Rookie Coach Takes Over For Legendary Coach Tom Magnani

The 2010-2011 Hills East T-Bird wrestling team is led by rookie Head Coach Bill Davey.  Coach Davey is an incredibly exciting and vibrant young coach.  I had the pleasure of sitting down with him to discuss his background, his experience, and most importantly, the Hills East wrestling team.  His enthusiasm spilled from every pore as we spoke.  

Barr: Not many people outside of the "Grappling World" know Bill Davey; can you tell us a bit about you?  Where did you go to high school and college?  What coaching experience do you have?

Davey: I graduated from Smithtown High School in 2003.  I wrestled all four years in Smithtown’s varsity lineup.  In my junior year, our team had a great deal of success.  We were runners up in the Suffolk County Championship Tournament. 

After high school, I attended SUNY Cortland, where I graduated in May 2007 with a degree in Physical Education.  I am now working toward my Masters Degree in Health Education at Hofstra University.  

Since graduating from Cortland, I have had many opportunities to coach wrestling.  My first coaching position was as the Junior Varsity Coach at Smithtown East.  I had the pleasure to work with David Cummings, who was my high school wrestling coach.  Last year, I had the opportunity to coach in the Half Hollow Hills School District at High School West under Mike Patrovich and Mike Lupa.

Barr: You come from an amazing wrestling lineage.  Tell us about the Davey family.

Davey: Where do I start?  Yes, the Davey family has been involved in wrestling for a very long time.  I have spent most of my childhood in a gym.  Every winter, someone in my family was wrestling.  We spend many months supporting my cousins competing or my father coaching.  It was always comforting as a wrestler to know that entire family was in the bleachers (or in my corner) encouraging me.

Wrestling has helped us connect together.  There has not been holiday or a family gathering that goes by that is does not revolve around wrestling in some way or another.  Everywhere I go, I always seem meet someone that has a connection to my father, an uncle, a cousin, or a relative of some kind that has some wrestling connection.  Essentially, wrestling has only made my family larger and stronger.

Barr: This is your first year as a varsity head coach, and you are replacing a legendary coach in Hills East history.  What is that like?

Davey: I have had support and guidance from many people, which has made the process a little easier.  I have enjoyed the challenge of “learning the ropes” as a first-year coach.  It is exciting to lead a program and to continue to build on past traditions and success.  Replacing Coach Tom Magnani has definitely been a challenge.  Magnani had developed many lasting impressions among the boys.  He has created a tradition of excellence that will be a difficult task to match.

Barr: How hard has it been to put your own methods into place to make this your team?

Davey: This has been one of the most difficult challenges I have faced since joining the Thunderbird program.  My philosophy and methods are built on dedication and discipline.  Having an entire team conform to these ideas is just about as hard as winning a county title; and I know these boys want that!  We have experienced great success thus far and have shown improvement since the beginning of the season.

Barr: Who do you have on your staff this year, and are there any holdovers from last year?

Davey: On the staff with me this year is Coach Andrew Tuorto.  This is Andrew’s first year with me as an assistant coach.  Also returning to the staff is Coach Michael Marino.  Coach Marino has been part of the Hills East Wrestling Program for the past four years now.

Barr: Who have been the standout wrestlers thus far?

Davey: The team as a whole has had a great start this season.  We won the Doc Fallot Memorial Duals at Hampton Bays and placed 10 wrestlers at the Sprig Gardner Tournament at Mepham.  Two of the remarkable senior wrestlers are DeShawn McNeil and Anthony Abidin.  DeShawn was runner-up in both the Sprig Gardner Tournament and the Hills East Tournament.  Anthony Abidin was champion at both the Sprig Gardner Tournament and the Hills East Tournament.  Look for both Anthony and Deshawn to finish at the top of the podium at our county tournament in February.  Others who have contributed to a successful season thus far are sophomores Josh Sycoff and Matt Haenel, juniors Cory Jones, Armand Touhamy, and Rami Saad-El-Din, and seniors Nick Terzi and Manny Caballero.

Barr: Who have been the hardest workers?

Davey: We have one of the hardest working groups of boys that I have coached in a while.  They are all looking to improve and push themselves to their limits. Some noteworthy wrestlers have been Joe Longo, Josh Sycoff and Manny Caballero.  I admire their positive attitudes and determination and think it is important that they lead this team as role models.

Barr: What do you need to return Hills East to a wrestling power?

Davey: For many years, Hills East was a dominating force in League III and in Section IX.  I believe the team is a step or two away from being the wrestling power that it was in the past.  It will take an all-around effort to accomplish this. It will require hard work from all of the members that make us a team.  Wrestlers must strive for the best during the season and also in the off-season.  It also means building our youth program.  The youth program encourages young kids to learn the fundamentals and begin having fun with the sport.  Another key factor is having the support from the community so that the wrestling program can continue to grow, strengthen and improve.  Having the support of everyone in the Half Hollow Hills area will make it easier on the boys to work harder and encourages the sport to grow.

Barr: Tell us a bit about the youth program that you are working with Coach Patrovich on?

Davey: I have been working with Coach Patrovich in our youth program for the past two years.  It is called the Thundercolts Youth Wrestling Club.  The club’s goal is to introduce the sport of wrestling to children in second grade to sixth grade.  It is offered to anyone interested in learning the great sport of wrestling.  We host an hour-long practice two nights a week, for about 10 weeks.  The program teaches its wrestlers about fundamental wrestling skills, physical fitness, discipline, agility and hard work.  This club is a great first step for anyone interested in wrestling.

Barr: Why is that important?

Davey: The program is important because--as I said before--a successful youth program now makes for a successful high school program in the future.  I think it is important that all athletes and their families understand that most successful sporting programs are traced back to the “building blocks” forged in a youth program.  I know from my own experiences that youth wrestling breeds success.  Growing up, I went to Smithtown’s Kid Wrestling Program twice a week and then at least one other night I traveled to another town's club.  These experiences taught me the skills of wrestling, but more importantly, taught me how important dedication and discipline was to an athlete.  

Barr: Any last words?

Davey: I look forward to building on the success we have already had and capturing a league title.

There is no question that Coach Davey has the enthusiasm to make the T-Birds into a contender.  Good luck to him and the rest of the T-Birds.