The San José State club wrestling team is stepping onto the mat with renewed momentum, working to build the program into one of the strongest teams on campus.
New head coach Daniel Borrego infuses the team with fresh energy and competitive spirit.
“Well, I’ve always been kind of involved in coaching,” Borrego said. “About two years ago, I moved out here and I saw that the position was open at San José State.”
Borrego moved to the Bay Area about two years ago and was hired as the head coach this past August.
He took over after co-head coaches Alexis Santana-Quintana and Isaiah Palomino left the program after the 2024-25 season.
Nathan Engelbertson, president of the club wrestling team, is optimistic about Borrego. “He’s been a great addition to the team so far,” Engelbertson said. “We’re super happy with him, but we’re looking forward to getting all of our members ready for competition.”
350 schools have dropped their wrestling programs and SJSU cut its NCAA Division I wrestling program in 1989, according to SFGate.
SJSU does not give any financial support to the team.
Engelbertson highlights the benefit of wrestling in college, where wrestlers can enjoy the sport without the intense pressure to compete.
“I think the important thing to maintain as well is these kids are also pursuing a college education,” Borrego said. “It’s important to put their academics ahead of the extracurriculars.”
SJSU wrestling is enjoying a rebirth as its club team was revived in 2001, which allows wrestlers to continue their careers, according to SFgate.
Borrego wants to instill in student-athletes the lessons of resilience, perseverance, and handling both wins and losses.
“I think the big thing is retention,” Borrego said. “You have a lot of interest in kids that may have wrestled a lot, kids that may have never wrestled, and so it’s just getting everybody up to speed.”
SJSU club sports compete against other colleges not just in the Bay Area, but across California and sometimes at national events, according to the SJSU club sports webpage.
Borrego said to overcome these challenges by maintaining a focus on academics and ensuring the program supports the overall development of the students.
Engelbertson said that because wrestling is such a rigorous sport, a lot of people tend to stop wrestling after high school.
“It’s kind of hard to do it right out of high school. A lot of people, even after college, are just done with wrestling,” Engelbertson said.
SJSU had a total of 28 wrestlers on the roster last year, according to its roster webpage.
First-year Christina Zhou discusses her hopes and expectations for the wrestling team under coach Berrego’s leadership.
“He’s a pretty good teacher,” Zhou said. “He shows a lot of the moves very clearly and explains them also very clearly.”
SJSU club teams compete against colleges in the Bay Area, across California, and sometimes at national events, according to spartanrecreation.com.
Berrego said the tight-knit community in wrestling and how it helped him get noticed for the position at SJSU.
“I had applied, wrestling itself is a small, tight-knit community and everybody knows everybody,” Borrego said.
Engelbertson said that the club provides wrestlers with the opportunity to continue doing the sport they love.
He also expressed satisfaction with Coach Borrego, stating that he has been a great addition to the team.
He also noted that Coach Borrego will help teach new team members how to wrestle and leverage his knowledge of the sport.
“We’re also looking forward to teaching all the new people how to wrestle through him, because he’s pretty knowledgeable,” Engelbertson said.
Former SJSU wrestler Jim Lucas was the man who brought the wrestling program back. He was coaching high school wrestling when multiple students asked him to restart the program, according to SFGate.
After graduating, he spent some time as an assistant coach at San José State before stepping away from coaching for about 20 years.
When his son started wrestling in middle school, he got back into the sport and later took the Harbor High job, where the team went on to win its first league title, according to SFGate.
While teams are student-led and responsible for managing their own fundraising and success, they receive guidance and support from the Club Sports Coordinator and staff.
Zhou hopes that Coach Borrego can help her improve her skills and is hopeful that she can reach state or nationals.
“Some people are going to state and nationals”, Zhou said. “I hope that people can improve and help each other and stuff.”
Borrego also emphasizes that success in life is not always about winning but about maintaining a positive attitude and working towards one’s goals and also hopes that these lessons will translate into various aspects of the students’ lives, helping them succeed in their careers and personal endeavors.
The Spartans take part in local tournaments and compete in the NCWA Western Conference.
“I think it’s really important that sometimes you win in life and sometimes you lose in life, but as long as you can kind of keep your head up and keep working towards whatever goals you have set will be set in life,” Borrego said. “I think more than anything else, there’s a lot of lessons that get translated from wrestling into whatever careers or whatever perspective, things that they want to get into.”
