The Castleton Spartans wrestling program has been a staple in Castleton sports over the past couple years. Head coach Scott Legacy is in his ninth year with the program and continues to sustain high level success, posting a team record of 22-3 this season.

Legacy has fostered a culture within the team that’s become infectious and Legacy believes their culture has been the driving force for the team’s recent success.

“Our starters have been tremendous leaders, but we have bench guys who have bought in as well,” Legacy said. “We all work hard on the mat while making sure we do the right things off the mat as well. Our guys love to chase competition, so we try to wrestle the best teams in the country putting ourselves in situations where we don’t fear losing,” Legacy added.

But being a Castleton wrestler is more than just how impactful you can be on the mat. It’s more than an athlete’s overall skillset as a wrestler. Legacy’s goal is to mold these student-athletes into phenomenal young men who develop a mindset that is devoted to all things in life.

“Our program encourages our athletes to buy into the small-town college lifestyle where there isn’t much of a downtown atmosphere, which is different from most colleges,” Legacy said. “We ask our guys to be committed to wrestling 365 days a year, but we also take pride in keeping academics first as well as being good people in the community. It’s important for us to break barriers together, become good leaders, and establish unity within the team.”

This fresh perspective of becoming a respected student-athlete has given wrestlers the confidence to achieve high levels of success throughout their career. Graduate student James Rodriguez is an example. Rodriguez has registered a phenomenal collegiate career and is regarded as one of the most humble athletes on campus.

“What has motivated me is being able to finish what I started and being able to improve in every aspect both on or off the mat,” Rodriguez said. “Showing my family and teammates that anything is possible if you commit to the process while staying consistent to learning and improving yourself. My ultimate goal is to know that I did everything I possibly could to help improve myself in every aspect and gain the tools I need to become successful in life outside of wrestling.”

Rodriguez’s respected career has given him the ability to be an impactful leader on the team as he sits with a 27-4 individual record. Rodriguez believes in order for the team to reach max potential, they must hold each other accountable and push each other on and off the mat. He believes it’s imperative for the team to have fun without letting doubt or fear take over. It’s the mental part of things and having a positive mindset that’ll have us where we want to be.

Although the team’s starters are recording great seasons, some even marking in the national rankings, Legacy has been particularly pleased with the non-starters on the team. Legacy believes they’ve been the hidden key to a lot of the success this season.

“The people I’d like to recognize are the non-starters because they push the starters every day in practice,” Legacy said. “You’re only as good as the guy in front of you and the guy behind you and because our guys are so engaged it has given the team a training mindset where each kid believes they can achieve and reach high goals no matter who they are. These guys know where they are because we all do mindset scenarios with each other. It encourages them to feed off one another while embracing the journey and whatever comes with it.”

Graduate assistant Ryan Foutz has worked closely with non-starters this season and he’s been impressed with their development as wrestlers and his development as a first-time wrestling coach.

“Being able to watch guys improve has been my favorite part about coaching this season. I’ve been with the non-starters more so seeing those guys go from not placing at tournaments to now doing good things at tournaments has been great,” Foutz said. “Seeing the intensity in a room of all the guys doing what they need to do has been fun as we are working hard to improve.”

As a first-time coach, Foutz said he’s learned how to connect with the guys on the team, lhow to manage events, how to operate a college practice. Foutz, being a former wrestler, understands each athlete is here for a common goal but how you coach them is different.

“The most important thing I’ve learned here is keeping the culture going for everyone, so it’s been important for me to learn how to handle each guy because everyone’s different,” Foutz said. “It’s my job to guide them in the right direction while still understanding the individual I’m coaching.”

Foutz does his best to develop positive relationships with the guys while maintaining a healthy player-coach bond.

“Most of my conversations with the guys are about business because part of my job is to talk about what makes them better as wrestlers,” Foutz said. “Not everything is completely professional. Outside of the room, I try to joke around and have fun, but balancing the authority part is important to me and I believe the guys understand and respect that.”

Foutz is aspiring to become a head coach of a college wrestling program. He believes to achieve that is by working his way up in the coaching ranks.

As the team pushes into the home stretch of the season, Legacy and the team are looking to finish strong. They’ve put an emphasis on their conditioning, doing more live wrestling, but also keeping it loose by getting into fun practices. Legacy believes this process will allow them to find their strengths and weaknesses and ultimately mold each wrestler into what it takes to win.