Keith Gavin Hires Luke Pletcher as Assistant Coach
7/1/2022 11:00:00 AM | Wrestling
PITTSBURGH—University of Pittsburgh wrestling head coach Keith Gavin today announced the hiring of three-time All-American and western Pennsylvania native Luke Pletcher as assistant coach.
Pletcher, a native of Latrobe, Pa., who had an accomplished career at Ohio State from 2016-20, joins the Panthers as a full-time coach after serving as a Pitt volunteer assistant each of the past two seasons.
Gavin, who earlier this week received a new contract through the 2027 season, moved quickly to fill the void on his staff after Jordan Leen recently accepted the head coaching position at Brown University.
"We were excited for Jordan to get his opportunity to become a head coach at Brown," Gavin said. "But we're also thrilled to promote Luke from within. He has been doing a great job with the guys and made a big impact over the last two years. It was an easy decision to make him a full-time assistant on the staff."
"I'm honored to join Keith's staff as a full-time assistant," Pletcher said. "It's been awesome starting my coaching career at Pitt and I'm excited to take this next step. I can't wait to get to work and help this program reach new heights. We have a talented group of returning student-athletes and a great recruiting class coming in, so the future is very bright for Pitt wrestling."
Pletcher's impact in the Pitt wrestling room has been on full display with the development of 2022 ACC champion and NCAA All-American Cole Matthews, who recently won a United States Under-23 freestyle national title and was just listed as the preseason No. 1 wrestler at 141 pounds for 2022-23 by InterMat.
Working with Matthews and several other Panthers, Pletcher's mentorship as a volunteer assistant helped Pitt's wrestlers win five individual ACC titles and earn three All-America honors in 2021 and '22.
Pletcher, a 2020 Big Ten champion who earned a No. 1 seed for the 2020 NCAA Championships before the tournament was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, has also competed professionally the last two years as a member of the Pittsburgh Wrestling Club.
Luke will now have the chance to coach his brother, Jack Pletcher, who was a PIAA state medalist for Latrobe and signed with Pitt as part of the program's highly touted Class of 2022 recruiting class.
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Pletcher, a native of Latrobe, Pa., who had an accomplished career at Ohio State from 2016-20, joins the Panthers as a full-time coach after serving as a Pitt volunteer assistant each of the past two seasons.
Gavin, who earlier this week received a new contract through the 2027 season, moved quickly to fill the void on his staff after Jordan Leen recently accepted the head coaching position at Brown University.
"We were excited for Jordan to get his opportunity to become a head coach at Brown," Gavin said. "But we're also thrilled to promote Luke from within. He has been doing a great job with the guys and made a big impact over the last two years. It was an easy decision to make him a full-time assistant on the staff."
"I'm honored to join Keith's staff as a full-time assistant," Pletcher said. "It's been awesome starting my coaching career at Pitt and I'm excited to take this next step. I can't wait to get to work and help this program reach new heights. We have a talented group of returning student-athletes and a great recruiting class coming in, so the future is very bright for Pitt wrestling."
Pletcher's impact in the Pitt wrestling room has been on full display with the development of 2022 ACC champion and NCAA All-American Cole Matthews, who recently won a United States Under-23 freestyle national title and was just listed as the preseason No. 1 wrestler at 141 pounds for 2022-23 by InterMat.
Working with Matthews and several other Panthers, Pletcher's mentorship as a volunteer assistant helped Pitt's wrestlers win five individual ACC titles and earn three All-America honors in 2021 and '22.
Pletcher, a 2020 Big Ten champion who earned a No. 1 seed for the 2020 NCAA Championships before the tournament was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, has also competed professionally the last two years as a member of the Pittsburgh Wrestling Club.
Luke will now have the chance to coach his brother, Jack Pletcher, who was a PIAA state medalist for Latrobe and signed with Pitt as part of the program's highly touted Class of 2022 recruiting class.
#pinzburgh | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
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