Today, Big Game Wrestling Club announced they will be moving into the Quad Cities as IAwrestle has learned that the Agoge Wrestling Club will undergo a rebranding to join the Big Game organization. The move will allow Big Game to expand their footprint in Iowa and offer both clubs exciting new opportunities.
For those currently at the Agoge WC, they will now have access to an accomplished Big Game Wrestling staff, and they will also gain access to new training partners. Both clubs will also have additional training opportunities with practices offered five days a week between the two locations.
Big Game owner Dylan Carew provided a comment to IAwrestle on the news:
“When it comes to the decision to expand this was pretty easy when you look at the body of work these coaches have done and how long Agoge has been at or near the top. We have considered this and talked for two years about it. I have known these guys our whole lives, competed against them, we were teammates in club wrestling and college wrestling, we have outstanding relationships with each other and our families outside of wrestling too. When your talking about working together for the ultimate goal of having the most success we can this move checks every box for both sides. When you look at the proximity of the two locations and the ability to bounce between the two we couldn’t ask for a better scenario. Big Game has been a major part in my adult life and ultimately someday way down the road I won’t be here and neither will my brother so this helps build our brand with partners who care as much as us! I look forward to watching this collaboration grow into a huge success and spending time coaching with my family and friends!”
Press Release from Big Game below:
Big Game Wrestling Club and Agoge Wrestling Club are proud to announce an expansion/merger that has been in the works for the past two years. Longtime and highly successful Agoge Wrestling Club will be rebranding and merging to join the Big Game Wrestling organization in a friendship and long-term relationship driven move. Two of the top clubs in the state will be joining forces to further grow the opportunities to succeed on and off the mat. Agoge WC led by 3 former Division I college wrestlers, Nick Trizzino (University of Iowa), Brody Grothus (University of Iowa), and Jacob Schwarm (University of Northern Iowa) will now join the Big Game Staff and serve as coaches at the Bettendorf and North Liberty locations, while helping with camps in our Montana location.
With this move and a combination these new coaches Big Game’s staff continues to be unmatched and add great depth to our organizations staff which includes, Dylan and Tyler Carew, Alli Ragan, Jessie Whitmer, JB Barnhouse, Al Billings, Skyler St. John, Alex Kanellis, Brandon Marshall, Zach Covington, Marshall Koethe, Ryan Osgood, Keegan Witbeck, and our Montana coaches Jarrett Degen, Alan Fried, Sawyer Degen, and Peter Schmidt. These new coaches come with having trained, and produced many state champions, national champions and collegiate wrestlers with various levels of success including some of the state’s best ever. With a talented young group of kids coming through, and leadership in our veterans we are excited to have so many training partners and great minds together. By sharing techniques and coaching styles we will continue to aim and push forward as the best and most unique club in the country.
Big Game Iowa with multiple locations will now offer practices Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. Big Game will offer athletes the opportunity to move between our locations, as our coaches will have multiple nights in each room. At each location throughout the week, while having shared mandatory practices together (weekly) athletes can expect to see different partners each night. With the addition of new coaches and athletes in our new Bettendorf location at The Summit Training Center, we plan to implement Big Game Strength with Landmine University founder and Big Game coach Alex Kanellis. With that said our new members, coaches and families will have access to the opportunities provided by our partners at Giving Back Outdoors. which provides our hunting, fishing and outdoor opportunities throughout the year.
With the completion of our 2021-2022 season ending with the USAW Junior and U16 nationals in Fargo, North Dakota we will have a website make over at Biggamewrestlingclub.com which will provide our new schedule and costs. Effective immediately this announcement shall serve as the start of a new era for our organization and beginning August 2nd kick off the new schedule. Our new location will offer scholarships, family discounts, and school club pricing to continue our efforts for a no kid left behind mentality. For immediate questions please contact us through our online contact forms, or at 319-936-5711.
This move is to provide the best training opportunities, most elite level coaching, maximize coach to athlete ratios, and produce the best athletes, men and woman we can on and off a mat. Big Game will continue to expand and grow as an organization. We are committed to excellence in our organization and believe that 20+ years of friendship, being teammates from kid’s club through college, coach to athlete relationships, and a mutual love for wrestling and the outdoors between these great people will lead to even more success for our members, coaches, and overall organization. We look forward to the future success of our Big Game Army and as always NOBODY does it like Big Game!