AJ Villarrealâs primary job is to coach Independence wrestling.
He was hired to take over the Eaglesâ program last week after spending the past year as a wrestling assistant at nearby Centennial, and he knows all about the culture built by former Independence coach Jeff Grindstaff.
âThatâs a huge thing to have a long history (of tradition),â Villarreal said of Grindstaff, who led the Eagles to nine dual state tournament appearances and coached six individual state champions. âWhen you go to their tournaments and events, their parents, the support, from the kids club to the principals is what made it so enticing.â