Jamie Moffatt has done it again. One of wrestling's best storytellers, Moffatt has given the wrestling community another gem with his newest book entitled "STROBEL: Stories From A Life With Wrestling."

Moffatt has a tremendous ability to get interesting people to share their wrestling stories and memories, and weaves these testimonials into a great read. His books are especially entertaining for those who have a passion for the inside workings of our sport.

In his last book, Moffatt tackled the U.S. Olympic Team Trials, telling decades of stories from this wonderfully intense tournament, interviewing the athletes and coaches themselves. This 2007 work, "Wrestlers at the Trials," is a classic and a must-read for any wrestling fan.

This time, the decision to choose Greg Strobel as the subject of a book was a stroke of genius. Many wonder why he would write about Strobel, who never won an Olympic or World title and did not coach of an NCAA champion team. However, for decades, Strobel has been among the most successful and influential figures within wrestling, and his involvement in the sport has been at many different levels.

For those who do not know the Greg Strobel story, the book gives a chronology of his life within wrestling. A tough young prep champion from Scappoose, Oregon, Strobel went on to win a pair of NCAA titles for Oregon State and claim the Outstanding Wrestler award. After a short time in freestyle wrestling, Strobel pursued coaching, first at the high school level then as an assistant wrestling coach at Oregon State. We learn about one of his early mentors, the legendary Oregon State coach Dale Thomas. 

In the early 1980's, he took the job as National Teams Director for USA Wrestling, helping expand the success of the U.S. on the international level and build the Team USA national team program. He left USA Wrestling to serve as the head coach for Team Foxcatcher, the nation's top freestyle club run by the eccentric John E. du Pont. He then took the job as the head wrestling coach at Lehigh University, helping rebuild this storied program to national prominence. The book was written during the first year after Strobel retired from coaching and assumed an administration position with Lehigh's athletic department.

Moffatt talks to dozens of individuals, all who have considerable personal knowledge of Greg Strobel. Many were very close to Strobel during important times of his life, giving insight into the reasons for his successes. Moffatt gives the verbatim transcripts of these interviews, with short introductions which set the stage for the testimonials.

The consistent voice in the book belongs to Strobel himself, who tells his own story starting from childhood to current times. Strobel provides Moffatt with considerable details about all aspects of his life, sharing his favorite stories and experiences. However, for the wrestling junkies, the most compelling part of the Strobel passages are the philosophies behind his wrestling decisions. We hear from Strobel himself how and why he does certain things. The reader understands much more about how Strobel trained as a champion athlete, how he organized his work for USA Wrestling, and the specific coaching philosophies he used during his years with Foxcatcher and at Lehigh.

For me, the most interesting parts of the book had to do with his years at USA Wrestling and as the head coach with Team Foxcatcher. I was on the USA Wrestling national staff during part of his tenure as National Teams Director, and was involved in some of the stories shared in the book. As a national staff member, I also had a personal perspective of the Foxcatcher club and the situation there.

I also found it very intriguing how he explained his role with Team Foxcatcher, trying to build national and World champion athletes who were training in a bizarre setting. Strobel left Foxcatcher for the Lehigh job prior to the incident when du Pont murdered Olympic champion Dave Schultz. His stories from the Foxcatcher years gives a bit more information about what happened on "the Farm," including considerable insight about du Pont, Schultz and many others there.

College wrestling fans will certainly enjoy the section about the years as the Lehigh head coach. There is extensive information on what Strobel and his talented coaching staff needed to do to return Lehigh to national prominence. The book shares specific inside perspective about star Lehigh athletes such as Troy Letters, Rob Rohn and Jon Trenge. Some of the most compelling athlete stories are about unheralded athletes, whose contributions to the Lehigh success story may not have been as well publicized or understood.

We also learn about Strobel's coaching at the Senior level within freestyle wrestling, including his role as an Olympic coach. Among the athletes who Strobel helped coach for many years was four-time Olympic medalist Bruce Baumgartner, one of the all-time greats. To fully understand Strobel, we must know about his freestyle coaching, as well as his leadership on numerous committees within the sport.

The book also provides a glimpse of Strobel as a kind of a Renaissance Man, who has numerous interests and hobbies outside of the sport. Throughout the book, we learn about many of the other things which receive Strobel's attention and passion. This adds even more to a book which paints a detailed picture of Strobel's life within wrestling.

The 176-page hardcover book, filled with numerous photos, costs $19.95, plus shipping and must be ordered directly from the author. To order your copy, contact Jamie Moffatt at:
emoffatt@aol.com

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