McPherson, KS – On Sunday, the Kansas Wrestling Coaches Association Executive Board met at McPherson High School to finalize the 2020 award winners who will be recognized Oct. 3 at the KWCA “Fritz Knorr” Awards and Hall of Fame Banquet in Salina.
“The Kansas Wrestling Coaches Association is excited to announce our 2020 State Wrestling Awards. This year we are honoring 50 individuals and organizations that go above and beyond the call in helping to lead, support, and participate in our great sport,” said KWCA President Doug Vander Linden of Burlington High School.
State Championship Awards
The Head Coach and Senior Wrestlers of the Year are voted on after the state championship finals by KWCA Members. Winning coaches will not be eligible for the award the following two seasons.
| HEAD COACH OF THE YEAR | ||
| 321A | Bill Johnson | Norton Community High School |
| 4A | Andy Albright | Chanute High School |
| 5A | Nathan Broeckelman | Great Bend High School |
| 6A | Travis Keal | Mill Valley High School |
| Girls | Damon Parker | Washburn Rural High School |
Hall of Fame
This year’s Hall of Fame Inductee is long-time Mulvane Head Wrestling Coach, Rick Langerot. Langerot, a native of Columbus, KS has been involved in the sport of wrestling for the past 52 years as a competitor, official, and 43 years as a coach. Through hard work and dedication, Langerot has helped start programs at Ft. Scott Community College where he wrestled (1972), Ft. Scott Junior Wrestling (1978), Mulvane High School (1989), Mulvane Junior High (1992), and Mulvane High’s Girls Team (2018).
Coach Langerot has won numerous Coach of the year awards at the District, League, Regional, and State levels. His squads have captured seven league titles, two regional crowns, and a 3rd Place finish at the 2001-02 5A State Championships. He finished his career with 361 dual wins, 172 state qualifiers, 62 state medalists, and eight state champions. His athletes also shined in the classroom with 37 All-State First Team Academic awardees.
Post-Season Awards
The following awardees were nominated by KWCA members who wrote personal recommendations touting the many great things that they have done to support not just their local programs, but the sport of wrestling as a whole.
| Award | Class | Winner | Organization |
| Assistant Coach of the Year | 4A | Clete Frazell | Chanute High School |
| Assistant Coach of the Year | 4A | Rusty Emling | Chanute High School |
| Team Support Personnel of the Year | – | Zach Zimmrman | USD 413 |
KOAM-FOX 14’s Jacob Lenard was also recognized for “Media of the Year” in wrestling coverage.
President Vander Linden closed with, “From head coaches, assistant coaches, senior wrestlers, administrators, the media, team support personnel, and our 2020 Hall of Fame inductee, Rick Langerot of Mulvane, we have an incredible group that we want to recognize for a job well done.”
The KWCA will be releasing the Team Academic and Junior/Senior Academic All-State awards tomorrow.
About the KWCA
The Kansas Wrestling Coaches Association is a non-profit comprised of volunteers concerned with Leading, Honoring, Promoting, and Serving Kansas Wrestling.