"PASS ON WHAT WAS PASSED TO YOU"

For more than 20 years, grappling has been a central part of my life. My journey began when my high school wrestling coach convinced me to join the wrestling team. I went on to become a district champion and an All-State wrestler before discovering Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and mixed martial arts.

Although I won three amateur MMA fights, my true passion remained on the mat. While attending Southern Oregon University, I wrestled for three years under head coach Mike Ritchey and continued training in Jiu-Jitsu throughout the wrestling off-season.

My military career took me around the world, but I always found a way to continue training. During deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, I joined grappling clubs located on base. On my final deployment to Somalia, there was no established mat club, so I created one. What began as a small group of soldiers looking for an outlet soon became a team that trained together three days a week.

That experience helped me discover my passion for coaching. Grappling gave us a productive escape from the demands of deployment, while teaching allowed me to help others build confidence, discipline, resilience, and technical ability. From that point forward, I became committed not only to improving my own skills, but also to studying the sport’s most successful competitors and coaches so I could better communicate and teach their techniques.

I am currently a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt under Mac Danzig of Danzig MMA. Mac has had a tremendous influence on my grappling style, technical development, and approach to coaching. He also gave me the opportunity to sharpen my teaching skills and share my knowledge with the students at Danzig MMA.

As I continue building my own academy, my goal is to provide students with structured, effective instruction in a positive and demanding environment. I strive to make complex techniques understandable, help each student develop a style that works for them, and create a culture where people of all ages can grow both on and off the mat.

I remain grateful to Mac and Angela Danzig for their mentorship, support, and continued friendship, and I am proud to remain part of the Danzig MMA family.