A Penn State wrestling great will coach against his Alma Mater this fall.
No, not it’s not that Penn State wrestling great.
Nonetheless, Lehigh wrestling announced late Thursday afternoon that its added Vincenzo Joseph to its staff.
This is a big get for Lehigh.
Joseph finished his Penn State career 99-9, winning two national championships and making and wrote a heartfelt message to Instagram announcing his retirement in May 2024.
“As I do with everything,” Joseph wrote, “I put my heart and soul into this and I am truly sad that my time has come to an end,” he said. “With that being said, I am really looking forward to continuing on the other side to be the best coach and mentor I can be. Already very excited for the future, and I will carry on with a smile on my face.”
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.Joseph was unique in that, unlike many PSU greats, he didn’t compete for Penn State’s RTC, Nittany Lion Wrestling Club, but rather for Arizona State’s Sunkist Kids. Now, he’ll be running another RTC.
Joseph battled injuries over the past year before retirement while wrestling with the Sunkist Kids Wrestling Club. At the Olympic Trials in April 2024, he fell to Jarrett Jacques before forfeiting out of the consolation bracket.
From there, Joseph moved onto the University of North Carolina, where he became the RTC’s head coach and the college program’s recruiting coordinator.
Plenty of former Penn State wrestlers have gone into coaching. One of Joseph’s college teammates, Nick Lee, is now one of Cael Sanderson’s top assistants. But the most prominent one is David Taylor, who is entering his second season as Oklahoma State’s boss.
No date has been announced for Penn State-Lehigh this season, but historically, the matchup has been the rust weekend of December. So keep Sunday, Dec. 7, in Rec Hall on your calendar.
