Matt Myrvik named new Viking wrestling coach
Minneota’s new wrestling coach is no stranger to the school district or to the wrestling program. Tuesday night the Minneota School Board approved Matt Myrvik as the new coach replacing Joel Skillings, who resigned last month.
“I’m excited for the opportunity. It’s always been a life-long dream of mine and I’m extremely excited,” he told The Mascot. Myrvik, football offensive coordinator, former athletic director and assistant wrestling coach, will take over for the 2019-2020 wrestling season.
In recent years, Myrvik has helped with the youth wrestling program and now he’ll benefit from helping building the program from the ground up. He is also a former Minneota High School athlete and former quarterback of the football team.
The coaching staff had two other resignations this past year — Les Engler and J.D. Pesch.
However, Matt Buysse has committed to continuing on the wrestling coaching staff and Myrvik anticipates Kris Fier will as well. “I haven’t had the opportunity to finalize all that,” he said. Completing the coaching staff will be among his top priorities.
“Matt Buysse has been doing a good job of helping keep the wrestlers involved this summer.”
Myrvik anticipates Buysse will be his top assistant, but that will need school board approval. “Matt has done a great job and I think he’ll be a great coach someday. I think he’ll be a great asset and it’s nice to have somebody who is actually in the building.” (Buysse is the shop and ag teacher and FFA advisor at the school).
Former Coach Skillings also has lent a hand to help wrestlers get experience at Southwest State University this summer. Many of the wrestlers have also been in the summer lifting program as well. Myrvik left no doubt about what Coach Skillings has meant to him and what he’s done for the program.
“What Coach Skillings has done for this program — the passion, dedication and commitment for the student athletes off and on the mat means so much,” he said.
Myrvik added, “It’s not easy to step down after coaching your whole life. I have nothing but respect for him. My goal is to build off what has been created here. We’ve had a lot of good coaches and good wrestlers and we want to continue that. That will be our top priority.” While there is building to be done, Myrvik is happy with the wrestling talent he’s inherited.
“I think there is a very good base to the program, obviously you build off older kids, leaders ... maybe talk a few other kids into coming out.”
For the most part, Myrvik feels as though, “I’ve always been part of the wrestling program. I wrestled in high school.” “Maybe I wasn’t the best wrestler, but I developed a passion for coaching when I was young.”
Myrvik has been coaching on the youth level as a volunteer and an assistant coach for 25 years. “I started as a junior in high school in the youth program,” he said.
Drew Bouwman has headed up the youth program in the past few years and Myrvik expects he’ll continue with that program. His full time employment is at Borch’s Sporting Goods in Marshall and he’ll continue in that capacity.
“They’ve been supportive and I have flexibility in my work schedule,” he said.
For now, “We have to be able to adapt and find new ways of doing things. You have to adapt to the kids. We have decent numbers and it’s about maintaining those numbers,” said Myrvik.
Construction tour Superintendent Dan Deitte led some of the School Board Members on a tour of the current construction site.
“Most of it is on schedule,” he said. The new locker rooms are under construction and while the new lockers have arrived, they have not been installed. There will be a visitors locker room and the boys and girls will have separate locker rooms.
The practice gym is being painted and noise reduction has been installed. Most of the flooring has been done and new LED lights have been installed in the locker rooms and basement hallway.
Ground is also being broken for the new vehicle garage across from the school.
In addition, Supt. Deitte presented a four-year improvement plan.
“These are projects the building and grounds committee are recommending,” he said. He broke them up into a one-two-year plan and a 3-4 year plan.
Projects to be completed this year include: Stage backdrop replacement; replacing old student lockers near the offices; new parking lot and playground fencing replacement; practice field water hooked up and old chairs replaced.
Other one-two year projects are: new trees planted, extending the tile down the corridors of the school; elementary playground equipment replaced (the Supt. deemed as getting very old); parking lot/playground resurfaced; continuing the landscaping around the elementary school; new van purchased and a shop airhandler installed.
Items on the three-four-year plan include: Class entrance tile replaced near the 2003 gym; practice gym bleachers installed and the old tennis courts removed.
A multiple-year project is the replacing the old classroom doors with new ones.
Kudos for Supt. Deitte
Board Chairman Dawn Van Keulen read a report concerning the performance review of Supt. Dan Deitte. She said, “It has been a challenging year with all the construction.”
But she added, “Overall, as it has been the case in previous years, the board feels he’s been doing a great job and the board feels very fortunate to have him as superintendent.”