John Stutzman won’t lie about it. It was a challenge. 

A test to persuade his group of Bloomsburg wrestlers to buy in a season ago — Stutzman’s first in his second stint as the Huskies’ head coach. 

Difficulties occurred. 

A 1-14 dual mark. A 13th-place finish at the MAC Championships.

All in the past now as a key core of returners, including three 2025 MAC Championships qualifiers, bought into Stutzman’s challenges as the Huskies (3-4) wrestle Friday night at Buffalo. 

“The season has been unbelievable,” the Bloomsburg head coach said. “We have an unbelievable support staff as far as my assistant coaches, strength and conditioning coach, our academic advisement. Our guys have done a remarkable job of just developing, working hard, believing and buying in. It has been really fun with these guys. They are very goal-oriented.”

A young group, including 19 freshmen, drives a Huskies squad eager for their first NCAA Championships qualifier since 2023.

“They are just extremely fun to be around,” Stutzman said. “We have great leadership, so to be honest with you, we’ve been blessed and it has been a joy. It has been very, very fun to be around these guys.”

The holdovers from a season ago, Stutzman said, transformed into leaders.

Stutzman took over at Bloomsburg in August 2024 after 11 years leading the University of Buffalo. He didn’t recruit any of the Huskies from a season ago. Classes began 10 days after the school announced Stutzman’s hiring. 

“We have had a great group of guys that really brought in from that team,” he said. “Will Morrow comes to mind. Logan Baker comes to mind. Kade Kluce is doing a good job as we speak. Mason Rebuck. Tyler McCatharn. 

“We have had a great group of guys that bought in and that are continuing to buy into what we want to accomplish here. It is a testament to those guys because it was a challenge for those guys. They did it and now they are great leaders in and out of our program. So hats off to those guys.”

Alderfer Climbing

Eric Alderfer found himself in rare company this past weekend.

The redshirt junior 174-pounder went 4-0 en route to a Group B Cornell Invite title, then subsequently earned MAC East Wrestler of the Week honors. 

He became Bloomsburg’s first weekly MAC honoree since Alex Carida in 2022. 

Alderfer, a Lock Haven transfer, boasts a 10-0 record in his first season in Bloomsburg.

“Eric has been phenomenal,” Stutzman said. “Great attitude. Great mentality. A kid that is fun to be around. The guys love him. He is kinda a goofball a little bit. He is fun.”

Alderfer immediately impacted the lineup as one of six transfers, joining 184-pounder Ethan Ducca (Wyoming), 149-pounder Cael Raines (Buffalo), 197-pounder Coy Raines (Buffalo), 125-pounder Jace Schafer (West Virginia) and 165/174-pounder Braidon Woodward (Buffalo). 

“We have got a bunch of those (fun) guys,” Stutzman said. “Jace Schafer. Ethan Ducca. Those guys, it has just been refreshing for me as I get older in my career and just to be around those guys and their mindset and their parents. The support they bring.

“Just very refreshing. Rejuvenated me a little bit and now I’m ready to make a run at this thing again.”

Familiar Stomping Grounds

Stutzman felt it then and he feels it now. 

Sure, he spent more than a decade leading his alma mater, Buffalo, but the same school that offered him his first head coaching gig reconnected with Stutzman.

Bloomsburg just meant too much. Especially with plenty of family connections to the university and town. 

“When you are a young coach — and people told me this a long time ago — there is something about this town, this community and the university and the past that really values wrestling,” Stutzman said. “We just got some unbelievable local people in town that really want to see our program do well.”

Bloomsburg, though a Division II program for other sports, competes in the Division I MAC in wrestling. 

Stutzman compiled a 97-56-1 mark across his first eight seasons in Bloomsburg. 

Stutzman credited Bloomsburg athletic director Michael McFarland and Husky Elite Wrestling Club board president Dennis Siegmann as key supporters for the program. 

“Just so many great people down here that love wrestling and, hey, people liked wrestling in Buffalo, too, but it is different,” Stutzman said. “It is different down here. It is something unique. The small-town Division I wrestling mindset. It has been a blast to be back.”

Building With The Best

Avid college wrestling fans will recognize Stutzman’s “right-hand man.”

Stutzman hired five-time NCAA Championships qualifier Mitch Moore as Bloomsburg’s assistant coach a season ago. 

Moore won the 2019 ACC Freshman of the Year for Virginia Tech — which headlined his two seasons as a Hokie — before three seasons at Oklahoma and a graduate year at Rutgers. 

“Guys respect (Moore),” Stutzman said. “He works hard. He does it the right way. He has been my right-hand guy since the day I came on campus. He is learning day by day. He is learning to be a great coach. He is just developing as a coach, which I am happy to see. I am excited to see his progress.”

Former Husky Max Good and former Buffalo 174-pounder Ty Raines serve as Bloomsburg volunteer assistant coaches, according to the team’s website.

This season marks Ty Raines’ first as a coach and his brothers, Cael Raines and Coy Raines, followed in Bloomsburg after starting their careers at Buffalo.

“Respect (Ty Raines),” Stutzman said. “Love him. Workhorse. Lot of respect for him of what he does. What he brings from his family to his workload, his lifestyle.”

Watch Bloomsburg home duals live this season on Flowrestling.