By MICHAEL BOYLAN
Sports Editor

The key to a successful season for the McIntosh Chiefs wrestling team will be patience.

Despite a preseason ranking of 10th in the state, the Chiefs have only one senior starting, Jerry Fochtmann (130), and are a very inexperienced team. It is projected that four freshmen will be starting every match.

“We will most likely take a beating early on because of a brutal schedule,” said Coach Marty Hutsell. “By January, the team should be wrestling good. They won't be making so many first year mistakes.”

The team is not without its bright spots. Sophomore Carlos Dinkins (125) and juniors Daniel Graham (119) and Eddie Smith (135) return this season. Each is a team leader and a top state wrestler. Dinkins finished fifth in the state last year in the 103 weight division. The Chiefs also get leadership and experience from juniors Michael Lee (160) and Bob Suter (215).

The rest of the team mainly consists of freshmen or first year wrestlers. Freshmen Andy Rendal and Ricky Smith will wrestle at 103 and 112 respectively. Smith is a talented wrestler, who should come into his own this season. Junior Brad Luce will wrestle at 140, senior Adam She, a first year wrestler, is battling freshman Josh Allison to wrestle at 145. Freshman Garreth Joseph will wrestle at 152, junior Brandon Thompson will wrestle at 171 and sophomore Phillip Metzger, a first year wrestler, will wrestle at 189. Erik Walton, a junior wrestling for the first time, will wrestle at 275.

The Chiefs competed last Saturday at Pope, taking on teams from Pope, Etowah and Lithia Springs. McIntosh lost all three matches, losing to Pope 42-31, Etowah 42-33, and Lithia Springs 45-27. The Chiefs got wins in all of the matches, Dinkins won all three on Saturday, but there are just some weights that will not win consistently for a while.

McIntosh will head to Cartersville Friday to face Woodland, Ringgold and Calhoun. Saturday, they will compete in the Northwest Invitational in Dalton. It will not be an easy season for the Chiefs, but sometimes those seasons can be the most fun.

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