New Notre Dame wrestling coach Rocco Mansueto.Notre Dame has a new wrestling coach, with former University of Tennessee at Chattanooga assistant Rocco Mansueto stepping in to replace legendary veteran John Mullin.
It wasn’t necessarily time but rather timing that led to the change, one urged by Mullin, who has been part of the Irish wrestling tradition as an athlete or coach for the past 40 years.
“It was an unusual year in that we had several faculty positions open. I happened to find out that Rocco was available and, more than that, that he had his master’s degree in educational guidance,” said Mullin, knowing that Notre Dame uncharacteristically had two guidance department openings.
Mullin, who remains in his position as Notre Dame’s dean of students, had hoped to step back from wrestling with little fanfare, but the former state medalist – back when all teams competed in one division – has played a part in the development of the sport in the Chattanooga area and in Tennessee.
He has kept the Irish as one of the area’s most competitive teams. They finished no worse than fifth 10 times at state duals, including a three-year run of championships from 2006 to 2008 and a runner-up finish in 2009. He also produced a number of traditional state tournament medalists, more than a dozen of them claiming championships.