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IMG Academy adding wrestling program

IMG_8358by: Andy Villamarzo09/05/25Andy_Villamarzo
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The IMG Academy student section gets fired up before kickoff. The IMG Academy National squad hosted the Cocoa High School Tigers. (Mike Lang / Sarasota Herald-Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK)

Look out high school wrestling fans, one of the most powerful athletic institutions in the country is taking aim at adding the sport to its ever-growing list of what they offer.

IMG Academy (Fla.) has posted a job opening for the Ascenders’ national Director of Wrestling position. The posting was first made on in June.

“We are always evaluating opportunities to expand our offerings and positively impact more student-athletes through sport. Wrestling is one of the sports we are actively evaluating as part of that process,” IMG Academy provided in a statement to Rivals.

According to Pat Mineo of The Wrestling Room, multiple collegiate wrestling coaches such as Michigan wrestling assistant coach Kevin Jackson, Arizona State wrestling assistant coach Lee Pritts, Wyoming Seminary College Preparatory School head coach Cornell Robinson and North Carolina assistant coach Dr. Enock Francois have all shown interest in the position.

The launch of a wrestling program at IMG Academy makes it the school’s 10th boys sport, joining baseball, basketball, football, golf, lacrosse, soccer, tennis, track and field and volleyball. 

Wrestling isn’t the only program that’s getting up and going down in Bradenton, however, as the Ascenders announced plans last fall to launch a softball program, led by Joey Lye. Lye played for Softball Canada for 12 years and earned a bronze medal in the 2021 Olympics. Over the span of a 14-year coaching career, Lye held collegiate head coaching positions at institutions like Bucknell University, Lebanon Valley College, and Stevenson University.

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