It was November of 1971 and I was conducting wrestling practice at the Wheeling YMCA. Yours truly was the head coach of the old Wheeling High School “Wildcats”. After the workout, an individual came over and introduced himself as Eric Carder. A graduate of Triadelphia High School, Carder was a junior education student at West Liberty State College at the time

We spent the next two hours discussing wrestling and our love of the sport, and he ended up assisting me on the mats that season. We developed a friendship that lasted a lifetime.

Upon graduating from West Liberty, he was immediately hired as the head wrestling coach at Warwood High School by Ohio County Schools. And what a coach he was. Two years before the Wheeling Park High School consolidation, his “Viking” mat men were crowned the 1975 overall OVAC Wrestling Tournament champions. Quite amazing, considering that Warwood was one of the smallest schools in the Conference. The following year they won the West Virginia State A/AA Wrestling Championship.

In the fall of 1976, Coach Carder’s selection as the first head wrestling coach of the newly consolidated Wheeling Park High School was a “no brainer”.

That same year, I was also employed as a reading teacher by Ohio County Schools. I was also assigned as assistant wrestling coach under Eric Carder – and what a ride it was. I never worked with anyone more intense than Coach Carder.

When it came to conducting practices, weather was never a factor. We would drive hours in bad weather, picking up wrestlers to conduct an hour and a half wrestling practice sessions – and I mean very inclement weather.

Coach Carder had the unique ability of motivating wrestlers. They would run into a wall for him. And the statistics back up his dynamic mentoring skills that are legendary to this day.

Coach Erie Carder’s first year as the “Patriot” wrestling coach, naysayers from AAA schools across the state said he could not produce in the “large” school division. In fact, our wrestlers lost four dual meets during that year to the top “big school” wrestling teams.

But at the 1977 state tournament, the Wheeling Park grapplers brought home the championship trophy, outlasting runner-up John Marshall by 136.5 points to 134 points.

Moreover, Park also beat Parkersburg South, that scored 133.5 points, and fourth place winner, Parkersburg 133.0 team points. All three teams beat the Park “Patriots” decisively in dual meet action that season.

After that impressive showing, Coach Carder and his mat men never looked back. The 1977-78 season was another banner year. The Park won the OVAC overall team championship, and repeated as West Virginia AAA State Champs, outscoring the runner-up, John Marshall by another narrow margin 145.5 to 144.

During the 1978-79, Eric’s elite wrestlers won another overall OVAC championship, but fell short of winning a third West Virginia. John Marshall won the competition hands down under the guidance of hall or fame coach, Bill Hinegardner.

Coach Carder then took a year’s sabbatical to earn his administrative master’s degree. But upon returning during the 1980-1981 school year, his final season as head wrestling coach, Carder saw to it that his wrestlers came back with a vengeance, winning his fourth state championship with 177.5 points to runner-up Parkersburg, scoring only 96.5 points.

Coach Eric Carder was named West Virginia Wrestling Coach of the Year four times. He is also one of only two wrestling coaches in West Virginia to win state championships in both classes at the time, sharing the honors with Roy Michael of North Marion.

Coach Carder went on to become the athletic director and assistant principal at Wheeling Park High School. He was selected as the 1987 “Mr. Mat” recipient. An outstanding administrator, he was later named West Virginia’s State Athletic Director of the Year. Coach Carder was also instrumental in bringing the “Super Six” football state championships to Wheeling, along with the late OVAC Executive Director, Sam Mumley.

Coach Eric Carder recently passed away, but his legendary coaching feats on the Ohio Valley mats should long be remembered. As a wrestling coach, Carder was truly gifted.