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    Barbee resigns as Army coach

    WEST POINT, N.Y. -- After 10 years at the helm and 87 victories, Army head wrestling coach Chuck Barbee has resigned, Athletics Director Kevin Anderson announced on Tuesday. Barbee will continue in his position until mid-July.

    Barbee, who coached 26 national qualifiers and 48 Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association placewinners, cited a change in career path and a desire to spend more time with his family as the reasons for his departure.

    "It has been my honor and privilege to coach at such an outstanding institution for the last 10 years," said Barbee. "The Army Wrestling team has been my professional passion and I am certainly indebted to the young men who believed in West Point and Army Wrestling. I will miss the team, and the West Point community but my family and I are excited about what lies ahead for us. The Army wrestling team is young and exciting and Army Wrestling fans have a lot to be excited about in the future."

    "We are grateful for everything Chuck has given to the U.S. Military Academy and the wrestling program," said Anderson. "As you can tell from his records and accolades, he was an accomplished coach who helped continue the storied history of the Army wrestling program. I respect his decision to take his career in a new direction."

    While assistant coaches Ryan Wilman and Rafael Vega will remain in their current positions, a national search to find Barbee's replacement will begin immediately.

    The 2007-08 EIWA Coach of the Year, Barbee helped Army compete on the national stage, coaching 15 wrestlers to the national tournaments and guiding three wrestlers to All-America honors.

    Barbee won double digit dual meets four out of the last six years and in 2009-10, two wrestlers earned a spot at nationals and six placed in the top eight at EIWA's.

    Barbee, who began his tenure at West Point in 2000, was brought in to restore the prominence of the wrestling team by developing All-America talent. Matt Kyler continued that lineage earning All-American honors in 2008 with a sixth-place finish at 141 pounds at the national championships in St. Louis following a run that saw him face a seeded opponent all seven times he stepped on the mat.

    A 1993 graduate of Oklahoma State, Barbee got off to a strong start in his first season by guiding Maurice Worthy to an EIWA championship and an appearance at the NCAA Tournament that also took place in St. Louis. Worthy's successful season ended after finishing NCAA runner-up at 174 pounds, becoming the Black Knights' first All-American wrestler in 14 years.

    Barbee's resume of success stories was lengthened a year later with the addition of Phillip Simpson to the squad. The only three-time All-America in Academy history, he qualified for the NCAA tournament four times, finishing runner-up at 149 pounds in 2005 after an eighth-place effort at 157 and a third-place finish at 141 the previous two seasons. Under Barbee's watchful eye, Simpson graduated as the all-time wins leader in Academy history with 134.

    Barbee's expertise has also translated into a rise in dual meet success for the Black Knights. The last six years have seen Army total 57 victories, including 12 during the 2004-05 season when the squad broke into the national rankings and climbed as high as 23rd in the country. The Black Knights also totaled 12 victories in 2007-08 to again mark the program's highest total since the 1996 campaign.

    Over the past five seasons, Army has compiled a 31-15-2 mark in EIWA dual meets, including a 21-13 upset of 25th-ranked Columbia in 2007, and an 18-15 victory over Lehigh in 2007-08 that was the Black Knights' first in 14 bouts dating back to the 1990-91 season.

    The 2007-08 season will be remembered as one of Barbee's finest on the banks of the Hudson River. Despite being picked to finish eighth at the EIWA Championships, Barbee and the Black Knights put together a third-place effort at the conference tournament as six wrestlers placed in the top-four of their respective weight classes. Senior captain Fernando Martinez (2nd, 125), Kyler (1st, 141), senior Christian Snook (4th, 165), senior Scott Ferguson (2nd, 184), sophomore Richard Starks (4th, 197) and senior Nathan Thobaben (3rd, 285) all punched a ticket to the NCAA Tournament.

    Two years earlier, eight of Barbee's Black Knights placed at the EIWA meet, led by third-place finishers Patrick Simpson (149), Jon Anderson (165) and Charles Martin (197). A year later, four Army wrestlers finished in the top-six at the conference championships, including a runner-up effort at 141 pounds by Kyler, who joined Martinez (125) and Thobaben (285) in making their first appearances at the NCAA Tournament, while Snook was an alternate at 157.

    The 2008-09 season again included double-digit wins and was highlighted by Kyler, Richard Starks and William Simpson earning a spot at NCAA's in St. Louis. Starks was unable to compete due to an injury suffered during the EIWA Tournament but Kyler secured his third trip to nationals and Simpson his second.

    Barbee continued to advance wrestlers to the national tournament during the 2009-10 season. After a 7-4 regular season, six wrestlers placed at EIWA's and two -- Kyler and Starks -- earned return trips to the NCAA's. Kyler qualified for the fourth time, the first Army wrestler since Phillip Simpson in 2006 to do so. Starks earned his third bid to nationals.

    Before Barbee began his tenure at Army, he served as the top assistant at the University of Oklahoma from 1997-2000. Barbee coached under former Army assistant and Big 12 "Coach of the Year" Jack Spates, who was an assistant coach at the Academy when the 1986-87 squad won the only EIWA championship title in Army wrestling history.

    Barbee coached seven All-Americans and four national finalists during his tenure at Oklahoma, helping the Sooners build one of the country's top wrestling programs and winning the 1999 Big 12 team title. He helped coach over 30 national qualifiers and was also partly responsible for helping bring in a Top-10 recruiting class in each of his three years with the Sooners, keeping Oklahoma among the elite. The Sooners placed 10th, sixth and fourth at the NCAA Championships during Barbee's stay in Norman.

    Aside from his coaching experience at OU, Barbee served as the head coach of the 1999 Big 12 All-Star team versus Korea. He was also the Sunkist Kids freestyle coach at the 2000 Olympic Trials and coached for the Team Excel Freestyle Club from 1997 through 1999.

    Barbee was a three-time NCAA All-American for coach Joe Seay at Oklahoma State. He was a prominent contributor in leading the Cowboys to successive national titles in 1989 and 1990. He was also a two-time Academic All-American, a Big Eight Champion in 1991 and Espoir and University National Freestyle Champion. Barbee was a member of the Espoir World Cup team in 1988 and a Junior National Freestyle All-American. During Barbee's competitive career, he trained with wrestling legends John Smith, Kendall Cross, Alan Fried, Pat Smith and Kenny Monday.

    Barbee and his wife Sally have four children: Alexa (17), Grace (12), Liza (10) and Tony (8).

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