feel that as a coaching staff and university that we can help our student athletes reach their goals on and off the mat.
10. If a recruit is interested in your program, how should they reach out to you?
If you are interested in attending UIndy and being part of the wrestling team please send me an email. My email address is warthanjc@uindy.edu
We would like as much of the following information as possible:
Name, school, home address, high school weight classes, season record, overall record, wrestling accomplishments, academic accomplishments, high school GPA, SAT or ACT scores, academic interests in college, and interest level in attending UIndy
This would also be a good time to ask any questions that you might have about the wrestling program or the university.
You can also find academic information at http://www.uindy.edu, and athletic information at http://athletics.uindy.edu/
