Courtesy of John Harrison
John Fritz will always be a big part of Penn State’s wrestling history. He was a National Champion, a three-time All-American, a long time assistant coach to Rich Lorenzo and head coach for the Nittany Lions. As head coach, John coached a number of National Champions, numerous All-Americans and was named NWCA National Coach of the Year.
John, what are you doing now?
My title is Director of Commonwealth athletics and I help to coordinate the championships, eligibility, risk management and other aspects of the CCAC(Commonwealth Campus Athletic Conference). 14 Penn State campuses make up the conference and we sponsor 10 sports that serve over 1,000 student athletes; 9 Championships were held here at University Park. I am responsible for directing those championships and working with the athletic directors at each campus.
What are your best memories from the years you spent as a Penn State wrestler?
I have so many great memories from my years as a Penn State wrestler. Most of them are the relationships with my teammates and coaches. Many of us still keep in touch. In particular I remember a big win over Oklahoma when we had one of our top wrestlers out of the line-up. Another memory was getting stranded in a blizzard on the way to a Michigan State match. Half the team spent the night on the side of the road in a foot of snow. We had to go into our bags and put layers of clothing on to stay warm while the other half was stranded at a Ramada. Of course there are numerous Coach Koll stories. He once drove back from an Eastern Tournament in the wrong car and it was reported stolen. Winning the NCAA title is a special memory. Especially because I have so much respect for my opponent Pat Milkovich who was a 2x champ and 4x finalist–we were both totally exhausted after that overtime match.
My first exposure to John was when I was being recruited by Lehigh. We were taken to a house party; he happened to be there, and someone pointed him out to me. The first thing I noticed was that neither of us drank. Right there I felt this guy had at the least, discipline and honor. Our first wrestling encounter was in a dual meet at MSU my junior season. We tied 1-1. I learned from that experience that he was not intimidated by my record. My final meeting with John was in the NCAA finals in 1975 at Princeton University and I knew that we were going to have a brawl. I was a two-time NCAA Champion going after my third title, he was a returning 3rd placer. He beat me 3-1 in overtime. It was apparent that John exhibited to me the key attributes of a champion. He had great conditioning, tremendous courage and heart, never quit, was gutsy and kept his poise. When the match ended, I stepped back and applauded him because I knew two things: 1) We put on a great show for the fans, and 2) I knew I was not easy to beat. Our match is considered one the top 25 greatest NCAA finals of all time and I am honored to have been a participant.
former All-American Michigan State wrestler and two-time National Champion, Patrick Milkovich
What are your best memories from the years you spent as a Penn State coach?
Again these memories are too numerous to mention–I would have to name so many individuals that worked so hard and gave so much. I’ll try to single out a few.
- A team win over Iowa at Iowa in my last year as coach ranks right up there. Mark Janus pinned Wes Hand to win the meet–I never heard it so quiet in Carver-Hawkeye.
- Seeing John Hughes, Kerry McCoy and Sanshiro Abe win NCAA titles was very rewarding as was seeing Troy Sunderland and the class he showed in reaction to a controversial call in his second finals appearance.
- Dave Hart was also victim of a tough call yet he refused to let it get him down.
- One of the most memorable performances has got to be John Lange winning 7 matches in a row after losing in the 1st round to come back and get 3rd. That has to be one of the all time comebacks on any team.
- There were many performances by wrestlers who were not always 1st string, but gave their all every day and contributed greatly when they had the chance. Like the Justin Werts and Andrew Butvilles, etc.
How did you get started in wrestling?
I started in 4th grade at Holy Ghost School in Bethlehem (PA); members of my sister’s 8th grade class informed me of the team so I went to practice and competed in the CYO league. At that time we wrestled in our pajamas on a chuch balcony on horse-hair mats.
How has the Penn State wrestling experience impacted your life/career?
I can’t say enough about the lessons and values I learned from being involved with a great sport like wrestling. I feel wrestling teaches about persistence and hard work as well as anything. Being out there on your own knowing that you control your own destiny makes it extra special as does the amount of work–hundreds of hours for just 7 minutes. Yet anyone who has tried to go hard for 7 minutes knows how tough that can be. I also like the fact that with wrestling there is no extension or professional opportunities so you do it because you love it. Seeing wrestlers come into college, sometimes struggle, make some mistakes, yet continue to work hard and many times find success years after they have left impresses upon me as much as anything about the values that this sport teaches and the impact it has on us throughout our life.
I enjoyed wrestling for and learning from Coach Fritz. He has one of the most contagious positive attitudes that I have ever seen. It never mattered what kind of challenge an individual wrestler or the team was facing, Coach Fritz was always there and being supportive. His saying (and he stuck to it through thick and thin) was that “good things happen to good people.” One of the other things that Coach Fritz impressed on me is that you never, never quit because you are losing or because something is too hard. He always said, “It doesn’t matter how many times you get knocked down as long as you get back up again.” I am grateful to Coach Fritz for these and the many other lessons about wrestling and life in general that he taught me.
former All-American Penn State wrestler and current assistant PSU coach, Dave Hart
Coach Fritz was someone who gave his heart and soul to wrestling and more importantly the Team. He was someone that I was proud to have gone out on the mat with Penn State on my chest and give 100% for. He inspired you to give your all and expect nothing less than success for doing so.
former All-American Penn State wrestler, John Lange
How has collegiate wrestling changed since you were a collegiate wrestler?
This question is one of the toughest to answer because wrestling is constantly changing, yet it cycles around just like fashions. Techniques go in and out of style. I do think Champions from one era would be Champions in another era and that is what we should believe–they will do whatever it takes under the circumstances. Obviously, because of today’s transient society, kids have exposure to all kinds of world class athletes. Videos have really increased the flood of knowledge. Depth is better each year; when I wrestled we had a breather every now and then–now they’re all tough. Many tough wrestlers now don’t have the opportunity to continue in this great sport because of the proportionality rule which has greatly affected wrestling. High school wrestling is plentiful and stronger than ever, yet there aren’t many places for these kids to go. This is probably the thing that scares me most–that future youth may not get the opportunity to learn the great values this fantastic sport teaches. I just hope we can put a stop to the dropping of male sports and instead just continue to add opportunities for men and women according to the demonstrated need.
As a wrestler, John was a coaches’ dream, he was very dedicated to the sport of wrestling. I don’t think that another wrestler could be found who is more dedicated to the sport than John was as a wrestler. He worked extremely hard and was a heck of a competitor. John was also, without a doubt, one of the best assistant coaches in the country. He had a great personality and was an excellent recruiter in addition to having great technical knowledge of what it takes to be successful on the mat on one’s feet or from the bottom. He expected and demanded excellence and commitment.former All-American Penn State wrestler and head coach, Rich Lorenzo
What advice do you have for collegiate wrestlers?
You will learn more about life and how to persist and get through tough times by being a part of wrestling if you put everything into it– what you get out of it will be relative to what you put into it–in other words “you reap what you sow”.
Coach Fritz was like a father to me during my time at PSU. Coach Fritz was one of many people who I owe a great deal of credit for my successes. He taught me about wrestling, but more importantly about life and how to live my life as a good person. He always looked for what he thought was the good in a situation, and he often sacrificed himself to try to accommodate others. He is a great person and I am glad he is a friend.
former All-American Penn State wrestler and National Champion, Kerry McCoy
His energy and enthusiasm for Penn State Wrestling and to excel as a person are contagious. He drives one to be a better athlete, student, and friend!
former Penn State wrestler, Tony Bobulinski
So work as hard as possible no matter what the outcome–not all your goals may be reached, but if you persist you will learn valuable lessons that will help you be successful in any aspect of life.
Thanks John!
