The New ILLINI Wrestling Facilities

In going over what the ILLINI need to become a wrestling dynasty in the future, I decided to list what the ILLINI have and what the ILLINI have not in relevant categories. Here is that list:

WHAT THE ILLINI HAVE

1.  ILLINI Wrestling has the best young, charismatic and decorated coaching staff in the country. 

2.  ILLINI Wrestling has a history of success, with numerous All Americans and National Champions, as well as what may be the longest active streak in the country of producing at least one AA every year. 

3.  ILLINI Wrestling hosts its duals in the most iconic sports facility in the country (Assembly Hall/State Farm Center), which also happens to be THE Mecca for every ILLINOIS schoolboy wrestler. 

4.  ILLINI Wrestling is sitting on a gold mine of gifted and talented wrestlers--some of the best young wrestlers in the world--who receive instruction from some of the best private and public school coaches in the world. 

5.  ILLINI Wrestling is sitting on a gold mine of private tutoring facilities and coaches. From Edwardsville up to Chicago, ILLINOIS kids can find private clubs to hone their skills. 

6.  ILLINI Wrestling has access to one of the first NIL coordinators in the country. 

7.  ILLINI Wrestling has one of the best non-NIL, student-achievement-based incentive programs in the country, providing almost $6,000.00 per year per student-athlete who is making progress on his degree.

8.  ILLINI Wrestling is associated with one of the top learning institutions in the country with degree programs that are top notch. 

9.  ILLINI Wrestling has an alumni network that runs across the state and around the country. 

10. ILLINI Wrestling has access to Papa Del's, Fiesta Cafe and Li'l Porgy's. 

WHAT THE ILLINI HAVE NOT

1.  A state-of-the-art practice facility. 

Well, that is no longer going to be a problem. Because of donations from Mark and Carol Mestemacher, Ron and Melody Domanico, and Doug and Allison Waggoner, there is a ten million dollar down payment for a fourteen million dollar sole-use-wrestling facility. 

Because of those generous donations, this is something that will happen, rather than something that the Board of Directors votes down at a later date. For a fraction of the cost the UofI is getting a best-in-the-country wrestling facility. 

You can read the entire announcement here on FightingILLINI.com. 

At this point, I always invoke this bit of nostalgia: I never had to practice at Huff Hall, and that aged building was certainly a problem that needed to be solved. However, I loved going to Huff to watch duals. Eating a Huff dog (mustard and relish) while the ILLINI kicked *** right in front of me was a joy. 

THE NEW BUILDING

This is what they're talking about building. I have taken the liberty of adding some explanatory details. 

Because of the speedy timetable (made possible by the monster donations from some super awesome people), the ILLINI coaches can tell new recruits that this is what they will be walking into. Those new recruits will not have to share facilities with the hoi polloi. Once while at Huff for a dual, I stopped in the lavatory and ran into the great Willowbrook heavyweight Mike Behnke in his ILLINI singlet.  

No more. 

Some internet sleuths figured out exactly where the facility will be located based upon the address and description. "The $14 million Illinois Wrestling Training Center will be located on the south lawn of State Farm Center, directly across St. Mary's Road from the Illinois Conference Center." This is what they came up with:

And the street view:

Here are some of the folks involved, including a very happy head coach and AD:

It seems like whenever you get Coach Poeta slicked up in a suit, good things start happening. This is from the announcement:

THE DONORS

Special mention was made of Mark and Carol Mestemacher, Ron and Melody Domanico, and Doug and Allison Waggoner, as well as Howard Milton. All of the donors should be applauded for this bold move. Mr. Mestemacher said, "I don't believe a facility has ever won a championship, but I do believe facilities go a long way in drawing recruits to a program, and this facility will elevate Coach Poeta and his staff's ability to draw even more top-notch wrestlers to the University of Illinois program. This truly is an exciting day for Illini Wrestling."

"The state of Illinois produces some of the best wrestlers in the nation, and this new wrestling facility will attract, develop, and retain top student-athletes who will positively impact our communities for generations," said Ron Domanico. Doug Waggoner added, "Illinois Wrestling is putting all the pieces together to rise to the top of the conference and the entire NCAA wrestling field. Getting a world-class facility is an important ingredient for training our athletes and achieving our goals."

As you can see from what I wrote above, I couldn't be in more agreement with Mr. Waggoner. ILLINOIS Wrestling is putting all the pieces together. 

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Photo credits:  University of ILLINOIS Athletic Department, Robert Rosenthal and Jeremy Werner.