Gwinnett Daily Post

Photo by Brandon Brigman

Central Gwinnett hasn't had a lot of stability at the head wrestling coach position in recent years. Kyle Norred is hoping to stop that trend.

Norred became Central's third head coach in four years when he was officially hired last week.

"It's a great opportunity for me. It's my first head coaching job and I'm happy to be building the program," Norred said. "They've had two great coaches the last three years that have built a good foundation. I'm happy for this opportunity for sure."

Norred replaces Tom Bartollota, who coached Central the last two seasons, and Matt Brickley, who coached the team three years ago. Central is the fourth team to hire a new head coach this year, along with Josh Porter (Parkview), Steve Fairchild (Duluth) and Dennis Stromie (Wesleyan).

"We're excited about Tyler," Central athletic director Brian DeBerry said. "Kyle is young and he's ready to make the move as a head coach. We're fortunate to get him."

Norred, 25, is a 2004 Kennesaw Mountain grad where he was a four-time state qualifier. He placed sixth as a junior and fifth as a senior. Norred wrestled at Campbellsville University (Ky.), where he was a three-time NAIA national qualifier.

After college, Norred spent two seasons as an assistant at McEachern, but budget cuts forced him to return to college to pursue his master's degree. Norred coached last year as a graduate assistant at Campbellsville.

"The experience I got last year will definitely help me," Norred said. "I think going from high school to college helped me learn to deal with certain situations. It's a different level at high schools, but I can use a lot of the same drills."

Norred inherits a young team at Central. The Black Knights have just one senior, but feature a strong sophomore class. Central has two returning state qualifiers in junior Kasean Cobbs-Walton and sophomore Levion Lewis.

"I'm excited to get it going here," Norred said.