Jan. 7, 2008: The Salt Lake Tribune

Prep Wrestling: Utah Wrestlers Heading Out of State
by Chhun Sun

Though they're part of something young and unproven, the coaches of the Utah Valley State College wrestling program are quite ambitious. They're located in Orem, in the midst of some of the best wrestlers in Utah, which is also known to produce some of the best in the nation.

So they went after the likes of Springville's Jason Chamberlain, Cyprus' Matt Brown and Wasatch's Jake Salazar. With UVSC lacking a long wrestling history, it was difficult to lure them in.

Chamberlain, Brown and Salazar intend to wrestle with Boise State, Iowa State and Michigan, respectively.

So even being the only Utah school with a wrestling program has not made UVSC attractive to the state's top prospects.

"Right now, it's still not the case," UVSC coach Greg Williams said. "And we want it to be."

When will UVSC grab the best Utah wrestlers, the way Brigham Young and Utah football are landing some of the state's best athletes? Williams says when the Wolverines start producing All-Americans and compete at the NCAA Championships - which won't be at least until the 2009-10 season, when UVSC (now only in its fifth wrestling season) completes its probationary period.

But what does it mean for local prep wrestlers, many of whom would like to serve an LDS mission, to look outside of Utah and take their chances at colleges that sometimes aren't as understanding about missions? West Jordan's Larry Jaramillo, as well as other high school coaches, believe the Wolverines have an advantage with many Utah wrestlers because they are accustomed to athletes leaving for two-year LDS missions.

At the same time, Williams is working on improving Utah wrestlers' view of UVSC.

Perhaps it starts with Ben Kjar, who is arguably UVSC's top wrestler. The former Viewmont star had offers from such schools as Boise State, Oklahoma and Minnesota. He then served an LDS mission and returned to Utah knowing that his former club coach was now the UVSC coach - and Kjar could possibly be a part of something promising.

And Kjar, a freshman, is one wrestler who could earn All-American honors in the coming years. That would do wonders for UVSC. Maybe then, wrestlers like Chamberlain, ranked No. 1 grappler in the nation by Wrestling USA Magazine, wouldn't overlook the Wolverines.

"I just look for people to work out with, to make me better, and I felt like UVSC was lacking in a couple things," Chamberlain said.

At one point, Utah had as many as seven colleges with wrestling teams, including some at the junior college level. Brigham Young fielded a team through 2000, but the program was eliminated due to funding and gender equity issues.

Then in 2003, the wrestling program at UVSC was created. Williams said it started slowly, but now the Wolverines are making progress as some of the state's top high school wrestlers for next season are showing interest.

"We have to build that tradition. We have to show that we can produce All-Americans," Williams said. "Then we'll be in the ballgame with the Jasons, the Matts, the Jakes."