Wrestling: Gentzle named P'burg head coach

Phillipsburg High School has a new head coach. 

Brad Gentzle, who served as an assistant under former coach Dave Post, was approved as the Stateliners' 13th head coach during Monday night's Board of Education meeting. He was approved by the school's Athletics Committee during its recent meeting.

Gentzle and longtime athletic director Tom Fisher did not return phone messages seeking comment on June 11, when Open Mike learned he was in line for the job.

P'burg enters 2021-22 sitting on 998 victories.

Gentzle, 34, who has proven to be a valuable asset as an assistant coach, was a two-time region qualifier and PIAA District 11 champion, and a Class AAA state qualifier in 2005 at Easton (Pa.). He went on to become an NCAA Division I qualifier at the University of Pittsburgh.

Gentzle, along with longtime middle school coach Tim Longacre, has been coordinating the 2021-22 high school schedule and the program's summer commitments since the arrests of Post and longtime assistant Scott Silvis for their alleged roles in a scheme to influence a tenure vote at the school.

Longacre, who will be an assistant on Gentzle's staff, along with former P'burg wrestler Jared Crouse, also applied to become the varsity head coach and was among just three to do so. Former Phillipsburg wrestling great and head coach Rick Thompson also applied for it.

"I didn't even get an interview. I'm disappointed," Thompson said on Monday morning. "I've always tried to do the best for P'burg. I wish Brad Gentzle the best of luck." 

Hunterdon Central coach Jon Cantagallo-Rohm is the only other person known to have shown serious interest, given his ties with Phillipsburg, where he resides with his wife, the former Jessica Rohm, whose father was longtime 'Liners football coach Phil Rohm, one of the most popular figures in that school's sports history.

But Cantagallo-Rohm confirmed this week that he was staying put at Central, where his teams have gone 125-30 overall, capturing three sectional championships to go with two Group 5 runner-up finishes. He's also coached 10 state medal winners in his seven seasons in charge.

"I love coaching, but I take pride in putting on the HC," Cantagallo-Rohm said in a text message exchange. "It goes far beyond wins and losses. My heart is at Central. I've invested a lot into the program over the last seven years. And the part that made my decision the easiest is that I have the opportunity to coach great kids."

Thompson, 66, the program's winningest coach with a mark of 268-54-1 in 15 seasons across three stints (1980-88, 1991-95 and 2003-06), made it known that he was interested in returning to a job that he never left under his own volition. He guided the 'Liners to 15 sectional titles, the most under any P'burg coach, and eight state championships (five in Group 3, three in Group 4), as well as six runner-up finishes. 

Brad Gentzle (Facebook)

Overall, Thompson's teams at Mountain High School (West Orange), Phillipsburg, Hackettstown, Voorhees, Franklin, Bangor (Pa.) and Bethlehem Catholic (Pa.) have gone 471-231-4.

Since Jan Dutt stepped down following the 1979-80 season, there have now been seven head coaches at P'burg and only two -- Jason Magditch (four seasons from 2006-10 and a Nazareth (Pa.) alum) and now Gentzle -- were not former Stateliners wrestlers.

Gentzle, a seventh and eighth grade Social Studies teacher at Pohatcong School in the Phillipsburg district, has never been a head coach, but he will certainly be a popular hire with current wrestlers and their parents. That and being able to keep continuity within the program no doubt made him an appealing choice. 

Gentzle, also known as just "Gentz," has done solid work with the P'burg lower weights over the years, including three-time state placewinner Brandon Paetzell, an All-American at Lehigh University in 2020.