Austin Coppinger charged up about wrestling at Briar Cliff
It’s an old saying, but one that still holds true today - hard work pays off.
Ridgeland’s Austin Coppinger is now living proof.
The senior, who began wrestling in the eighth grade, saw his work pay off this past Tuesday afternoon as he signed on to wrestle at NAIA stalwart Briar Cliff University in wrestling-obsessed (Sioux City) Iowa.
“I’m really excited,” said the humble Coppinger, who was joined by plenty of teammates, family and friends at the ceremony. “I get to go out there and show them what I’ve learned these past four years with these great teammates that I have and the great coaches that I have (at Ridgeland) and I’ll get to experience more of the sport I love while I’m getting an education.”
“He came (to Ridgeland) as a ninth grader and he didn’t know a whole lot,” Ridgeland head wrestling coach Keith Mariakis said. “He played football and I convinced him he’d be a better athlete if he got out on the wrestling mat, no matter what he did. He just fell in love with it. He didn’t have a lot of success his freshman year or his sophomore year, but he just stuck with it.
“Going into the summer of his junior year, he came to us and said ‘I want to be as good as I can get’, so we told him what all he needed to do. He was the first one to practice and the last one to leave. He did exactly what we told him to do and it paid off.
“He had a great junior year, finishing second in the area (tournament) at 182 pounds. He had one mistake at sectionals that cost him a spot at state, but he’s worked his tail off this summer and he’s ready to make another run at it.”
Coppinger said he just focuses on what his coaches have told him when he steps onto the mat.
“I just go out there and trust the moves and techniques that the coaches have shown me and try to do my best,” he explained. “I always wanted to wrestle because I’d played football mostly, but I’m really impressed with how far (wrestling) has gotten me. I’m really grateful and extremely lucky to have the opportunity to wrestle in college.”
Coppinger played football for the Panthers for three years, but decided to focus solely on wrestling as a senior.
“It was a very tough decision,” he said. “But I knew that if I wanted to go to school to wrestle and get an educational opportunity then I had to get my mind on (wrestling) and stick with it year round.”
He said he first was put in touch with Briar Cliff through an email and eventually talked to the Chargers’ coach on the phone.
“It’s actually a funny story,” Coppinger recalled. “I had gotten a new phone and the coach had called me several times, but I never answered because I didn’t recognize the number. I was at a Ridgeland softball game and he called again. I finally answered and he said ‘you know, you’re a really hard young man to get a hold of.’
“After about 10 minutes of me apologizing, he invited me to come up for a recruitment weekend and I was able to get enough money scraped up to visit the school. Once I got up there, I loved how close the team was, just like we are at Ridgeland. I love the facilities and school itself. It seems like a great place to be to further my education.”
“He went up to Briar Cliff for three days,” Mariakis said. “I talked to their coach and he told me that from the minute Austin walked in the room, they wanted him. He said they put him to work and he was doing everything the older kids in the room were doing and (the coach) said they knew they had something special on their hands. They’re excited and we’re excited for him. It’s going to be fun to watch him over the next four years.”
Coppinger said he plans to double major in History and Secondary Education and hopes to one day become a history teacher.
Briar Cliff, an NAIA program, had four wrestlers advance to the national tournament last year and finished with one All-American.
The began the 20162017 season ranekd 18th in the national poll.