Wrestling
- Title:
- Assistant Coach
- Alma Mater:
- Pitt '20
- Email:
- jwentzel@athletics.pitt.edu
- Season at Pitt:
- Second
The Pitt wrestling team added to its coaching staff in the summer of 2023 with the full-time hiring of program great Jake Wentzel as assistant coach after he previously served in a volunteer role.
A native of nearby South Park, Pa., Wentzel became the fourth coach on Pitt's wrestling staff, joining head coach Keith Gavin and fellow assistant coaches Drew Headlee and Luke Pletcher.
The NCAA recently changed a rule to allow previous volunteer assistants to become full-time coaches, and Coach Gavin was happy to quickly make Wentzel an official member of his staff.
In 2023-24, Wentzel's tutelage helped the Panthers earn ranked dual wins at Ohio State and Lehigh, put five individuals on ACC podiums and saw seven Pitt wrestlers win matches at the NCAA Championships, something the program hadn't achieved since 2014.
Wentzel, who competed on the mat at Pitt from 2016-22, developed a reputation nationally as one of the most dominant top wrestlers in the NCAA during his career with the Panthers, culminating in three NCAA Championship appearances and a run to the national championship bout at 165 pounds in 2021.
Finishing his career as a two-time All-American, Wentzel was also the first Pitt wrestler to win three individual ACC titles – a feat he accomplished consecutively at 165 pounds from 2020-22.
Wentzel also excelled in the classroom during his time as a wrestler. He was named the 2021 ACC Wrestling Scholar Athlete of the Year following his runner-up finish at NCAAs, largely because of his impressive GPA as an undergraduate studying business administration and his postgraduate work in accounting in Pitt's prestigious Katz Graduate School of Business.
He was also a four-time All-ACC Academic Team member and three-time NWCA Scholar All-American, making Wentzel one of the most decorated and influential student-athletes in Pitt history.
