Mike Ahern thought that officiating would satisfy his need to stay with the sport. It did, but it wasn't enough. That's why he got back into coaching.
Mike Ahern really enjoyed being a wrestling official.
He just needed something a little bit more within the sport.
“I need to be remotivated,” the 54-year-old Ahern said. “I missed the competition. That’s who I am. I’m at my best when I’m driven, when I’m fiery and ornery, when I'm working toward a goal.
“I wasn’t even thinking about doing this, but when I was told about the job, I got a surge of excitement. This is the perfect situation for me.”
That situation is in the coach’s corner, where he will lead the Audubon High School wrestling team this winter. He was approved as the new head coach by the school board on Wednesday night.
Ahern was the head coach for Sterling and Penns Grove before his last stop as head coach at Haddon Heights ended in 2016. He led the Silver Knights to sectional titles in 2001 and 2002 and has coached three state champions – Mark Manchio and Ivan Wiggins at Sterling and Alex Thompson at Haddon Heights. He also quickly turned Penns Grove into a conference champion.
"His resume speaks for itself," said Audubon first-year athletic director Chris Baker, who worked with Ahern in the Clayton Pubic School District. "He's a great fit for us and I think we're a great fit for Mike.
"We're getting a coach with a wealth of knowledge and experiences in the sport. He carries a ton of credibility in the wrestling community. If this is his last stop in coaching, I think he wants to put a stamp on it. "
Ahern replaces John Walsh, who stepped down over the summer. The Green Wave rose to great heights in recent years, winning their first conference title in 2023, advancing to the second final in 2024 and its first-ever victory over Paulsboro en route to a 22-win season last winter.
“I didn’t want to be involved in a rebuild, I’ve done too many of them before,” he said. “I wanted to be in a place where the community supports their kids. Of course, you want the team to be good, but it’s also about community and life experiences.
“I want to get these guys to peak at the end of the season. You look at college wrestling: Why is Penn State so good? Those guys always peak at the end of the season.”
Ahern said he’s not sure if any of Audubon’s wrestlers know who he is, but they will quickly learn about how passionate their new coach is.
“I’ve had to adjust my coaching style a little bit over the years, but don’t be fooled, these guys are going to work,” Ahern said. “The practices might not be as long as they were when I wrestled, but these guys are not going to stop moving when at practice.”
Ahern practices what he preaches. He’s a gym rat, hitting the weights at least five days a week, many times before going to his teaching job at Clayton High School.
Ahern, a 1989 graduate of Paul VI, was a standout during his scholastic days. A three-time district and three-time region champ, Ahern won 101 bouts with the Eagles and claimed 122 victories at Elizabethtown College. He was inducted into the South Jersey Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2017.
Giving back to the sport that has been a big part of his life, Ahern got into officiating. It was an unexpected move after he'd often clashed with the men in the grey shirts and red and green arm bands.
"It really gave me a different perspective, " Ahern said about officiating. "I really did enjoy it. It just didn't solve the itch that I had. I needed a little bit more."
Ahern said he's not surprised he was drawn back to coaching once again.
“It’s like those old rock bands, there’s always that final concert or farewell tour,” Ahern said. “I guess you could call this ‘The Hell Freezes Over Tour.'”
Tom McGurk is a regional sports editor for the Courier-Post, The Daily Journal and Burlington County Times, covering South Jersey sports for over 35 years. If you have a sports story that needs to be told, contact him by email [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter at @McGurkSports. Help support local journalism with a digital subscription.
This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Mike Ahern returns to the coaching ranks, takes over Audubon wrestling program
Category: General Sports
