High School football in Forsyth County and around the state draws to a close on November 9th. While some athletes will extend their season into the playoffs, most will move from the football field to the basketball court or the wrestling mat. CummingHome.com looks forward to covering all the winter action around the county. We began our coverage with a visit to West Forsyth High School where we met with wrestling coach Dennis Stromie.

The West Forsyth Wolverines are the new kid on the block. It’s most scarce resource is upperclassmen. The school is devoid of seniors and has just a sprinkling of juniors. Being a new school, Stromie’s first challenge was obtaining wrestling mats. His second challenge, filling the two new Dollumar mats with wrestlers is an ongoing process.

There are 14 weight classes in wrestling. The lightest is 103 pounds. The heaviest is 285 pounds, with 12 weight classes in-between. If Stromie is to field full JV and varsity teams, he’ll need to find 28 starters in all shapes and sizes. At Thursday’s practice, there were 21 kids on the mat with plenty of room for more. But help is on the way! Additional Wolverines will find their way to the mat after the last football game on November 9th against East Jackson. If Stromie has patience, next year will bring a large freshman class that will include some of the 90 member strong West Forsyth youth wrestling program. The future for West Forsyth’s wrestling programs is bright, but Stromie isn’t looking past his current season that begins with a tournament on November 21st at North Cobb.

Stromie comes to West Forsyth after a 22-year tenure at Parkview High School where he coached two of his teams to state championships. Wrestling is an individual sport where athletes complete for individual championships, but at the end of the tournament, the team with the most individual wins is the winner. According to Stromie, every athlete who endures the season is a winner.

“Its just you and the other man on the mat,” said Stromie. “I’ve seen some of my kids in impossible positions. Everyone in the gym might have given up on them, but they didn’t give up on themselves. Sometimes it’s just a matter of who wants it more. It’s all about character. Talent doesn’t have a lot to do with it. The kids that do this figure out they can do anything else life throws at them.” Stromie laughed. “After wrestling, everything else seems easy.”