Attention all wrestling fans: Did you enjoy wrestling during high school and do you want to further your wrestling career? Henry Ford Community College is your chance! Due to a high demand in southeast Mic+higan, Coach Grant Mackenzie of University of Michigan Dearborn is starting a National Collegiate Wrestling Association (NCWA) Wrestling Club for HFCC in the coming fall 2013 semester. HFCC and UM-Dearborn students will practice together and travel to the same tournaments.
Grant Mackenzie started the wrestling club at UM-Dearborn in 2010. In the past three years, Mackenzie has received online interest from close to 100 prospective athletes. Some student athletes have issues with the strict academics record UM-D requires. The goal for the Wrestling Club at HFCC is to attract local wrestlers to begin taking classes at the community college. The students can take part in University of Michigan’s Bridge Program and transfer to the university after completion of 24 credits at HFCC to continue wrestling.
NCWA was made to fill the whole in the post-high school wrestling community. A number of universities and institutions have lost NCAA wrestling programs due to budget cuts and governmental legislation. This association helps to construct programs below the student services and recreational sports departments of universities.
The objective of the club is to promote and teach wrestling to the student body. Involved students will be taught the rules and objectives of the sport and compete in tournaments at other schools. There are currently ten NCWA Wrestling Clubs in Michigan. If the club succeeds at HFCC, the members will be able to attend the Great Lakes Conference in Belleville, Illinois and the national tournament in Allen, Texas.
All student athletes must pay a $35 fee to begin practicing and competing. The Hawks and Wolves Wrestling club will be practicing off-campus at Detroit Jiu Jitsu Academy on Michigan Avenue from 3-5pm Monday through Thursday. Practice starts Tuesday, October 1, 2013. Student athletes must be enrolled in a minimum of six credit hours to join.
Participants must fall into one of the 11 NCWA weight classes at 125, 133, 141,149, 157, 165, 174, 184, 197, 235, or 285 pounds.
“Henry Ford Community College is an excellent place to start an NCWA Wrestling Club because of the school’s location. Now high school-level wrestlers within 30 miles will have the opportunity to continue their wrestling career while taking the next step forward as well as receiving an education,” says Coach Mackenzie.

For more information, you can go to www.ncwa.net or email Coach Mackenzie at grantmackenzie@mac.com. To keep up to date on club information, “like” the team fan page on Facebook: Hawks and Wolves Wrestling Club.