Pariano Hires Brandon Precin to Coach NU Wildcats, He talks to Takedown

EVANSTON, Ill. — On Thursday, Northwestern head coach Drew Pariano announced the addition of three-time NCAA All-AmericanBrandon Precin to the Wildcats coaching staff as a volunteer assistant coach. After finishing his career ranked third all-time at Northwestern with 138 victories, Precin provides a wealth of experience to NU’s up-and-coming lightweight wrestlers.

“Wrestling programs are constantly searching for quality lightweight coaches and with Brandon, we feel like we immediately have one of the best in the country,” Pariano said. “He is the perfect fit for our staff: a lightweight coach, an aspiring Olympian and a native Chicagoan who knows wrestling in the state of Illinois.

“Brandon was one of the most dedicated student-athletes I’ve ever coached and I know he won’t rest until he sees our wrestlers achieve their goals of being national champions.”

Precin graduated in 2011 after placing third at 125 pounds in the NCAA Championships for the second time in his stellar career, helping NU to a 13th-place national finish in the process. As a senior, he won his second career Midlands championship — becoming just the second Wildcat ever to win multiple Midlands titles — which vaulted him into the No. 1 national ranking at 125 pounds for the first time in his career.

He went on to finish 35-3 on the year with eight pins and a 19-1 dual mark, serving as a catalyst for Northwestern’s 18-2 dual record in Pariano’s first year as head coach. A team captain and Big Ten finalist for the second time in his career, Precin was selected as Northwestern’s male athlete of the year and Jesse Owens Award nominee for the 2010-11 academic year.

Away from Northwestern, Precin has enjoyed phenomenal success in freestyle competition, recently winning his first career title at the University Nationals last April. In 2010, he placed third at the United States World Team Trials at 55 kg.Prior to arriving at NU, the Orland Park native was a two-time IHSA state champion with a career record of 186-6 while competing for Carl Sandburg High School.

Precin has gained previous coaching experience as a staff member at the Overtime School of Wrestling as well as the Wildcat Wrestling Club and as a featured clinician at Northwestern youth camps. He graduated from Northwestern in 2011 with a degree in history.

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