Jordan Burroughs is still winning titles, so many years after he left Winslow Township.
He is the reigning 74kg world champion, one of the five world titles he has won since 2011. Burroughs also won the 2012 Olympic title at the same weight class, and has so many other championships to his name since his NJSIAA state title in 2006.
But one of his most important roles he plays outside of competition, besides being a parent and spouse, is that of a mentor and coach to a whole new generation of wrestlers.
Burroughs, who has come back to the area to train at the Philadelphia Regional Training Center, had to stop running clinics as the COVID-19 pandemic shut so much training down over the last two years. So he was very happy to be out on the mat Thursday night, with the Attack Mat Club and Neshaminy Wrestling at Maple Point Middle School, teaching wrestlers young and older how to become great.
“It is huge,” Burroughs said. “This didn’t really exist for almost two years, and there is still a large part of the population that is nervous about these large groups of people spending time in such close vicinities of each other. Wrestling is such an intimate sport that it was the hardest to bring back post-pandemic. It was a really difficult time.
“I am excited to be back teaching. I didn’t do any camps last year for the first time in pretty much the entirety of my career, so this means a lot to me. I am back in Philly, and we are back on the East Coast. A lot of people here know me well, have followed me, and spent time with me before, so it was a cool day.”
Neshaminy Youth Wrestling Club Vice President Domenic Frascella and Attack Mat Club Head Trainer Josh Kindig, who was a NCAA finalist at Oklahoma State, helped bring the clinic together with the help of local philanthropist Lance Bachmann. It was a big event for the trio, who bring high-level training to the area for so many kids.
“This was a once in a lifetime opportunity for the kids,” Frascella said. “We had a tough time because of COVID, with a season off, but kids are coming back and trying to get back to normal.”
Kindig has resurrected the Attack Mat Club, which was started by his father Tod Kindig. When Tod passed away suddenly at the end of August 2021, Josh knew he had to come back and get the club going again for the first time in years.
“This started back with my dad, back in 2006,” Kindig said. “We had some of the best guys in the country and world come in, a lot of top notch guys. I remember Chance Marstellar, Zain Retherford was in there. It was a great club back in the day. I went to college, and after my dad passed away in August, we brought it back.
“We are going to build it up. I want to have youth, middle school, high school, girls division. I really want to make something special out of it.”
With so many wrestlers getting a chance to watch Burroughs, Kindig, and Josh Dziewa (who wrestled at Iowa) work on the mat, it was a great night for the youth wrestlers. One (or more) of them might even go on to follow in Burroughs’ footsteps and represent the United States of America. For Burroughs, it was also special that his children now get a chance to be involved in the training.
“The most important part is inspiring the next generation, because now, my kids are the next generation,” Burroughs said. “I bring them along. I didn’t have this: there was no pedigree for me, so now I get to pass it down, and my kids just get to be a part of it. That is special to me.
“I have seen thousands of little kids run around at these camps grow up to be great, just through osmosis, through seeing it, being a part of it, dreaming about what it looks like to do it at the highest level. When you surround these kids with so many high-level wrestlers, you provide a spark, you plant a seed, that it is possible for them to succeed as well.
“There was a lot of history in South Jersey, but I feel like we are losing it. It takes a special group of people willing to give back. There are so many people that learn the sport of wrestling, and to not feed the next generation with that knowledge is a travesty. So I have a big responsibility: I know so much about the sport, and what it provides for you, so I have to give back. I hope everyone I encounter feels inspired, and they can go on to pursue their own dreams intently because of having met me.”
Ad Choices