TheMat.com Q&A with Mike Moyer, Executive Director of the National Wrestling Coaches Association    TheMat.com: After a year and 1/2 working full time with the NWCA, what is your assessment of the organization and its future?    Moyer: "It would only be fair to begin by commending all of our former and current NWCA Board members, officers, volunteers, and staff members for their relentless efforts to serve, protect, and promote our great sport. I have witnessed countless instances of Board members who have gone far above the call of duty to advance an NWCA initiative.  Currently, the NWCA has a very dynamic Board of Directors and a tremendous president, Roger Reina, who have positioned our organization to thrive in the new millennium.    Since 1928, the NWCA has made tremendous strides in serving and providing leadership for the advancement of all levels of amateur wrestling with primary emphasis on scholastic and collegiate programs. The growing success of the All Star Classic, Scholastic National Duals, Collegiate National Duals, and various NWCA Coaching Clinics throughout the country have significantly increased the visibility of the NWCA throughout the country and have provided an excellent opportunity to showcase our sport's heroes and champions in each host community.    The NWCA has also taken a lead role in recognizing outstanding accomplishments in the coaching profession. We annually recognize national head/assistant coaches of the year at both the scholastic and collegiate levels. Further, we continue to recognize more individuals annually for coaching excellence awards, career wins, 25 year service awards, and meritorious service awards.    The NWCA has improved upon efforts to recognize wrestlers for outstanding accomplishments.  Each year, we honor outstanding scholastic and collegiate wrestlers for both their athletic and academic achievements.    Over the past four years, the NWCA has placed a heavy emphasis on coaching education.  Initiatives such as the weight certification programs are just the beginning of a long and prosperous future in the coaching education business.    Equally important have been our ability to establish solid relationships with community and national leaders who are committed to preserving participatory opportunities for wrestlers across the country.  We have really stepped up our efforts to promote the core values that wrestling develops to university presidents and athletic directors through direct mail campaigns. We have engaged very capable attorneys and political leaders in our efforts to combat the unintended consequences of Title IX."    TheMat.com: How has the creation of the amateur wrestling alliance served the NWCA and its coach members?    Moyer: "The Alliance brings significant resources to our organization that we would not otherwise have had.  Examples of resources are as follows:  in house production capabilities to cyber-cast and telecast our signature events; access to a state of the art web site that allows us to disseminate member benefits more efficiently, access to professional journalists that help us disseminate press releases; access to professional marketing people; opportunity to leverage our intellectual property so we can maximize sponsorship opportunities; and much more.  Essentially, through the Alliance, we can minimize administrative overhead and duplication of efforts and maximize the amount of revenue available to grow the sport."    TheMat.com: What kind of issues and projects are the NWCA committed for the future?    Moyer: "We would like to turn our focus primarily to coaching education.  We realize that there is only so much that a national office can do to promote amateur wrestling. Ultimately, we must empower our coaches to develop the necessary technical, tactical, promotional, administrative, and communicative skills so that we can entrench each wrestling program at the local level."    TheMat.com: What can wrestling coaches do to help make the sport of wrestling grow and strengthen?    Moyer: "Identify and cultivate key leaders and decision-makers both in their institutions and in the community. This requires an every day effort to increase the number of people who support your program. We have many great stories to tell in wrestling but we must do a better job in telling them to people who are outside the wrestling community (Rotary Clubs, Boy Scouts, etc.). People in the community must understand the important core values and discipline that is developed through our sport."    TheMat.com: How can the wrestling community help support college wrestling which has lost programs continuously in past decades?    Moyer: "The wrestling community can support the collegiate programs in several ways. You can financially support them specifically through endowment initiatives; you can take a crowd with you when you attend the collegiate matches; if you coach, be sure to get your entire teams out to the collegiate matches; communicate regularly with your congressman and senators on the importance of developing many of tomorrow's leaders through our great sport. We are always looking for financial support of our various Title IX initiatives. Call the NWCA office for more information."