Sammie Henson GARY ABBOTT’S MATSIDE CHAT WITH...
Sammie Henson made a big splash at a young age. As a
high school kid from Missouri, he won three state titles, two Junior National titles and qualified for the Olympic Trials in Greco-Roman. He next won the U.S. Open in Greco at the age of 20. An All-American at Missouri, he transferred to Clemson, where he won two NCAA titles. Henson decided to switch to freestyle and rose to the top. In
1998, he made his first U.S. World team and won the World title in Tehran, Iran. In 2000 in Sydney, Australia, he won an Olympic silver medal. He closed out his career by winning a World bronze medal in 2006. After serving as an assistant at six NCAA Division I programs, Henson was hired this year as the head coach for West Virginia. We visited with him a day before the Mountaineers competed at the Virginia Duals.
USA Wrestler: How did you get involved in wrestling, and
what did you like about it? Henson: One, I was short, so that limited me. I never thought
of that as a kid. Eight years old, I played football and baseball. Basically, I did what my brothers did. My brother Chuck was a freshman in high school and went out for the wrestling team. If he’s gonna do it, I’ll do it. I didn’t know anything about wrestling. I went out for the club and I took to it right away. It was an easy transition from football and baseball. I continued to do other sports, but I knew wrestling is what I wanted to do.
USA Wrestler: Who were your early influences as a youth
and high school wrestler that made a difference in your devel- opment? Henson: My brother Chuck, and my brother Kevin. Early on, I
really looked up to Chuck. He’d beat me up in the basement. It was me and him and the throw dummy. Without what he did for me, I wouldn’t be where I am at. As a kid, I didn’t know you could go to college for wrestling. But, I wanted to be an Olympic champion. I watched Nadia Comaneci on TV, and I wanted to win the Olympics, even though she was in gymnastics. I also remember Steve Fraser and Dave and Mark Schultz won the Olympics in 1984. I went to Junior Nationals as a freshman, and got Steve Fraser’s autograph. That was a big deal. I’d say Fraser and the Schultz brothers inspired me.
USA Wrestler: Your first big national success came in Greco- Roman. What did you like about Greco and how did you become so good at it so young? Henson: I was very explosive and had a lot of upper body strength. I had two great coaches in freestyle and Greco in Missouri, Mike Hagerty and Gary Mayabb. They did a huge amount of work with me in the summertime in Greco. They are great people, real giving. They fostered that love for Greco. Freestyle was held second in the Junior Nationals. By the time I finished wrestling Greco at the Juniors, I only entered freestyle twice there.
USA Wrestler: In high school, you qualified for the Olympic Trials in Greco and beat some top U.S. Senior athletes along
24 USA Wrestler
World champion and Olympic silver medalist Sammie Henson is already making a big impact as the new head coach at West Virginia. Tony Rotundo photo.
the way. What are your memories of that experience? Henson: I didn’t look at age, just like I didn’t look at size
when I was young. I thought I’d be a professional football play- er. People told me I couldn’t do it. I was not smart enough, or whatever, but I believed you could do whatever you want. It was instilled by my mom and dad. Especially my mom, who was an athlete and played everything with us. The mentality, I got from her. Also, my brother Chuck asked why I was letting these guys beat me. I said he was 27 years old. Chuck said it didn’t matter. I said, ‘Chuck, you are right.’ My mindset was not to accept that. I looked at it to just go out there and take these dudes out.
USA Wrestler: Why did you decide to attend the Univ. of Missouri and what was it like to be part of the program there? Henson: I had Wes Roper as the head coach, and several
different assistant coaches. Charlie Sherertz was there. The program when I was there wasn’t funded as well as it is funded now. Wes did a great job. Heck, I made the NCAA semifinals when I was a redshirt freshman. I ended up being an All-
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44