De La Salle proudly announces that James Torres has been chosen its new varsity wrestling head coach.
“We are thrilled to announce the hiring of James Torres as our next head wrestling coach,” De La Salle president Mike Zunica said. “James brings a stellar reputation throughout the wrestling community.
“He has a clear vision as he leads our Meteors wrestling program toward new heights and championship-level success.”
Torres brings a wealth of experience to De La Salle having coached at the University of Indianapolis, Menlo College, Montclair State University, George Mason University, Baylor School and also with the Women’s World Team among others.
“I’m excited about the rich tradition of De La Salle and the greater Chicago area,” Torres said. “I’m looking forward to the challenge. What I want to do is match the energy that our softball, boys soccer and baseball teams have brought lately and learn from those coaches.
“I want our kids to discover who we are. I want to have retention and draw to the program. I want people to understand wrestling and how to respect it. Our No. 1 priority is to respect ourselves and then the students will honor themselves. I want our kids to enjoy this and I want this to be a community affair.”
Other highlights of Torres’ career include serving as a former board member of the Beat the Streets youth wrestling program in Chicago, as well as coaching for the Tennessee, Virginia, California and Alaska USA Wrestling programs.
During his career on the mat, Torres wrestled for Indiana University and captained the Hoosiers in the 1998-99 and 1999-2000 seasons.
“My philosophy is pretty simple,” Torres said. “I want us to be the best version of ourselves every day. My one and only goal is to be better than we were yesterday. I want to hammer down the basics, so we make good decisions without thinking.
“I’ll stress repetition and the basics. I’ll also bring some philosophies that are unique and we’ll look to put people away and score early and often.”
In addition to his wrestling duties at De La Salle, Torres also will serve as the Meteors’ strength and conditioning coach as well as the assistant dean of students. Torres also will hold a wrestling camp this summer for grade school students who are interested in participating and learning more about the Meteor program.
“I’m very much looking forward to seeing all that James will bring to our wrestling program as well as our school,” De La Salle athletic director Tom White said. “I believe that James is someone with a great deal of knowledge, commitment and passion for wrestling and that he will enable our Meteors to thrive while attaining high levels of success both in the classroom and on the wrestling mat.”
