Jason Valek

Head coach Jason Valek is entering his eighth season coaching Newberry and his seventh at the Division II level.

He was hired in the summer of 2004 to be the first wrestling coach in Newberry history. In his seven years at the helm, Newberry has gone 126-33-2 (.789), including a record of 115-29-2 (.795) against non Division I competition. Valek has coached 47 NWCA and Division II National Qualifiers, 26 NCAA D-II All-Americans, three Division II National Champions, two Division II national runner-ups, an NWCA National Champion and three NWCA All-Americans.

The Wolves have five consecutive Top 8 National finishes, five consecutive Super Region I Titles, three Super Region I Coaches Awards, and four straight top 4 National duals finishes in just seven short seasons. Valek has raised the Newberry wrestling program into one of the top handful of teams in the nation.

In 2011-12, Newberry claimed its fifth consecutive NCAA Super Region I Championship highlighted by sophomore BJ Young’s national runner-up finish, a fifth consecutive Top 8 national finish and runner-up honors at the NWCA National Duals. Newberry went 17-1 under Valek's guidance. Eight wrestlers placed in the NCAA Super Region I Tournament with seven qualifying for the national tournament. Sophomores BJ Young and Taylor Knapp finished second and fourth respectively while Jake Elkins and Travis Sheehy took home seventh and sixth place honors. Valek garnered his second Newberry College Coach of the Year honor and has the wolves poised for a strong run with six returning starters, three returning All-Americans and the addition of Junior College National Champion Jeff Vesta of Neosho, Kans., and fellow JUCO All-American Kyle Folk-Freund from Nassau, N.Y.

He is the past president of the NCAA Division II Wrestling Coaches Association and has been elected to the Board of Directors for the National Wrestling Coaches Association while serving as a convention presenter on topics such as “How to Build a Sustainable Program from The Ground Up”

Valek is a 1998 graduate of Clemson University with a bachelor’s degree in sports management and Leadership Academy Graduate of Michigan State. He resides in Newberry with his wife Jennifer and daughter, Landen (3).

Valek Year-by-Year