New mat coach can see promise
By Bob Nuse, Sports Editor
Jesse Palermo wasn’t sure what to expect as a first-year coach of a wrestling program that went 0-16 last year.
What he found at West Windsor-Plainsboro South was a pleasant surprise.
”We have 40 guys and I’ve been pleased with their level of talent,” said Palermo, who wrestled at Princeton University and most recently was a student teacher in the WW-P district. “They are young men who are dedicated and open-minded and that is exciting to me as a coach. I think we have the talent to create a great team and a great program.”
While you would not expect it from a program that did not win a dual match last year, Palermo thinks he has a deep team that will be able to compete sooner rather than later.
”In every weight class we have at least two guys and every one of them is extremely talented,” said Palermo, who wrestled scholastically at Potsdam High in upstate New York, where he was a four-year varsity letter-winner and won 119 matches. “I’m very optimistic about the season. I hesitate to say just how many matches we’ll win, but we will have a better record than last year. We open against a real tough team (Nottingham) and I think we’ll be able to hold our own and be right in it.”
Palermo has graduated from Princeton and is in the teaching program. He just finished a stint as a student teacher at Millstone River School and Grover Middle School. Last year he was an assistant at Skaneateles in New York, where the team went 20-5.
”I think that spring-boarded me into this position,” he said of his season as an assistant. “I had coached some community wrestling while I was in high school. I’ve always had my hand in it. The hard part about coaching this sport is taking a move and analyzing it and then deconstructing and reconstructing it so they can do it.
”We have talented kids who know what they’re doing. I’ve had to tweak some things and adjust what they’re doing, but the kids have a lot of energy and I see them improving every day.”
That’s what Palermo would like to see the most this season — improvement. And if the wins come, that’s icing on the cake.
”I’ll help them develop a move and then give them one-on-one attention so they can drill it and get it right,” Palermo said. “They never had a full team last year. They would give up four to six matches a night at the beginning by forfeit and it is hard to get started that way. That makes it tough on morale.
”But this year we have a solid lineup, especially in the middle weights. I think we can be successful this year and I want them to have fun and enjoy being part of the team.”