Scottie Boykin On Move To IMG Academy From Cornell
Former Cornell & Air Force Academy wrestling coach Scottie Boykin shares his thoughts his new role at IMG Academy and what led him to take the opportunity.
Video Transcript
Scotty Boykin.
What's going on?
Here we are, IMG Academy, and, it's real.
It's happening.
Yep.
man, how, how is, how have the first couple of months of, of coaching at IMG Academy been so far?
It's been good.
I actually moved here, like, the week after nationals, so it was a quick turnaround for me.
My orientation was, like, the next week.
So, nationals happened, got back, packed everything up into, like, a U-Haul, came down here.
My first day was, like, Aug- or not August, April 1st.
Had orientation, just kind of hit the ground running.
You know, got up to speed with everything.
Still figuring it out.
But yeah, no, it's been awesome.
You know, first kind of couple months were slow.
We don't have any kids right now, but I mean, this last month has been awesome with, with camps and everything.
I think this week is our biggest one.
But you know, it's just been continuous and it's a little bit, been a little bit different than what I'm used to, but you know, it makes me more hungry for when our guys get here and we can start to work with them.
I'm excited.
Yeah, different than what you're used to, and you know, I think most people know, but you know, you came here from Cornell, having coached there.
Yeah.
You know, you were at Air Force wrestling with Wyatt Hendrickson every day.
Yeah.
You've, you've been around.
You've been coaching at a really high level.
Yeah.
Compare, you know, th- this, where you're working with middle school and high school kids to- to those experiences of working with, you know, some of the, some of the top NCAA wrestlers.
Yeah.
I think, you know, in doing that, it's, it's only prepared me for this a little bit more.
You know, coming from the Air Force Academy where, you know, they're very hard nose, right?
Very physical with their wrestling, right?
And then being at Cornell where a lot of guys are funky, you know, we kind of tend to their styles a little bit.
A little bit more niche and everything too, but all, both styles I think that are, you know, that get you to where you need to be at the highest level.
And extremely grateful from learning from, you know, guys like Sam Barber, Joe Johnston, Chris Hileman, and then, you know, coming over with, you know, Mike, Kellen, Dave McFadden, and then, I mean, even before that when I was training, I was wrestling with Gabe Dean, Kyle Dake, Max Dean, Jacob Car teenagers like every single day.
So I've had a lot of looks, and I think that's, you know, where my hunger for coaching really started.
Just kind of taking in that knowledge.
You know, I came from Chattanooga, where a lot of times, like, I felt insecure about myself.
You know, I wasn't th- that big of a recruit.
I wanted to play football for a long time, so you know, I, I go to Chattanooga, end up doing pretty well, and then end up, you know, being blessed enough to wrestle post-collegiately and, you know, have all the experience and stuff, and then learning from all those guys that I mentioned, right?
I think it's just, you know, coaching is my passion.
I've loved it, and you know, I think it, it's kind of, you know, just kind of laid or made me, you know, where I am right now, right?
I wanted to end up coaching.
Obviously a cool pla- not really many cool places to live in the country with wrestling, right?
But when Florida came knocking, I was, I was super interested in that.
And you know, I think that I'm, I'm really excited to help mold these young men and, you know, eventually women to, you know, fulfill their college aspirations in World Olympic, you know, world even age level medals, right?
So, it, it's super exciting and, you know, I don't, I was very hesitant about it at first.
Stepping away from the college scene is hard.
But you know, I think that it was eas- it was easy enough for, you know, it to be this place, right?
I feel like I got handed the keys to a brand-new Lamborghini where, you know, they're successful at every sport.
You know, I, I feel like we can even learn from coaches.
You know, we had Derek Jeter talking, you know, to us a few hours ago, right?
And you, you just kind of pick their brains, and you know, football, basketball, baseball, soccer, tennis, right?
Like, everybody's got success, and it comes in their own way.
And you know, if, you know you're around it, you, you kind of learn from it as well.
So you know, it's just a fun opportunity.
You said something there that was interesting to me, that you know, you were, you were hesitant at first and then you felt like you got the keys to a Lamborghini.
I feel like that's, like, kind of so, like, kind of a theme- Yeah like, that I hear a lot with people just like, "I don't know.
I'm not sure," like, "I'm not sure if this is the right thing or if it's g- " And then all of a sudden when you realize what it is, everyone's like, "Oh, it's a no-brainer."
Yeah.
Wha- what was the process like for you in, in, in, you know, why were you hesitant at first, and then why was it a no-brainer once it was?
Yeah.
So I guess whenever I saw I was actually at the coaches' conference last year.
I saw, like, IMG was, looking, or the job search was, like, a director of wrestling.
I didn't really know what it was.
You know, eventually come to figure out Edoc gets it.
And you know, I c- I say, "Congratulations, E." Like, you know, "So you're director, like, are you the head coach?"
You know?
And he's like, "No, we're actually looking for one."
So, like, I was applying for the, the head coaching position.
And then come to find out, like, it, they wanted it right away, so I would've had to leave mid-season, right?
And at the time, I mean, you know, we had Simon Jackson, like, all these young guys that were doing really well, and I was working with, you know, guys coming up and recruiting with, you know, Jude Correa, Rocco Delligatta.
Like, those guys are hammers and like, ah, it just felt like I didn't want to leave them, especially in the middle of the year.
And I, I just felt, you know, Cornell is a place where I was, you know, if you would've told me in second grade that I was gonna be a, an assistant coach at Cornell, like, I would've been ecstatic.
It's, you know, an opportunity of a lifetime and, you know, thank you to Mike and Kellen and Dave.
Like, they, they were m- they made the experience great, and it's, like, that's r- the reason it was so hard for me.
I loved it.
I love everything about it.
And you know, just leaving those guys, it was just hard.
I didn't really know, obviously, with kind of how everybody else is right now, like, what's this gonna look like?
So I, I turned down the head coaching opportunity, and then moved on, you know, kind of was coaching a little bit.
And my best friend, one of my best friends to this day is the athletic trainer at NC State, so he knew Kevin.
And then, you know, it was about, it was the time that it was starting to snow and everything too, so you know, E- Kevin had my number.
We, we've been pretty good friends for a long time as well.
He's like, "Hey, what's the weather like in Ithaca?"
I was like, "Well, you know, it's 16 degrees and sunny."
And he would send me selfies, like, with the palm trees, like, "Oh, that sucks, man."
Like, you know, I was like, "Okay, like, you're getting my attention a little bit."
Um- And I told Mike, I was very open with the communication with that.
And it was kind of Mike's, you know, one-on-ones that we were kinda having back and forth.
I was like, "I mean, I really like this.
Like, I don't know w- what it looks like, moving forward."
But I mean, Mike was just like, "Hey, man, like, it's hard for us.
Like, it's an uphill battle with an Ivy League school, you know, with, with the no scholarship situation," right?
And, you know, it's just kind of, I don't know, with recruiting and everything too, it's kind of like if you're not willing to pay the $90,000 to go to an Ivy League school, right?
Like, a lot of people aren't interested, so we kinda have to get the guys that wanna be there, and it's just It was getting hard, and it was just an uphill battle.
And he was telling me, you know, like, he, you know, "I think this is a great opportunity where you would be a great fit."
Like, where kids are kinda stuck in their ways at the college level, right?
They're doing everything they do is kinda like fine-tuning a little bit.
The high school, you know, I've, I've picked up on this pretty quickly is, like, they're very moldable, right?
And especially the younger we can get 'em, get 'em into those good habits, I think that, you know, the more successful we can set 'em up for the future and hand 'em off to those guys, you know, in better shape, give 'em better opportunities.
So, you know, we just wanna give them the best opportunity they can to, to win their future.
So You mentioned, you know, being in an Ivy Le- Ivy League school where, you know, tuition can be a barrier.
Mm-hmm.
There's some challenges there.
You're also at the Air Force Academy where, you know- Yeah there's a service commitment.
Yeah.
So you're used to recruiting at places where there are some, some challenges.
And, and- Mm-hmm people bring up the, the tuition thing here.
Mm-hmm.
Have those previous experiences, like, helped you to be able to recruit and have conversations with- Yeah, for sure families who are worried?
Yeah.
For sure.
I- it's kind of like a little filter right away.
And I do think there are people out there, you know, that I mean, obviously there's a lot of private schools already that are, you know, 50, $60,000, right?
And it's just kind of understanding the investment.
Do you want everything here on IMG's campus, where you have sports training, where you have s- like ment- like mental Like, I, I think that's one of the biggest ones that as they're coming up that they need to understand is big time.
I think this sport is mostly mental, and understanding how, you know, it's, it's a game, it's a fun and game, but, like, you also need to be competitive with it, and understanding, like, it's not make or break, right?
And I think, you know, the difference in that is, like, it, it's an easy sell for me because I know it's a good product.
We have everything in-house versus like, "Hey, I can ask you to go to college," right?
Where you're already handed off, but then if you wanna come here, you know, at a, a prep school essentially, right?
You're getting everything paid for.
You don't have to travel, you don't have to feed your kid, right?
Like, they have everything in-house.
And on top of that, you have your built-in strength coach that's gonna get you ready.
I, I've met with him plenty of times.
He's, he's amped to work with these guys.
And you have everything in-house, and, like, there's education.
Like, ev- it's another question too that we get is just, like, the education piece.
It's like we had two guys, not obviously wrestling, but other sports go to academies, and then three go to the Ivy League.
So it's just kinda tailored to you and what you wanna do, right?
And, I, I think it's just like, I don't know.
It, it would be an investment obviously, but you gotta understand your return on the investment, right?
You gotta get value out of it.
I think that being in a good room, and then being a- around, like, a bunch of great coaches as well that have been at the college level, and top level, right?
It, it is very beneficial.
And I, I understand.
It's not gonna hurt my feelings, but I do think that it has prepped me for those conversations.
I don't think we're gonna get 'em all, but I mean, hey, like, let's just keep building, and get the exposure at first at what we need, and, and get people talking about how great it is.
And it'll start to sell itself.
What are you most excited about for this first year?
I just think the growth.
I'm excited to see everything kind of come into play a little bit, right?
We have a room, we have the guys, right?
I think it's all-encompassing and, you know, building the total athlete, right?
I Every kid that I've met on campus so far before wrestling has, has been like, "Hey, how's it going, sir?"
Like, don't even know these guys.
They're all well-mannered and everything too.
And I just think building them up to, you know, up to their standards, and I think getting the most out of themselves, right?
We're going to a few events.
You know, we're wrestling at the Baylor School, Valiant Blair, Super 32, Ironman, all those tournaments and stuff.
And we have a younger group, but I just think making an impact on those guys and making a splash, you know, i- is gonna be the biggest thing that I'm looking forward to.
I don't It's not gonna be easy.
You know, I We're college coaches.
Again, like, I think we know what we're doing, but you never know.
Like, I think we're gonna try to develop them the best we can.
No guarantees in life, but you know, I think just kinda making the splash out there at first and kinda get the ball rolling.
I do think that, when we do it, we'll get 'em as pre- p- best prepared as we can, send them out there.
You know, especially at, like, the open, right?
Get guys out there on the world team, right?
We had just had Julian Smith come back, double gold Pan Am, freestyle and Greco.
And, I'm, I'm just excited to kind of make the impact here on the front end versus, you know, kind of having the back end.
So this first year, you know, it's just kinda learning, right?
And, and putting our best foot forward, and then learning, right?
You know, kinda what we did right, what we did wrong, how can we adjust and move forward, and, and we have a great school that, that's willing to accommodate those things.
Yeah.
Well, we're excited for the, the first year too.
Mm-hmm.
And appreciate your time.
Yeah.
Anything else, Scotty, before, I let you guys get going on this next workout?
Yeah, no.
It's, Thank you guys for coming here.
I, I do think that, you know, look worth, it's worth looking into, right?
I, it's un- it's skeptical.
I was skeptical at first about it.
But you know, just coming down even for camps and, and breaking up maybe your, your winter and Ju- or winter and, you know, January, February, all that stuff, come down.
Check out the summer.
We'd love to have some camps out here, and you know, just show you, right?
It's just awesome.
And you know, don't, not trying to, like, step on any toes.
We just wanna, you know, create a great, friendly competition environment where, you know, the tide's gonna rise.
And, you know, I think that, you know, we're not gonna have the best guys all the time, right?
I think it's gonna spread out year to year, and I just want the competition to build, and you know, just make this pla- like this whole country, like, the best wrestling country in the world.
