As found on Rutgers University website, below is Scoot Goodale’s bio. Learn about this coach’s career:
“The winningest coach in program history with 183 career victories “On the Banks”, head coach Scott Goodale has made Rutgers wrestling into one of the top teams in the country since he took over the program on July 31, 2007.
With the help of associate head coach Donny Pritzlaff, assistant coach Anthony Ashnault, director of operations Joe Pollard and volunteer assistant coach Kyle Kiss, the Scarlet Knights have produced two individual national champions, five individual conference titles, 15 All-Americans in the past eight seasons, multiple All-Americans at the last five NCAA Championships, and since 2009, have earned two top 10 finishes and nine top 25 finishes in the NWCA Division I Coaches Poll.
Despite the challenges presented by the COVID-19 Pandemic, wrestling managed another historical season in 2021. Rutgers closed the season with three All-Americans in the same year for the first time in program history, as Sebastian Rivera (fourth), John Poznanski (fourth) and Jackson Turley (eighth) all earned All-America honors at the 2021 NCAA Championships in St. Louis. Along with two-time NCAA qualifiers Michael VanBrill (149) and Billy Janzer (197), RU produced 13 victories at nationals en route to a 13th-place finish with 37.5 team points.
Under Goodale’s watch, RU has two individual national titles (Ashnault & Nick Suriano in 2019), three national finalists, 15 All-Americans, five conference champions (four Big Ten, one EIWA), 80 NCAA Championship bids, 32 Big Ten Conference Championships placewinners and 42 placewinners at the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA) Championships. The program has tallied an impressive 183-79-1 dual meet record during his 14 years “On the Banks.”
The success of Goodale’s teams has resulted in one of the top home environments in the sport. Competing at the RAC, the Scarlet Knights have finished within the top five in national attendance over the past five seasons, which includes a 4,292 average in 2019-20 – good for fourth nationally. RU has also secured 3,000-plus season ticket holders over the past two campaigns and recently hosted a successful Big Ten Championships at the end of the 2019-20 season, which drew 20,000 fans to the RAC over a two-day period.
The wrestling program also trains at one of the top practice facilities in the country – the RWJBarnabas Health Athletic Performance Center. Opened in 2019, the state-of-the-art facility lives right next to the RAC and features three regulation practice mats, a 30-person team locker room and offices for coaches and support staff.
The Jackson, N.J., native took over the Rutgers program following an impressive seven-year stint as head coach at his alma mater, Jackson Memorial High School. In seven seasons, Goodale compiled an overall record of 155-16, leading his squad to the top ranking in the state in 2006 and 2007.
The legendary Jersey high school wrestling coach was inducted into the South Jersey Wrestling Hall of Fame on Nov. 7, 2009.
Goodale was named the New Jersey State Coach of the Year three times, while also earning District 21 and Region VI Coach of the Year accolades three times during his tenure with the Jaguars. Goodale coached four New Jersey State Champions and five New Jersey State runner-ups, along with 16 additional state placewinners. In total, he has coached a total of 41 District 21 Champions and 10 Region VI Champions. Goodale led his teams to two Group IV State Championships, as well as four Central Jersey Group IV Sectional titles. Each season Goodale spent with Jackson Memorial, the Jaguars were crowned District 21 Team Champions, as well as winning four Class A-South Shore Conference titles. During the 2005-06 season, the Jaguars finished ranked No. 10 in the country. The following year, Goodale and the Jaguars improved that performance, finishing the year ranked seventh nationally. In every year Goodale was at Jackson Memorial, he led his team to a top-10 finish in the New Jersey wrestling polls.
Prior to being named head coach at Jackson Memorial, Goodale served as a top assistant for the wrestling program, while also working as the offensive coordinator for the football team. During his time with the Jaguars football squad, he was a part of three state championship teams.
On a national level, he spent 12 years as the Junior and Cadet State Team Coach for national wrestling tournaments held in Fargo, N.D. Following the 2005-06 season, he served as the head coach for Team New Jersey at the Junior National Duals.
Goodale wrestled for Lock Haven University in Pennsylvania, earning his bachelor’s degree in Health and Physical Education in 1995. He then went to New Jersey City University where he earned a certification in Special Education in 1997. As a collegiate wrestler, Goodale made three trips to the NCAA Championships, as well as placing second at the Eastern Wrestling League (EWL) Tournament twice in his career. During his time with the Bald Eagles, the team was ranked as high as ninth in the country. Goodale finished with 99 wins at Lock Haven.
Goodale and his wife Lisa are the parents of Shelby and Zach, and reside in Toms River. Shelby is currently on the Rutgers University dance team, while Zach is set to begin his first collegiate season for the Scarlet Knights’ football team.
All-Americans under Goodale
| Year |
Wrestler |
(Place) Weight |
| 2021 |
John Poznanski |
(4th) 184 |
|
Sebastian Rivera |
(4th) 141 |
|
Jackson Turley |
(8th) 174 |
| 2020 |
Nicolas Aguilar |
(HM) 125* |
|
Sammy Alvarez |
(Second Team) 133* |
| 2019 |
Nick Suriano |
(1st) 133 |
|
Anthony Ashnault |
(1st) 149 |
| 2018 |
Nick Suriano |
(2nd) 125 |
|
Scott DelVecchio |
(6th) 133 |
| 2017 |
Anthony Ashnault |
(6th) 141 |
|
Ken Theobold |
(7th) 149 |
| 2016 |
Anthony Ashnault |
(4th) 141 |
|
Anthony Perrotti |
(8th) 165 |
| 2015 |
Anthony Ashnault |
(8th) 141 |
| 2014 |
Anthony Perrotti |
(8th) 157 |
* All-America laurels awarded by the NWCA due to cancellation of 2020 NCAA Championships
Past Accomplishments
Though the 2020 NCAA Championships were canceled due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, Rutgers still secured another banner season in 2019-20. RU finished with a winning dual record for the 13th consecutive season under Goodale, produced five national qualifiers, secured two NWCA All-Americans (Aguilar & Alvarez) and hosted the 2020 Big Ten Wrestling Championships at the RAC.
The 2018-19 campaign was the best in the program’s 89-year history, as Rutgers recorded its first Top 10 finish at the NCAA Championships with its ninth-place result on March 23, 2019 in Pittsburgh. The performance was highlighted by individual national titles for Nick Suriano (133 pounds) and Anthony Ashnault (149), as Goodale was named NCAA Tournament Coach of the Year.
Ashnault and Suriano both flourished under Goodale’s guidance, as the duo also claimed individual conference titles at the 2019 Big Ten Championships in Minneapolis. Ashnault finished his historic career as the program’s all-time wins leader with 123 victories and was a 2019 Hodge Trophy finalist with an unblemished 32-0 record. In his second season “On the Banks”, Suriano wrestled to a 29-3 record and defeated the No. 1 seed (Daton Fix, Oklahoma State) and the No. 2 seed (Stevan Micic, Michigan) en route to the 133-pound national title.
In dual action, Rutgers finished 2018-19 with a 12-6 mark and a 5-4 record within the Big Ten – the third winning league record since it joined the conference in 2014-15. The overall dual mark included three victories over ranked foes – No. 10 Wisconsin, No. 19 Princeton and No. 20 Purdue.The 2017-18 season was another historic one under Goodale, as Rutgers produced a then-best 11th-place finish at the 2018 NCAA Championships in Cleveland. Six Scarlet Knights combined for 19 victories and 42.5 team points, which included the program’s first national finalist in Suriano (125), as well as a sixth-place finisher in Scott DelVecchio (133).
The program earned multiple All-Americans for the third consecutive year in 2017-18. During that dual campaign, RU collected eight wins, including victories over four ranked foes, and added its best finish at the Midlands Championships in its history with its second-place result. Rutgers finished 2017-18 ranked 19th in the final coaches’ poll, while six Scarlet Knights closed out the season ranked in their respective weight classes by FloWrestling.
During the 2016-17 season, Anthony Ashnault (141) became the first three time All-American in program history when he finished sixth at the 2017 national championships in St. Louis. Ken Theobold also appeared on the podium at 149 in 2017, giving the program back-to-back seasons with two or more All-Americans for the first time ever.
In 2014, the program earned its first All-American since 2002, as 157-pounder Anthony Perrotti finished eighth at NCAAs. Perrotti closed his career on the national podium at 165 pounds in 2016 in front of a local crowd at MSG, becoming the third two-time All-American in RU history.
The Scarlet Knights finished the 2016-17 dual campaign with a 12-5 record, which included an undefeated home slate (6-0) and 6-3 mark in Big Ten Conference action. The six conference wins were the most since Rutgers joined the league in 2014, while RU concluded its dual season ranked within the top-25 for the sixth time during Goodale’s tenure.
Rutgers also hosted the historic “Battle at the Birthplace” this past season, in which it defeated rival Princeton, 19-16, in front of 16,178 fans at High Point Solutions Stadium on Nov. 19, 2016. The event drew the second-highest crowd in NCAA dual history.
The 2015-16 season was undeniably the most successful in Rutgers wrestling history. The Scarlet Knights sent all 10 weight classes to the NCAA Championships for the first time and finished 15th in the nation. Ashnault won the Big Ten title at 141 pounds to become Rutgers’ first ever Big Ten champ, as the squad wrestled to a fifth-place finish at the 2016 Big Ten Championships.
RU (16-5) closed the dual season ranked No. 10 in the final USA Today/ NWCA Coaches Poll, defeating seven ranked opponents and three in the top-10, culminating with an 18-15 win over No. 7 Lehigh in the NWCA National Duals Championship Series.
Rutgers’ national prominence soared to new heights in 2014-15 in its first season in the Big Ten Conference. The Scarlet Knights tallied a new single-season attendance mark and posted the sixth-best attendance total (18,877) and average (2,697) in the nation, according to a report released by Roby Publishing.
RU ended its inaugural Big Ten Conference campaign No. 21 in the nation in the USA Today/NWCA Division I Coaches Poll after a 14-7 campaign that featured a pair of ranked wins and five NCAA Championships selections.
Goodale had his first grappler breakthrough on the national scene in 2013-14, as 157-pounder Anthony Perrotti became the program’s first All-American wrestler since 2002 by placing eighth at the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in Oklahoma City. Perrotti made NCAA Championships history on his consolation run, recording the second-fastest win by fall all-time at the national tournament with a 10-second pin over Oregon State’s Roger Pena.
After dropping his first match of the tournament, Perrotti rattled off four consecutive victories, including three in a row against top-15 opponents.
In RU’s (11-5, 7-2) final season in the EIWA before joining the Big Ten Conference, the squad finished third with 91 points at the 2014 EIWA Championships in Philadelphia. Three Scarlet Knights received automatic bids to nationals, while an additional at-large selection gave Goodale at least four NCAA qualifiers in five of his first seven seasons “On the Banks.”
The 2012-13 campaign was a successful one for Goodale and Co., as the Scarlet Knights returned to the national spotlight by ending the year ranked No. 25 in the NWCA/USA Today Coaches Poll courtesy of a 16-4 dual record. RU saw eight grapplers finish in the top eight at the EIWA Championships and sent seven wrestlers to the NCAA Championships in Des Moines, Iowa.
The 2011-12 season was marked by the NCAA success of senior Billy Ashnault, who finished one win shy of All-America status at 141 pounds. In total, five Scarlet Knights represented RU at the NCAA Championships in St. Louis, Mo. Rutgers additionally played host to one of four regional sites of the 2012 NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals, continuing to boost the Scarlet Knight grapplers’ national prominence.
In 2010-11, RU reached new heights as a program, finishing the year as a top-10 program, ranking ninth in the NWCA/USA Today Coaches Poll after posting a school-record 21 victories against only two defeats. Rutgers continued its strong season at the 107th EIWA Championships where it placed third as a team, tying the best finish ever for the program. Additionally, the Scarlet Knights saw nine wrestlers place at the EIWA Championships, including Scott Winston who took home the 165-pound bracket crown to become the first RU wrestler to capture an EIWA championship since Tom Tanis in 2001. By virtue of the strong EIWA and regular season, RU qualifed a school-record tying eight individuals for the NCAA Championship.
Rutgers finished at No. 22 in the final 2009-10 NWCA/USA Today Division I Team Coaches Poll after posting a 19-5-1 record. Seven Scarlet Knights earned NCAA bids. The No. 22 ranking was the highest in school history at that point. The Goodale-led squad put together a 15-match unbeaten streak from early December to late February which was the longest streak in school history.
In 2008-09, Rutgers broke the then-school record for victories in a single season with a 20-7 mark in dual action. Three Scarlet Knights earned NCAA Championships bids, which at the time was the most for RU since 2004.
The Scarlet Knights tallied an 11-7 overall record and 5-3 mark in Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA) action in 2007-08. Two wrestlers reached the NCAA Championships. Goodale maximized his strong high school coaching background and brought in a recruiting class ranked nationally by W.I.N. Magazine (No. 3) and InterMat (No. 4).
Goodale’s first recruiting class included InterMat’s No. 2 overall senior recruit in Scott Winston, InterMat’s 17th-best recruit in Trevor Melde and USA Wrestling’s 19th-best 171-pound wrestler in Dan Rinaldi. Goodale was a three-time New Jersey “Coach of the Year” at Jackson Memorial High School in Jackson, N.J., before becoming the sixth coach in Rutgers wrestling history.
SCOTT GOODALE YEAR-BY-YEAR COACHING RECORD
| Season |
School |
Record |
% |
Conference Record |
% |
| 2007-08 |
Rutgers |
11-7 |
.611 |
5-3 (EIWA) |
.625 |
| 2008-09 |
Rutgers |
20-7 |
.741 |
7-1 (EIWA) |
.875 |
| 2009-10 |
Rutgers |
19-5-1 |
.780 |
6-2 (EIWA) |
.750 |
| 2010-11 |
Rutgers |
21-2 |
.913 |
8-1 (EIWA) |
.888 |
| 2011-12 |
Rutgers |
13-8 |
.619 |
5-1 (EIWA) |
.833 |
| 2012-13 |
Rutgers |
16-4 |
.800 |
6-1 (EIWA) |
.857 |
| 2013-14 |
Rutgers |
11-5 |
.688 |
7-2 (EIWA) |
.777 |
| 2014-15 |
Rutgers |
14-7 |
.667 |
2-7 (Big Ten) |
.222 |
| 2015-16 |
Rutgers |
16-5 |
.762 |
5-4 (Big Ten) |
.555 |
| 2016-17 |
Rutgers |
12-5 |
.666 |
6-3 (Big Ten) |
.666 |
| 2017-18 |
Rutgers |
8-7 |
.533 |
3-6 (Big Ten) |
.333 |
| 2018-19 |
Rutgers |
12-6 |
.666 |
5-4 (Big Ten) |
.555 |
| 2019-20 |
Rutgers |
10-7 |
.588 |
4-5 (Big Ten) |
.444 |
| 2020-21 |
Rutgers |
0-4 |
.000 |
0-4 (Big Ten) |
.000 |
| Career Record |
|
183-79-1 |
.697 |
69-43 |
.616 |
| EIWA Record (Seven Seasons) |
|
|
|
44-11 |
.800 |
| Big Ten Record (Seven Seasons) |
|
|
|
25-33 |
.431” |
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