Originally, I set up a time to talk with Coach Bovenzi and had separate, pre-planned questions about the APEX Wrestling Club and the RIT wrestling program. I wanted a write-up about both programs that highlighted each in its own unique way. That didn’t go as planned, and I’m glad it didn’t. Instead, I improvised within our discussion and decided that this was way bigger than I initially thought it was. And what I was able to retrieve from Coach Bovenzi made an impact on me in such a way that I wanted to reform this article and focus on Jason as a person, his club, and the Tiger wrestling program—all in one. It’s a compelling story worth telling, and I’m delighted to be the one doing it.

Let’s get the big news out of the way first: After 32 years at the Pittsford school district, Coach is retiring from physical education teaching following this school year. Therefore, he’ll be at RIT now as a full-time Head College Wrestling Coach. That is a huge deal—and Tiger Nation parents, student-athletes, the University, and the community should be very thrilled to hear that. Like Coach said himself, “I can’t wait to see what we can accomplish (as a program) when I’m able to be on campus all day.” If you thought RIT wrestling was a powerhouse now, let’s all just wait and see what it can become with a full-time Bovenzi running day-to-day operations while being present. But let’s back it up a bit.

Jason Bovenzi is a two-time National Champion wrestler—one title at St. Lawrence University and one title at Ithaca College. And from what my wrestling knowledge provides me, I believe only two other wrestlers have won national championships at multiple schools: Steve Mocco and Nick Suriano (but I could totally be missing some others). Coach has degrees in Sports and Leisure Studies, Health and Education, and Liberal Studies. But if those accomplishments aren’t impressive enough yet for you, just wait until I tell you all of his Hall-of-Fame inductions. Over the years, Coach Bovenzi has been inducted into the Greece Athena, Section V, St. Lawrence Athletics, NYS Wrestling Coaches, and the National Wrestling Coaches Association Hall of Fame. And there will be one-hundred-percent more awards and inductions to come. You wouldn’t know any of that by talking to the guy, though.

The year was 2000 when Jason Bovenzi and Bill Jacoutot launched the APEX Wrestling Club. It started as a two-day-a-week club, with one practice being on the east side of Rochester and the other practice being on the west side. During the first year, APEX had fifty to sixty participants. By year three? It was well over a hundred. Coach said to me that a crucial moment at that time in his life wasn’t just his teaching or coaching career—it was watching a Dan Gable clinic. “Watching the fundamentals and what’s easiest to teach was what I took away from watching Gable. I really listened to what he had to share with all of us who attended.” Jason and I then got into a conversation about how foundational, simple wrestling skills can take a wrestler very far, even at the highest level. Can they stop legs from being thrown in? Can they defend a leg attack? Do they have a leg attack of their own? Which hand engages first in the tie-up? You know, stuff like that. I then asked Jason how he sees APEX fitting into the larger Rochester wrestling community with all of the accessibility and competing organizations of today, and he responded with: “I like to teach and teach whoever wants to listen and learn—I love the sport and want to teach it. That is the best part of my day, and I love the kids who want to be here. That’s my passion.” APEX has even adjusted its prices over the years to accommodate and attract those types of young people to its club and mission. I could tell from his voice that Coach Bovenzi really meant what he said about coaching and wrestling being his passion.

Following the APEX chit-chat, we got into RIT Tiger wrestling, where Coach Bovenzi has been the head coach since 2013. I asked Jason that with RIT being such an academically prestigious institution, how does that shape the type of student-athlete that you are looking to bring into the program? “There are so many questions that I have to know before I can talk to them, and the reality is that they need to be able to get in. Most look at the price and get scared—nobody pays that full price. We have great financial aid packages and other opportunities that some may not even realize,” Coach said. He then brought up a term that I was not familiar with: co-op. Co-op (cooperative education) is a structured program where you alternate semesters of classroom study with full-time, paid work in your field of study. That integration really helps student-athletes with their collegiate tuition and life in general. I found cooperative education really interesting and a viable option for those who choose that academic path.

This was then the turning point of the interview; the part when I said to myself: okay, this guy not only knows what he’s doing and what he’s talking about, but people have to read this for themselves. I asked Coach what makes RIT such an attractive destination for a high-level wrestler who has other options at Division III, Division II, or even Division I. He instantly brought up his 2026 heavyweight National Champion, Josh Harkless. “Josh just won a national title and was a state finalist in the Pennsylvania AAA division. I started recruiting him before he even placed in the state. After his state finals run, D1’s started to reach out, and I just said hey, nothing has changed for us at RIT—you can win big matches here and also study at the highest level.” Josh ended up studying Aerospace at RIT. “Five years later, everything came true for Josh. Four-time qualifier, three-time All-American, National Champion, and a great career awaiting following graduation,” Bovenzi said. Coach then hit me with my favorite quote, phrase, lesson, whatever you want to call it, throughout the entirety of the discussion. He said (when seeking the right college fit): “A lot of wrestlers make strictly wrestling decisions and not life decisions—Josh made a life decision. You’re not making a 4-year decision, but a 40-year decision. It’s a decision that affects your future family that you haven’t even met yet. We attract those kinds of guys, and that’s our biggest selling point. Wrestling is awesome, but I value my education and career beyond wrestling.” It was such an astute way of thinking (and leading) that I couldn’t stop analyzing it myself for the remainder of our conversation.

My next question was whether the academic and technological culture at RIT translates well to wrestling. Coach replied: “Kids who excel in wrestling are analytical people. The way I approached wrestling is the way that our athletes approach education and wrestling. They take a look at everything in their life; it’s data for them to utilize. They apply it to everyday life and their wrestling.” And to piggyback off of that, Bovenzi said that the school really sells itself if they (the student-athlete) are academically motivated, when asked what he wants a prospective student-athlete to see that they couldn’t find at another school. “What could your life be if you came here—how does this degree propel me? That college choice is so important, you know. And all of those state champions who graduated from high school, where are they now? They go to Division I, and you never hear their name again. A lot of my student-athletes at RIT tell me how their high school buddies regret their college decision.” Similarly to Coach, I’ve heard that often from others and younger people as well.

We then got into the upcoming season and what’s to come. Besides Harkless, the Tigers have everyone else returning to the 2026-2027 roster. RIT will have multiple nationally ranked contenders, promising freshmen, and even a Division 1 transfer. “You’re going to have to put a good kid out there to beat us,” Coach said. The future sounds very bright for the Tigers. Bovenzi also added: “Success this season will be measured on how we handle those tough challenges early on and the lessons that come with that, and also how those lessons work for us at the end of the year when it matters most.” My last question for Coach Bovenzi was what the biggest misunderstanding of Division III wrestling is. But I’ll go first with this one; I totally underestimated not just the level of competition, but how difficult the Regional tournaments were to just qualify for Nationals. Jason had a similar response himself, saying that “it is a tough level of wrestling. It’s not Division I, but it’s very difficult to even qualify for nationals, let alone place.” He also noted that most wrestlers in his current program were the most talented kids on their high school teams. Division III is not what outsiders think it is—it’s challenging, demanding, and you have to be really good to just qualify. The real wrestling people and fans throughout this country know that.

So, what’s my takeaway from my time with Coach Jason Bovenzi? Well, he was one of the pioneers who set the tone for elite wrestling clubs throughout Western New York and the Rochester community; he will become a full-time Head College Coach very soon; he’s extremely passionate about teaching young people, coaching wrestling, and giving back; he speaks very eloquently and is proficient in recruitment, retention, and organizational management; and he recognizes his leadership role, what he (and the Institute) have to offer, and how he can help young people get where they want to go in not just wrestling, but life. Oh yeah, and that he’s a two-time National Champion at two different colleges.

Coach Bovenzi is a visionary—someone who sees the bigger picture and inspires others toward a shared outcome. For the readers out there who want it broken down simply? He, Coach Bovenzi, just gets it; he really does. Just before our conversation concluded, Coach asked me: “So, if I recruited you to RIT, would you have come here?” I told him that 17-year-old me definitely didn’t have the grades to do so. However, knowing what I know now at age 32, getting a hypothetical second chance at it, and after having the opportunity to listen and learn from the type of leader and person that Jason Bovenzi is? I think I would’ve made a life decision.