Palmetto HS in the Bradenton area is rapidly growing their program. Third year coach Alex Thomas is making sure of that. Coach Thomas is in his thrid year at Palmetto and his second year as their head coach. Coach Thomas said ” My roots are in SW Ohio with a lot of experience with Coach Jeff Jordan and the Graham program. I’ve brought that same attitude to our Wrestling room and we are developing some talented athletes”. Anyone who has had anything to do with Jeff Jordan and the Graham wrestling program definitely has a lot to offer, as Graham is one of the top teams in the nation year after year and has had guys like World Champion David Taylor come up through that school.
Coach Thomas hopes to pass on that winning mindset and work ethic to his Palmetto team and has numerous kids he’s looking at to help him. Sean Herlihy @ 120 won zero matches his freshman year and has done nothing but commit to getting better every single day. He has worked with Coach Thomas in countless private sessions as well as taken every opportunity to wrestle in off-season and attend countless camps/clinics. He is a Junior this year and ranked #9 in TheFloridaWrestlingRoom.com state rankings. According to his coach, “the improvement he’s made in a few short years is admirable”.
Jake Wyatt @ 138 started wrestling as a freshman, but unfortunately was ineligible the 2nd semester so he didn’t get much experience that year. Coach Thomas worked with Jake a lot and he had an outstanding sophomore season, falling just short of qualifying for State in a tough 2A Region 3 in Charlotte. This summer he has stepped up to a completely different level. He has wins over multiple top 10-15 kids and can beat anyone in the State at his weight on any given day. Coach Thomas fully expects him to place top 6 this year at State and compete for a State title his senior season.
Dastan “Dino” Chiketaev @ 190 is a beast and I’m told this kid is a coaches dream. Complete athletic freak who was starting middle linebacker and captain of the Defense as a Junior. He decided to quit football and pursue becoming Palmetto’s 1st State Champion in wrestling. He has attended every camp/clinic he possibly could this summer and wrestled at every open tournament that was available . Coach Thomas said “I fully expect him to make State finals this year and become our schools 1st State Champion for our growing program.”
Watch out for the Palmetto Tigers as they have some great leadership and are looking to make waves in 2A.