Brett Watkins has been named the new head coach at The North Carolina Leadership Academy in Kernersville. This is a huge hire for NCLA.

Joining the coaching staff as Co-Coach will be Michael Hodges. Michael is a former wrestler at Glenn and is a long time Forsyth County resident. His son is a student at NCLA and is also a part of the middle school program.

Coach Watkins is the former coach at Grimsley. He took the reins at Grimsley beginning with the 2021-22 season and resigned yesterday to take over at NCLA.

Prior to his arrival, Grimsley was a beleaguered program struggling along as they had done for several years. The season prior to Brett taking over Grimsley finished the season with 3 wrestlers.

It didn't take long for the turnaround to begin.

During his time at Grimsley the Whirlies qualified for the state duals three times getting to the semi-finals one year. He coached 1 state champion and 3 other state placers with some of them being multiple time state placers. His overall win-loss record was 92-16.

Perhaps the most important component Brett implemented was the Grim Reapers Wrestling Club. The Reapers were a well traveled wrestling club bringing several wrestlers to an event every weekend during the off-season. The results of that off-season commitment speak for themselves.

Look for NCLA to become a powerhouse within the 1A division sooner rather than later. You read it here first.