WHEELING — The similarities are unmistakable. The facial features give it away to even the most casual observer, but the mischievous smile and invisible chip on the shoulder that somehow has a way of seeming animate, leave absolutely no doubt who Erick Brothers Jr. belongs to.
A former multi-sport standout for Wheeling Park in the 2000s, Erick Brothers Sr. has passed the same fire he competed with to his son. Only Junior is taking it to an entirely new level which is saying something, since his dad is a former Patriots all-stater.
“People always ask me if he is better than I was at this age,” Brothers Sr. said. “I always tell them the same answer when they ask. By the time he is finished, nobody will remember me.”
Brothers Jr. is on quite the trajectory when it comes to the sport of wrestling. A rising junior, Brothers is already a two-time West Virginia state champion and has spent the better part of his life traveling up and down the east coast in hopes of finding the best competition he can on the mat. He recently went a little farther west — Fargo, N.D., to be exact — to tackle his latest challenge.
Brothers Jr. wrestled his way to a third-place finish at 220 pounds in the United States Marine Corps 16U Greco-Roman portion of what is an annual nationals event. That cemented All-American status for Brothers Jr., who is also a standout on the football field. Wheeling Park has been sending wrestlers to the event for years, but it’s believed Brothers Jr. is the first to accomplish the feat.
“For me it was really just looking to place — that’s all I really wanted,” the younger Brothers said. “I knew I wasn’t too experienced and I didn’t place in freestyle, which fired me up even more.”
What’s all the more remarkable, is Greco-Roman certainly isn’t a specialty for most high school wrestlers, and that goes for Brothers Jr. as well. He had some training, but this was more about going out and seeing what you’ve got.
What he got was third place and an award for being the wrestler that achieved the most pinfalls during the event.
“For me, I was very optimistic about sending him because of the experience he would gain,” Brothers Sr. said. “We talked to a few people that had gone and they said it is a great time and he will enjoy it. So you fork over a little money and he goes to North Dakota State University for 10 days and gets to pal around with 20 kids from West Virginia.”
“I was very optimistic, but he surpassed any expectations I had.”
But that freestyle event was tough to swallow on a number of levels. First and foremost Brothers Jr. was up big on his blood round opponent when the unthinkable occurred. He made an uncharacteristic mistake and it proved to be fatal, as the opponent earned a pinfall in the final minute. Making matters worse, for the first time that either could remember Brothers Sr. wasn’t right there to offer an instant hug, an encouraging word or a piece of advice.
“He called me after that match and it was heartbreaking for me. I’m sitting 1,200 miles away at Figaretti’s watching on my phone,” Brothers Sr. said. “It’s the first time I hadn’t been there when he was competing.
“He’s lost before, obviously. But I wasn’t there to give him a hug and tell him I was proud of him.”
But what’s that old adage about it taking a village to rage a child? That holds true here, and Brothers Jr. is blessed with support in spades. Not only does he have mom and dad, but there’s an entire local wrestling community in his corner.
“We just feel that we have the best coaches around. EBJ gets the pleasure of wrestling Division I and Division II All-Americans every day,” Brothers Sr. said. “W
ith coaches like Justin Goneau, Brian Leggett and Clay Tucker wrestling you every day, you have no choice but to get better, “We’ve been blessed to have Todd Shelek at our side since Erick was 4. With Todd and I running the Wheeling Wrestling Club, the transition to Wheeling Park wasn’t much of a change. Todd has been a huge impact on my son’s life and pushes him to the max every day.”
Colleges and universities are taking notice. Brothers Jr. has begun to receive interest across all levels and the family is preparing to set up visits to several schools. “We’re going to give him a couple weeks off but then we get right back at it,” Brothers Sr. said. “But he got invited to the Walsh Jesuit Ironman in December so we are going to have to work a couple days a week, even during football season.”
“I’ve talked to him a little bit about it, and D-I schools are great but they are not for everybody. That’s why we want to get on some campuses so he can find out what he likes.”
College is two years down the road. Brothers Jr. still has more high school story to write, and if he has his way there is only one way for it all to end. “That is what I’ve been shooting for since Day 1 — that is my goal,” the younger Brothers said of the prospect of becoming a four-time state champion. “I want to do that and I want to go to Virginia Beach and place.”
“My real big goal is to be the best wrestler to come out of Park, but the important thing is that I’m remembered as a good, respectful person.” That last part puts that mischievous smile right back on the face of Brothers Sr.
“Me personally, and this is what I get. Even some coaches that went to Fargo with him thank us for raising a great kid,” Brothers Sr. said. “They said ‘you and his mom are doing a great job.’ His mother and I are separated but we work very hard to raise the best kids that we can.”
“I’m happy that Erick has been able to juggle everything. His mother is a big stickler on the grades, and so am I. “We push that. We want our kids to be great people, not just great athletes.”
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