Gorbatuk takes over as MHS head wrestling coach

2000 MHS grad has been wrestling since age 4

By: Rudy Brandl
   Pat Gorbatuk always felt wrestling was his best sport in high school. It’s fitting that his first head coaching job will come in wrestling.
   The 2000 Manville High graduate was a solid high school football player and track and field athlete who went on to set punting records at Kean University. He returned to his alma mater to become a teacher and coach for the 2005-2006 school year.
   Last year, he served as an assistant coach for all three of the sports he played in high school, but it was only a matter of time before he became a head coach. While he’s also coached football and track and field at Manville High, Gorbatuk is most passionate about wrestling.
   "I was 4 years old when I started wrestling," said Gorbatuk, who’s entering his third year as a social studies teacher at Alexander Batcho Intermediate School. "I think wrestling is my favorite sport to coach. I might like (playing) football better, but I love Manville wrestling."
   And now he’s the man in charge.
   "It’s great to know that you have an opportunity to do something good for the kids, whether it’s in the classroom or on the mat," Gorbatuk said. "I’m not too nervous about teaching the wrestling; that’s the easy part. As the head coach, you also have to make sure the kids get good grades and you have to help them with personal problems."
   Gorbatuk replaces Brett Stibitz, who decided to focus on his expanding duties as the school’s head football coach. Stibitz is confident that the wrestling program is in very capable hands.
   "You really have to be actively involved in this day and age and Pat has that young energy and a new perspective," Stibitz said. "He has a great future ahead of him. He gets down on the mat and gets involved."
   Gorbatuk competed on the last MHS wrestling teams that qualified for the state playoffs. The Mustangs lost to sectional power South River in the Central Jersey Group 1 final in 1997 when Gorbatuk was a freshman.
   After going 2-7 that first season, Gorbatuk enjoyed a very successful career on the varsity mat. He won 50 bouts, placed third in the District 18 Championships twice but lost both times in the first round of the Region 5 Tournament.
   Stibitz took over the MHS wrestling program in 2001 and guided it for seven seasons. Stibitz didn’t win a lot of matches but he accomplished some great things, like starting a junior high team and developing the summer open mats program.
   "He fought the numbers game and he was able to build a middle school program," Gorbatuk said. "Brett did a lot more than the wins and losses show."
   Gorbatuk, 25, has established a nice coaching resume in a short time. He has served as an assistant wrestling coach for five years, including two at Franklin High. He’ll begin his third year as the MHS assistant track and field coach in the spring but has stepped down from the school’s football coaching staff after three years on the job.
   "That was a super hard decision," Gorbatuk said. "I’ll miss being on the field with those guys."
   The extra time will allow Gorbatuk to focus on preparing his wrestlers for the 2007-2008 season. Teaching in the middle school will help him recruit more athletes at a younger age.
   "I want to be really involved with the younger kids and talk to the parents," Gorbatuk said. "If I can recruit and get them interested before they get to high school, we’ll have more kids wrestling."
   George Putvinski, last year’s ABIS head coach, will be Gorbatuk’s new assistant coach. Ed Ferraro takes over the middle school team.
   The Mustangs haven’t qualified for the CJ 1 playoffs since Gorbatuk wore a singlet. The new head coach is determined to take this program back to glory.
   "The program is on the way up," Gorbatuk said. "It’s my job to keep it going and bring it back to where it was in the 90s. When you graduate high school and go off to college, you never dream you’ll come back and get a job like this. I don’t know if there’s a word to describe it."