Blog Attack Style Wrestling By Daryl Weber

Quick Score Drill

Strong position isn’t just the core of good wrestling defense, it is a suffocating force which leads to snap downs, reshots, and quick scores. The quick score drill is a great tool to ensure wrestlers are always on the attack. By using opponent’s poor shots as a source of go-behinds, and other wrestling counter offense, wrestlers learn to attack from all positions, and avoid falling into a defensive mindset. Keys to this technique include proper head position, hand position, and movement. Once these things are in place, any attempt to attack the properly positioned wrestler results in quick takedowns. Learn … Read More

Dan Gable’s Intensity, Likability & Subtle Genius

I was going through some old boxes and came across a few memorable photos. When I looked at them, I began to chuckle because several curious things stood out to me… The first is the team picture is from 1996, when I was a Senior at the University of Iowa. At the top of the picture you can see “The Box.” There were numerous reasons you could end up in “The Box,” but if you were in there, you could go ahead and assume that you weren’t getting the job done in some fashion… It could be in the wrestling room, the class … Read More

How To Become A Better Wrestler – 4 Steps To Bridging the Gap From Beginner to Elite Wrestler

How To Become A Better Wrestler? Transitioning From College & International to Coaching Youth & High School was difficult! I asked myself… What were the important differences between elite college wrestlers and most youth, middle school, and high school wrestlers? What were the similarities? Establish a Goal. I determined my goal(s) to be: Develop each wrestler to their full potential (on & off the mat) Be sure those that were willing and able to wrestle in college, would be physically and mentally prepared for the challenge. Also, those that don’t want to wrestle in college should be prepared and motivated to … Read More

Demon Drill

It is one thing to teach wrestling technique, but it is quite another to place that technique in an effective system that wrestlers can understand and take advantage of. The Demon Drill is a competitive scenario (or wrestling game) with clearly defined rules designed to bring a wrestler’s offensive tools together. There are a lot of wrestling drills that develop skills, the Demon drill is different because it teaches wrestlers to chain moves together while developing their overall positioning. Instead of developing one skill at a time, the Demon drill brings together a lot fundamental skills, and cannot be executed … Read More

Front Headlock Torture Series

Though it is not technically essential for success, more wrestlers will point out the front headlock position as the one that changed their careers than any other offensive technique. There are a variety of front headlock series, but once you have the technique to master one of them, you have the keys to a tougher attitude and a punishing style of wrestling that is very difficult to defend. Once the defending wrestler has been pulled down to the mat, the offensive wrestler focuses on the elbow, prying it backwards in a way that is not a problem for referees, but … Read More

Dan Gable Practice Planning Secret

Dan Gable talks about his practice planning strategies when he was a the coach of the Iowa Hawkeyes, where he won 15 National Team Titles. He says that he would map out 365 days all leading to the NCAA Championship and plan his peaking strategy specific to the team he was going to have. When it came to planning out his practices he wouldn’t go into great detail but he would assign each day either “Dependent” or “Independent” . He felt that the main goal when constructing a great team was to turn them all into coaches and leaders so if he … Read More

Leg Riding Defense

Of all the questions that torment wrestling coaches, none is more intricate and confusing than “How do I stop leg riders?” The truth is that this question is hard to answer only because there are so many solutions. Leg riding defense is like shopping for a new car. You have to know what you want, not be distracted by all the bells and whistles, and the right techniques will deliver you to success in short order. One of the first rules is not to let the legs come in at all, and there are a few, easy to perform skills … Read More

Half Nelson Wrestling In 10 Steps

If one series was to be declared the undisputed king of top techniques, it would be the half nelson wrestling series. The half nelson series has few defenses, and despite how effective it is, there is not very much technique required to execute it. All that is required to be extremely effective with it is a hard nose and the will to win. Step 1 of Half Nelson Wrestling Technique: The Breakdown With your best breakdown, in this case the ankle down, break your opponent to their belly. Immediately transition to a three post position – both of your feet … Read More

Spiral Ride Defense

As well as being a reliable point, bottom work is an essential source of confidence for the neutral position. No wrestler can attack with confidence if they are scared of being taken down. Wrestlers can make a living on top or neutral technique, but they can’t survive without great bottom work. A spiral ride is one of the most popular rides and breakdowns, therefore every wrestler who doesn’t have a defense for it is very vulnerable. Sliding knees, creating back pressure, and controlling hands are not only core concepts to this specific move, but keys to the vast majority of … Read More

Surprising & Elusive Trick to True Toughness

There are a few qualities that are necessary for mental toughness, but are hardly ever mentioned in the same breath. A positive attitude is one example. It isn’t possible to represent mental toughness while complaining. Another example is consistency. Would you consider a person whose performance and attitude were constantly influenced by external factors to be mentally tough? These qualities are probably shortchanged because we tend to think of mental toughness as being revealed only in moments of heroism, which is very unfortunate because it leads us to see it as something rare and innate as opposed to something that … Read More