The wrestling tradition at McCallie is tough to match. During the TSSAA era, the Blue Tornado have won eight Tennessee State Tournament Championships and six State Dual Meet Championships.
Individually, McCallie has produced more than 60 State Champions in the sport since 2000, including Cody Chittum, Christian Morris, Thomas Sell, Emory Taylor and Alex Whitworth in 2018. T.J. Duncan ’11 became the first wrestler in Tennessee to win five individual state titles.
Last season, Morris, Sell, Taylor and Whitworth each earned All-America status by placing among the top eight at the National Prep Tournament, the second straight year the Blue Tornado earned four All-Americans. As a team, McCallie finished eighth.
In state competition in 2018, McCallie placed second in the State Traditional Tournament and third in the State Duals. In 2016, the Blue Tornado earned runnerup status at both state tournaments.
The coaching staff is a who’s who in Chattanooga area wrestling. Led by first-year Head Coach Jake Yost, the staff combines nearly unbeatable knowledge, teaching skill and leadership in the McCallie wrestling room. Yost was a two-time Tennessee State Champion and claimed two Southern Conference championships at Tennessee-Chattanooga.
Mike Newman led the program since 2010 and will remain on staff as a veteran assistant. He was a standout collegiate wrestler at UTC. David Levitt ’94 won two state titles for McCallie and continued his career at Boise State. Tom Herring is also a two-time Southern Conference champion at UTC, wrestled at The Citadel and is a long-time coach in the area. Coach emeritus Gordon Connell has been an ambassador for amateur wrestling since the 1960s and is known throughout the world’s wrestling circles.
