Kurt Howell
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | American |
| Born | 1967 or 1968 (age 57–58) |
| Education | Clemson University St. Cloud State University |
| Weight | 126 lb (57 kg) |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Wrestling |
| College team | Clemson Tigers |
Kurt Howell (born 1967 or 1968)[1] is an American former wrestler and coach. He was a four-time Delaware state champion at Newark High School and later was an All-American at Clemson University. After his competitive career, he served as a high school coach and developed 19 state champions. He was selected for induction to the Delaware Sports Museum and Hall of Fame in 2025.
Biography
[edit]Howell has two brothers who also competed in wrestling: Dicky and Brad.[1] After watching his brother at the Newark YMCA, he began wrestling at age seven and "started winning" in events in fifth grade.[2][3][4] At age 12, he started weightlifting, and in 1982, won two wrestling gold medals at the AAU Grand Nationals and one at the National Junior Olympics.[1][5] Later that year, at age 14, he won the U16 World Schoolboy Tournament in his weight class in the freestyle event.[5][6]
Howell attended Newark High School and as a freshman in 1983 went undefeated and won the state title in his class, at 98 kilograms (216 lb).[6][7] He remained undefeated and won further titles in 1984, 1985 and 1986, at 105 pounds (48 kg), 112 pounds (51 kg) and 119 pounds (54 kg), respectively.[6][8] In addition to his state titles, he was also a four-time winner of the Blue Hen Conference championship and was a three-time MVP of the state tournament.[6][4] Although most high school wrestlers at the time fought "20 or 25 bouts a season", Howell noted that he was sometimes fighting over 100 bouts a year and winning nearly all of them.[3] He finished his high school career as one of the most decorated wrestlers in Delaware history with a perfect record of 108–0.[4][9] At the same time, he won the Greco-Roman World Schoolboy title in 1984 and was also selected to the national high school all-star team.[6][10]
Howell competed in college at Clemson University on a wrestling scholarship, where he battled injuries during his collegiate career.[6] He compiled a record of 23–6 as a freshman and was named the school's outstanding wrestler as well as the second-best freshman nationally by the publication Amateur Wrestling News.[11] He redshirted as a sophomore and then compiled a record of 24–10–1 as a junior, placing third at the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) tournament; he later competed at the NCAA Tournament and finished one point away from eighth, which would have made him an All-American.[12] He was an alternate for the U.S. World Cup team in 1989 and in 1990, won the ACC championship in his weight class (126 pounds (57 kg)).[13][14] In his final year, 1991, he placed eighth at the NCAA Championships and thus became an All-American.[15] He concluded his collegiate career with a record of 100–22.[16] After graduating from Clemson, Howell attempted to qualify for the 1992 Summer Olympics in the Greco-Roman discipline, but lost in the Olympic trials to Dennis Hall.[17] He was named an alternate for the Olympics but did not travel to the games.[18] Later that year, he competed for the U.S. at the World Cup but was defeated in the finals.[19]
Afterwards, Howell became a coach, starting as a graduate assistant at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota.[20] He later returned to Delaware in 1998 as the wrestling coach at Indian River High School.[2][21] He moved to Smyrna High School in 2004.[2] He served as Smyrna's coach for 14 seasons and led them to five team state championships, as well as coached 19 wrestlers who won a combined total of 29 state championships.[22] He stepped down as Smyrna's coach in 2018 and was inducted into the Delaware Wrestling Hall of Fame the following year.[6][23] He was ranked 85th on The News Journal's 2023 list of the "125 Greatest Coaches in Delaware History".[24] In 2025, he was selected for induction to the Delaware Sports Museum and Hall of Fame.[25]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c Peter, Carolyn M. (April 14, 1983). "Wrestling weights". The Morning News. p. 81 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c Allison, Jon (November 16, 2005). "Brothers wrestle to the top". The News Journal. p. 146, 147 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b Hughes, David (February 5, 1984). "Wrestler Howell has grip on stardom". The Morning News. p. 46 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c Zabitka, Matt (March 13, 1986). "Wrestler Kurt Howell ends a 108-0 career". The Morning News. p. 96 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b Hughes, David (January 6, 1983). "Howell mighty mite on mat". The News Journal. p. 36 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d e f g "2025 HOF Inductees". Delaware Sports Museum and Hall of Fame. March 10, 2025.
- ^ Tresolini, Kevin (June 19, 1984). "Howell never lets up". The Morning News. p. 11 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Howell makes it 2-for-2". The News Journal. February 28, 1984. p. 31 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Tresolini, Kevin (February 13, 1986). "No. 100, and Howell!". The News Journal. p. 39 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Tomashek, Tom (March 17, 1986). "Kurt Howell comes to grip with success". The News Journal. p. 20 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Wrestler Howell rated nation's No. 2 freshman". The Morning News. May 10, 1987. p. 42 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Tresolini, Kevin (July 22, 1989). "Howell barges in on Festival wrestling". The News Journal. p. 13 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Zabitka, Matt (August 24, 1989). "Newark wrestler named alternate on World Cup team". The News Journal. p. 93 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Tomashek, Tom (March 22, 1990). "Clemson's Howell sets his sights on national mat title". The News Journal. p. 27 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Area Sports Shorts". The News Journal. March 17, 1991. p. 37 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Walter, Andy (March 17, 2018). "Wrestling will still be a big part of Howell's life". Delaware State News.
- ^ Tomashek, Tom (May 28, 1992). "Mental errors floor wrestler". The News Journal. p. 98 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Zabitka, Matt (May 28, 1992). "Mental errors floor wrestler". The News Journal. p. 98 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Zabitka, Matt (March 18, 1993). "Howell takes position in Minn". The News Journal. p. 103 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Walter, Andy (March 15, 2025). "Hall of Fame inductee Howell a winner as both a Newark wrestler and Smyrna coach". Delaware State News.
- ^ Murphy, Ed (December 23, 1999). "Oh brother, Caesar Rodney rolls". The News Journal. p. 32 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Myers, Brad (April 13, 2018). "Smyrna's Howell honored by state wrestling community". The News Journal – via archive.today.
- ^ Myers, Brad (March 14, 2018). "Howell steps down as Smyrna wrestling coach". The News Journal – via archive.today.
- ^ Tresolini, Kevin (August 6, 2023). "Best Of The Best". The News Journal. p. C1, C3, C4, C5 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Tresolini, Kevin (March 12, 2025). "Delaware Sports Hall of Fame to induct 9 new members. See who will be enshrined". The News Journal – via archive.today.
