Tuesday Q&A: Tossin’ 10 at Matt Azevedo, Drexel head coach

Each Tuesday, TheMat.com will be tossing 10 questions at a college wrestling coach. This week, we visit with Drexel’s head coach Matt Azevedo. Under Azevedo, Drexel is looking to climb within the EIWA and on the national level.

Question 1: What do you feel was the key to your win over Northwestern in the Grapple at the Garden and how big was that for the Drexel program?
Azevedo: It was a big victory for our program. Anytime you can beat a ranked opponent, it’s big for any program. We haven’t beaten a ranked opponent since I have been the coach here. For us, it shows we are moving in the right direction. We are getting better. There were a couple of key things that happened in the dual meet that allowed us to win that match. Obviously, Matt Cimato at 149 beating Jason Tsirtsis, that was a huge victory in our favor. We had a couple of guys get a couple of takedowns late. It came down to the third criteria, which was most points scored in the match. Our 141-pounder got a takedown right at the end to save a major, and obviously he got two extra points. Our heavyweight scored a takedown in the third period right at the end. We had several guys step up and do really well. Our 184 pounder had a 19-0 win. We are putting some points on the board, which allowed us to win by criteria. Matt Cimato’s upset victory was huge.

Question 2: What are the strengths of Matt Cimato, who scored a big win over past NCAA champion Jason Tsirtsis of Northwestern in that dual and was named OW at the Grapple event?
Azevedo: He is a well-rounded wrestler. He is good in every position. He is very hard to take down. He has a couple of good shots that he can hit. His top wrestling is really strong. He is a Pennsylvania kid, so his mat wrestling is really strong. He is good off the bottom. Really, just a well rounded wrestler. He has gotten better offensively on his feet. That is why we are seeing him get a little bit of a breakout year early on right now. He is getting takedowns.

Question 3: How big was it for Drexel to join the EIWA, the oldest and one of the toughest conferences in college wrestling?
Azevedo: Joining the EIWA was huge for our program in so many ways. Having the privilege to compete in the EIWA, which is a historic conference, the largest conference in the country, that alone was big in itself. Recruiting-wise, it has been huge as well. Now we are recruiting alongside the other schools in the EIWA. Kids know they will have an opportunity to compete on the big stage at the EIWA and have a very good chance to get to the national tournament. It has a lot of qualifiers and it’s a competitive conference that is producing every year. It took our program to a whole nother level. I can’t say enough about how much it did.

Question 4: With your location in Philadelphia, tell us about the healthy recruiting region available to Drexel, and how that affects your ability to get talented wrestlers for the team?
Azevedo: We are in a hotbed of wrestling, no doubt. We are basically on the border of Pennsyvlania and New Jersey, two of the best wrestling states in the country. New York is not too far North of us. Then you have Ohio to the West. We are in a great place. We have a lot of kids to choose from. The only downfall is that it is very, very competitive. Everybody is recruiting in this area. There are a lot of kids to get, and I think we are doing a pretty good job. We are doing a good job outside of the state, too. We have scored some California kids, some Ohio kids. Our school definitely has a nationwide appeal, not just regional.

Question 5: Since you arrived at Drexel, what are the biggest areas of improvement that you have seen in your team?
Azevedo: Expectations, and belief in themselves. Being in the EIWA increased our expectations. Now you are competing in a conference that is arguably the second toughest in the country. That’s what you are shooting for. Before, we were in one of the lower conferences. That alone has been huge in the mindset and expectation. Our kids are proud to be a Drexel Dragon. Our facilities, we have a brand new wrestling room and a brand new locker room. Our kids are being treated like high-level Div. I athletes. Therefore, they feel that way. They expect to compete at the highest level. That is what we preach every day.

Question 6: Last year, Kevin Devoy won Drexel’s first EIWA individual title. What did that victory do for the confidence of the rest of the wrestlers?
Azevedo: It was huge again, a big milestone for the program. It showed everybody on the team that, hey, we can do this. We have a guy on our team that won the conference title. He beat a returning All-American in the finals. It has been a huge confidence builder for Kevin, I know. Kevin has been working really hard. He has the heart of a lion. The kid does not give up. He fights to the end. He seems to always find ways to win. It was big for him and big for the program. Kevin was one of my first recruits, with Matt Cimato and David Pearce were all part of my first recruiting class. For them as sophomores to have the success they had at the conference was huge. For Kevin to win it was really, really big.

Question 7: You did assistant coaching stints at Cornell and Cal Poly before getting the Drexel opportunity. What did you learn from those programs that helped you when you became a head coach?
Azevedo: At Cal Poly, under my uncle John Azevedo, I really learned how to run a program from the wrestling side of things. How to peak kids, how to train them and get them ready to compete at the highest level and have success at the highest level. John had a very successful stint at Cal Poly and I really learned how to get athletes ready, to develop athletes from freshman to senior year. At Cornell under Rob Koll, I really learned the business side of things, how to run a program as a CEO, how to market and promote your program, how to recruit high-level athletes. And the fundraising side of things, the development of alumni, getting people involved and getting people sucked into your program, what you are doing, and getting people excited. I feel like I got the best of both worlds.

Question 8: In 2008, you pinned Henry Cejudo at the U.S. Open, the same year that he went on to win the Olympic Games. Looking back, what are your thoughts about your freestyle career?
Azevedo: It’s bittersweet, I guess. I feel like I retired in my prime. I think I was really starting to hit my stride, get really consistent and really figure things out. I competed for about seven years, and every year I got better. That is why I stuck with it. I think if I would have kept going, I would have been the guy. But I was married. I wanted to start a family and I wanted to make some money. I had to go the coaching route. I knew I wanted to be a head coach, so I decided to make that change. I proved to myself that I could compete with the best guys in the world. Stephen Abas has had my number since high school and he beat me at the Olympic Team Trials. I didn’t get my shot at Henry in the final wrestle-off at the Olympic Team Trials. I felt confident that I could beat him. I was wrestling really, really well, so it was a bummer to fall short.

Question 9: Your uncle John was an Olympic wrestler, and also coached you in high school at Calvary Chapel. What has he meant to your development as a wrestler, a coach and a person?
Azevedo: My uncle has had a huge impact on me in all those areas. I spent a lot of time with him. I would go to his wrestling camps in the summer when I was in high school. I wrestled in Nevada, where I started wrestling. My dad worked with me a lot and coached me in a lot of ways. I would go work with my uncle in the summer. I got to wrestle for John my senior year. I always looked up to him. He was an idol of mine and somebody I looked to for guidance and direction. And then I got to coach with him for seven years at Cal Poly and learned from him. He is a great person. Anybody you talk to says John is a great guy. People like to be around him. He is a winner, and he knows how to work with kids and get the most out of them. He has had a huge influence as a coach, as a mentor, and in all the little areas that are involved there. I could go on and on.

Question 10: What would you consider a great season for Drexel this year, and how far can this program climb in the future on the national level?
Azevedo: I think a great end of the season for us would be to finish in the top three in the conference. That is a little bit of a stretch for us right now. We took sixth last year. Top three would be spectacular and we would get an All-American. Drexel has had two All-Americans in the history of the program and the last one was in 2007, I believe. Getting an All-American in Madison Square Garden would be great. As for the future of the program, our goal is to win the conference. We know we have serious competition with Lehigh and Cornell and a lot of the other schools that are getting better in the conference. That is what we are shooting for and talking about every day, winning the EIWA and producing All-Americans on a yearly basis. If we do that, we could be a Top 10 program. Those are the types of kids we are recruiting. We are bringing in kids who have that ability and want to achieve those milestones.

Past Tossin’ 10 interviews
November 24 – Oklahoma head coach Mark Cody
November 17 – Oklahoma City’s head men’s & women’s coach Archie Randall 
November 10 - Stanford head coach Jason Borrelli
November 3 - Pennsylvania head coach Alex Tirapelle 
October 27- South Dakota State head coach Chris Bono