Roger Chandler will replace Tom Minkel as MSU's head wrestling coach (Photo/Mark Beshey, The Guillotine) Roger Chandler will replace Tom Minkel as MSU's head wrestling coach (Photo/Mark Beshey, The Guillotine)

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Michigan State Athletics Director Mark Hollis has announced a coaching succession plan for the Spartan wrestling program.Tom Minkel, who has directed the program since 1991, will retire following his 25th season at Michigan State in 2015-16. Roger Chandler, who recently completed his 18th season on the Spartan wrestling staff and was promoted to associate head coach in 2011, has been named head coach designate and will assume the head coaching duties following Minkel's retirement. Chandler will become the ninth coach in the history of the program, which dates back to 1886 and has generated 25 NCAA Champions, 68 Big Ten Champions, eight Big Ten Championships and one NCAA Championship."I'm excited about the future of Michigan State wrestling," said Hollis. "We're thankful for everything that Coach Minkel has given to Michigan State and we're looking forward to celebrating his exceptional career in the sport of wrestling during his final season. It's also a year that affords Roger Chandler an opportunity to prepare for a successful transition."I had the fortune of being alongside Ron Mason as athletic director designate during his final months as athletic director at Michigan State (fall 2007), and I believe that experience was invaluable and helped me grow into my current position. Our men's soccer coach Damon Rensing also had the privilege of serving as head coach designate under Joe Baum, which has undoubtedly served Damon well as the program continues to flourish under his direction. I believe this speaks to the family atmosphere at Michigan State in preparing individuals to take over leadership roles. There are plenty of examples on campus and in the department where this model has been rewarding, including our President Lou Anna Simon."While they have worked together for many years, Roger and Tom are uniquely different individuals. This is Coach Minkel's team, but once the season comes to a close, we're going to give Roger every opportunity to be successful. We're going to take that celebration of Tom's career and push it into a new era of Spartan wrestling, with Roger leading the way."We're going to take the celebration of Tom's career and push it into a new era of Spartan wrestling, with Roger leading the way. I have high expectations for Roger to lead the program for the years to come.""I have high expectations for Roger to lead the program for the years to come. He has positive relationships with our student-athletes and also with young wrestlers and the wrestling community. Perhaps most importantly, he has learned how to do things the right way. I believe in Roger and his goals for the program, but we also need the support and commitment of the Spartan wrestling community to compete in the best wrestling conference in the country. With nearly 20 years of coaching experience, Roger has proved his selfless dedication to Michigan State wrestling, and I think the program will continue to benefit under his leadership.""As we enter Coach Minkel's 25th year as head coach of the Spartan wrestling program, we celebrate the contributions he's made to Michigan State University and the wrestling community," said Michigan State Deputy Athletics Director Greg Ianni. "He's been very creative in his approach to marketing his sport, especially in terms of the use of video and presentation at home meets. Many of the things he has done have been on cutting edge. I've always admired his passion for the sport of wrestling and respect his distinguished and incredibly accomplished career."I'm also excited about the transition of Roger preparing to launch his own program. He possesses great energy and intensity, and I love his enthusiasm and the way he interacts with the student-athletes. Roger has an incredibly bright future as a head coach.""I absolutely love coaching and I've thoroughly enjoyed my tenure here at Michigan State," said Minkel. "There's not a day I can't wait to get into the wrestling room and I certainly still have a passion for wrestling, but there comes a time when you sit with your wife and say `what's on our list that we haven't done yet and would like to do?' The decision to shift your life's direction is always challenging; however, I have some things in mind that I want to do with my life besides coach. It just felt like the right time. I'm looking forward to the change because it's going to be exciting to have more time with my family."The things that I'll miss the most are the relationships with the young men on your team. You go through the ups and downs, the challenges and successes, the failures and struggles, and it's tough, but you also get to build these great relationships through it all and have a significant impact on their lives."At the end of the day, it's really about helping a young man and making them a better person, a more disciplined person, a successful person, and I think if you talk to guys in the program who come back, invariably, wrestling had a dramatic impact on them. They learned to take responsibility for themselves, to challenge themselves in ways that they never thought they could, and strive for things they initially thought were out of reach. They come back significantly changed, significantly stronger, and better young men. It's an emphasis not only on the wrestling, but the importance of academics, the civic responsibility of being a good person, and taking ownership of your own life and not putting the blame on someone else. It's a marvelous sport and through our program, I know we've had a really positive influence on a lot of young men, and I take a lot of pride in that."Roger Chandler has been on my staff for 18 years; we have certainly worked closely together for a long, long time. His career goal is to be a head coach, and I feel very comfortable that he's totally ready to take over the position here. The next year will really be dedicated to making a smooth transition to Coach Chandler."Roger has certainly grown in the coaching profession after coming to Michigan State right after college. He has the essential qualities that you need as a head coach. He has a strong work ethic and possesses the fortitude and ability to stay motivated and focused. Secondly, he's an outstanding wrestler himself. I don't think at the collegiate level you can be an effective coach without being a great wrestler yourself, and he still has great technical skills in the wrestling room. Thirdly, you have to be able to teach and communicate with kids who are 18 to 23 years old. Roger is outstanding at that as well. There are also the administrative duties that come along with being a head coach, which he will no doubt handle effectively because he's organized and very detailed. He clearly has the skill set to be a successful head coach.""I'd like to thank Mark Hollis and the entire executive staff for giving me the opportunity to be the next head wrestling coach at Michigan State University," said Chandler. "I'm truly honored and excited that they have placed their confidence in me to lead the program into the future."I have been fortunate enough to be alongside Coach Minkel for the past 18 years. He has also given me the opportunity to observe and engage with other coaches from the Big Ten and across the country, which has provided valuable insight on how to lead a Division I wrestling program. I look forward to celebrating his final year as we honor all of his accomplishments that he has achieved during his tenure at MSU."