[Spiny_Norman]

Looks like Lorenzo Norman is transferring out. So Stanford will retain 3 of 4 of the wrestlers who entered the portal.

I received an email report from Coach Ayres. I am sharing excerpts since it illuminated a positive impact of AD and alumni leadership (at least from the perspective of one coach). The bolding is mine. 

They say March comes in like a lion and out like a lamb. From my seat in the program, it came in like a lion and went out like a rabid honey badger on steroids that hadn’t eaten in a week.

For those not keeping up with the program, or college wrestling, somewhere around the last weekend in March we had three of our returning All-Americans let us know they were going to enter the transfer portal: Nico Provo, Tyler Knox, and Hunter Garvin. We also had NCAA qualifier Lorenzo Norman enter the portal. Daniel Cardenas had his degree as well and could have entered, but he stuck it out and chose not to go in.

April was a crazy month. The guys were taking visits to other schools, and back on the Farm we were trying to figure out how to keep them here. Fortunately, we were able to keep Provo, Knox, Cardenas, and Garvin.

Churchill once said, “Never let a good crisis go to waste.” We certainly got the most out of this one.
 
First and foremost, the response from the athletics administration was amazing. In order to piece this thing together, we needed the department to step in in a big way, both with resources and with some major decisions that had to be made quickly. Former Stanford football player and current athletics executive team member Shayne Skov became our point person, and without him, along with the individuals leading this department, we would not have retained these wrestlers. 
 
I affectionately refer to him as Coach Skov now, as he was in the trenches with us, trying to do whatever he could to solve this issue.
 
Throughout this year, the culture inside the athletics department has seemingly grown stronger and stronger under the new leadership. Several seasoned coaches who have been here a long time have said this is the most cohesive the department has ever felt.
 
That is easy to say when things are going well.
 
The real test comes when something difficult lands on your desk and there is no easy playbook. Our situation tested that culture in real time. We needed urgency. We needed creativity. We needed people to care enough to lean into a complicated situation and help us find a path forward. They did. And because they did, Stanford Wrestling is in a much stronger position today.
 
The second group we could not have done this without was the Stanford wrestling community, which consists of our alumni, fans, and friends. Having such an accomplished alumni base, coupled with the quality of people who live in the Bay Area, allows us to work with a community of incredibly smart, talented, and resourceful people. They stepped up in a brobdingnagian way and were instrumental in helping navigate the situation.

[Spiny_Norman]

Looks like Lorenzo Norman is transferring out. So Stanford will retain 3 of 4 of the wrestlers who entered the portal.

I received an email report from Coach Ayres. I am sharing excerpts since it illuminated a positive impact of AD and alumni leadership (at least from the perspective of one coach). The bolding is mine. 

They say March comes in like a lion and out like a lamb. From my seat in the program, it came in like a lion and went out like a rabid honey badger on steroids that hadn’t eaten in a week.

For those not keeping up with the program, or college wrestling, somewhere around the last weekend in March we had three of our returning All-Americans let us know they were going to enter the transfer portal: Nico Provo, Tyler Knox, and Hunter Garvin. We also had NCAA qualifier Lorenzo Norman enter the portal. Daniel Cardenas had his degree as well and could have entered, but he stuck it out and chose not to go in.

April was a crazy month. The guys were taking visits to other schools, and back on the Farm we were trying to figure out how to keep them here. Fortunately, we were able to keep Provo, Knox, Cardenas, and Garvin.

Churchill once said, “Never let a good crisis go to waste.” We certainly got the most out of this one.
 
First and foremost, the response from the athletics administration was amazing. In order to piece this thing together, we needed the department to step in in a big way, both with resources and with some major decisions that had to be made quickly. Former Stanford football player and current athletics executive team member Shayne Skov became our point person, and without him, along with the individuals leading this department, we would not have retained these wrestlers. 
 
I affectionately refer to him as Coach Skov now, as he was in the trenches with us, trying to do whatever he could to solve this issue.
 
Throughout this year, the culture inside the athletics department has seemingly grown stronger and stronger under the new leadership. Several seasoned coaches who have been here a long time have said this is the most cohesive the department has ever felt.
 
That is easy to say when things are going well.
 
The real test comes when something difficult lands on your desk and there is no easy playbook. Our situation tested that culture in real time. We needed urgency. We needed creativity. We needed people to care enough to lean into a complicated situation and help us find a path forward. They did. And because they did, Stanford Wrestling is in a much stronger position today.
 
The second group we could not have done this without was the Stanford wrestling community, which consists of our alumni, fans, and friends. Having such an accomplished alumni base, coupled with the quality of people who live in the Bay Area, allows us to work with a community of incredibly smart, talented, and resourceful people. They stepped up in a brobdingnagian way and were instrumental in helping navigate the situation.