Consummate Leader: Few wrestling coaches have done it better than Catholic High’s Tommy Prochaska
by William Weathers // GeauxPreps.com Contributor
Ben DiPalma was a standout wrestler at Catholic High when, in his senior year, he needed another challenge that would best prepare him for the rigors ahead.
The Bears were exceptionally stout in the lower weight classes, with three wrestlers that regularly showed up in the finals in tournaments, with another two typically in the top four.
With aspirations of concluding his final season with his right hand raised as a state champion, the 135-pound DiPalma tried to reach his objective in practice. That brought him onto the mat with his head coach, Tommy Prochaska, known as a fierce competitor who not only outweighed him by more than 70 pounds but also carried a substantial amount of knowledge of the sport from his own competitive days for the Bears.
“For me to get pushed in the room to have a good practice, I had to wrestle him every day,” said DiPalma, now the advancement director at Catholic High. “Your first live match every day was 40 minutes of practice. For me, every day that was Tommy because that was the way I was going to get better. To get better, you really have to be pushed. You have to wrestle people that are going to beat you, and you have to figure out ways to narrow that gap and eventually overtake them. That’s how you get better.”
DiPalma won the Lee High Invitational (now the Louisiana Classic) and was the No. 1 seed going into the state tournament, where he was upset in the final.
Decades later, DiPalma still cherishes his high school career and the time spent with Prochaska, who later became his assistant at Catholic for 14 years. With his moved into more of an administrative role as athletic director and advancement director, he’s enjoyed a 20-plus year association with a man who not only changed the trajectory of his life, but hundreds more.
“I’d give anything to go back,” DiPalma said of wrestling. “I tell people all the time, to be 17 and training again. He knows he’s only going to have X amount of state champions. He’s going to have thousands and thousands of our kids who are well-rounded, successful adults because of the program he put them through. As a high school coach, that’s what is really important.”
On the heels of team championships, the previous two weekends in both the Louisiana Classic and Baton Rouge City Championships, the 52-year-old Prochaska leads Catholic High into next week’s state tournament at the Brookshire Grocery Arena in Bossier City. The two-day event begins Friday, where the Bears are in search of their fourth overall title and third under Prochaska, who led the Bears to the top of Division I in 2008 and 2010.
Catholic has also had a pair of state runner-up finishes (2012, 2023) under Prochaska, now in his 28th season. The Bears are working on a string of 25 consecutive top 10 finishes with five straight in the top 5.
“The biggest thing for me is the consistency of the program,” Prochaska, a 1992 graduate of Catholic. “That’s a testament to what we do because of the longevity of my career.”
Prochaska wrestled for Kenny Spellman during his career and, upon graduation, was asked to come back and be an assistant.
“I have always wanted to be part of the program,” he said.
Prochaska was part of the school’s wrestling environment before he wrestled for the Bears. When he was younger, he attended practices and watched his older brothers, creating an attachment to the program.
While trying to get his academic career going at LSU, Prochaska was Spellman’s assistant for a season. He majored in engineering, where he planned to succeed his father and run his engineering company.
“I realized that differential equations may not be for me,” he said. “I wasn’t happy with the school load and ended up sitting out 1 ½ years. I worked for my dad and coached full-time.”
He pivoted academically, seeking to become a teacher and coach, and approached his counselor at LSU about a change.
“I asked what I needed to do to graduate as quickly as possible to be a coach and teacher,” Prochaska said. “I had sat in engineering classes thinking, ‘I don’t know if this is it.’ I had a foot in the (wrestling) door, just thinking about my future, and it’s worked out.”
Because Spellman was a non-faculty coach, it provided an opportunity for Prochaska to gain hands-on experience running practices, learning techniques, and building relationships with teenagers.
After six years as Spellman’s understudy, Prochaska became Catholic’s head coach for the 1997-98 season – a position he’s held since.
“Kenny would let me do a lot of stuff, and I just grew,” he said. “I also watched (football) coach (Dale) Weiner, (basketball) coach (Glen) Randow, and (cross country/track) coach (Pete Boudreaux), how they interacted with their students and how they carried themselves. I realized you represent the institution that’s Catholic High School.”
DiPalma attended law school in New Orleans between 2000 and 2005 and returned to Baton Rouge and joined Prochaska’s staff.
By that time, Prochaska was no longer on the mat with his wrestlers but still provided sage advice and plenty of direction.
“We had a heavyweight, Keith Hidalgo, who was a 275-pound state champion. He (Hidalgo) was unbelievable,” DiPalma said. “That’s where Tommy said he wasn’t wrestling anymore.”
The building process was slow, and for the only time in his career, Prochaska didn’t have a wrestler qualify for state.
“Since then, we’ve had somebody in the state finals, which I think is a pretty cool accomplishment,” he said. “I’m sure other schools have had runs like that.”
By the time he became a member of the school’s faculty, Prochaska began to increase the number of wrestlers in his program by approaching kids in the halls of the school. He wanted them to give the sport a try, and once Catholic won the 2008 state title, a total of 120 people signed up, with 85 or 90 completing the season.
“Once you win, then everybody wants to be a part of this,” he said. “Being a part of something for so long, people want to be part of a good culture. I think that’s true for all of our sports here. The culture we build of responsibly and leadership, kids want that. If you’re living it, they believe they can follow this guy; he believes what he’s doing. That’s huge for kids today.”
Catholic’s first state title in 33 years was more about establishing a positive mindset.
Prochaska recalled telling his wrestlers in advance they were going to win the state meet, establishing an unwavering belief that played out accordingly.
He remembered as a senior the Bears finishing second to Jesuit by 100 points but the quest to win such a title burned brighter than ever.
In the 2008 event, Catholic trailed going into the final day, Prochaska said, but the Bears would thrive from the chase position.
“I told them if we’re within 10 points, we’ll be able to catch them and be able to win,” he said. “We were fortunate enough to do it.”
Stability’s been the byword of Prochaska’s programs.
He’s assembled one of the state’s steadier programs. The Bears have won 23 of the school’s 34 City Championships, two state crowns, and made two state runners-up finishes under Prochaska’s guidance.
“There’s expectations, and there’s accountability for those expectations,” DiPalma said. “That’s what our whole school is about. The faces change every year, but the expectations, the work ethic don’t change. Are you prepared for practice? Are you on time? Are your shoes ready to go when it’s time to go? If you haven’t done those things, there’s going to be consequences.
“He will take the star out and sit him out of a dual meet if his grades aren’t what they’re supposed to be,” DiPalma said. “The results don’t matter if you don’t do the small things right. When you do that consistently over a period like he’s done, it’s not a surprise the success has stayed at the level it has. Just because he understands what’s important about high school athletics. “
Catholic handed Prochaska his 300th career dual victory, defeating Teurlings Catholic on Dec. 29, 2015, the same year Weiner won his 300th football game – ironically against Teurlings.
With the success of the Bears’ program, the milestones continued with Prochaska’s 400th career win against St. Paul’s on Nov. 30, 2022.
With this season’s 20-4 mark, he’s 475-132-2 in dual meets over his career for an 80% success rate.
“It’s cool to say that I’ve coached in over 600 dual meets,” he said. “When I first started coaching, it was about me, and then I realized really quick that it’s not. Once I did that, it becomes easier to do it. We tell our wrestlers all the time if you’re having a bad practice, you still have to make your partner better.
“When you start thinking about your partner instead of yourself, then it gets better,” he said. “I want to win in the moment. If you do great, we’ll celebrate. If you don’t, we’ll fix it and move on. It’s definitely about the kids, and we have great kids, great families.”
DiPalma explained the deep connection that exists between Prochaska and his former wrestlers. They’ve remained in contact, indebted to the many life lessons learned during their four years at Catholic and beyond with the sage advice they receive.
“He’s on 50 text message groups with different guys that have graduated through the years,” DiPalma said. “That’s over 25 years’ worth of kids. He keeps in touch with them. The alumni base is very loyal to him and is always willing to help out.”
Not every wrestler arrives at Catholic with an extensive background in the sport.
In fact, it’s customary that Prochaska and his staff get the opportunity to mold the careers of novice wrestlers with the intention of developing them into consistent competitors capable of competing at the statewide level.
“The beauty of wrestling is most kids don’t wrestle until they get to high school,” Prochaska said. “To see a kid, who’s never wrestled, end up getting on the podium – it doesn’t matter if it’s first or sixth – that’s the sense of accomplishment. That tells me we did a good job.
“I had an eighth grader once that struggled as a student, many days just doing his homework,” Prochaska said. “He doesn’t practice as an eighth or ninth grader and ended up a state champion as a senior. I know what I’m supposed to be doing and that’s helping kids.”
Said DiPalma: “Sometimes it could be tough on the kid. He always does it with their best interest. He’s a player’s coach. Everyone that wrestles for him knows they have his support.”
Catholic thought so much of Prochaska that it inducted him into the school’s ‘Grizzly Greats’ Hall of Fame in 2022.
“He’s the point person for all the coaches in the state,” DiPalma said. “When the LHSAA has to make a decision, he’s the first person they call on, whether it’s a good decision or which direction they need to go. J.T. Curtis at Curtis is a staple in football. He’s really the staple coach in Louisiana for wrestling with his longevity, success, and understanding the sport.
DiPalma attests to the grueling nature of wrestling. From the weightlifting and conditioning to develop stamina, to the self-discipline needed to maintain weight.
Invariably, when body weights hover above the desired number, wrestlers are forced to ‘cut’ pounds in order to wrestle in their desired weight class.
“It may suck for a few minutes, you’re cutting weight and hadn’t eaten in 36 hours, and it’s no fun,” he said. “But you can do it because you know it’s going to make you better in the long run. Most guys take that with them for the rest of their lives.
“Wrestling is such a brutal sport,” he said. “It’s the hardest sport you can do in high school – the physical and mental strain. But it also has the biggest payoff. To make it through that grind over the years changes who you are. It makes your life really easy. I’m 44, and to think a tough week at work is nothing compared to a week of wrestling practice.”
Prochaska said, “It takes a special person for that self-dedication. When they see it’s a bigger picture, then it becomes easier to do those things, such as eating habits and workouts, because they know they’re wrestling for their practice partner, their teammate.”
The growth of wrestling in Louisiana suffered a blow in 1985 when LSU dropped its program, forcing aspiring wrestlers to seek Division I options outside of their state’s borders. That also stunted the growth of coaches and officials as well.
The individual technique, though, has improved through such visual options as YouTube and FloWrestling, Prochaska said, along with the advent of wrestlers traveling to such tournaments as the NHSCA nationals in Virginia Beach, Va.
“With so much out there, there’s a desire for kids to go out and wrestle,” he said. “That pushes the envelope as well. There’s no (college) wrestling in Louisiana. That’s hurt us. Kids are going to these national tournaments.”
Prochaska recalled a conversation with Catholic’s football coaches on the differing demands of coaching the two sports.
Football prepares an entire week to play each Friday, and then potentially repeats the process over the course of a 15-week span that ends each December in the Superdome.
Wrestling’s a little more fluid.
“You’re emotionally invested in every one of them,” Prochaska said. “After a win or a loss, you’ve got flush it and get ready for the next kid, because he’s in a different mental state than the other kid. There’s a grind.”
There are wrestlers in 14 different weight classes, which during tournament action will go on simultaneously and offer emotional divergence, depending on the outcome of each match.
Coaches find themselves dealing with emotions ranging from jubilation to dejection.
“You have to have the ability to coach in the moment and immediately flip your focus to the next thing,” DiPalma said. “There’s a time where the 126-pound match is in the third period, and the 132-pound match is starting on the next mat over. One of us (coaches) would take that kid. In the middle of a match, you’re flipping your mentality from one match to the other. There’s a different plan for that kid who may wrestle differently. You have to be super flexible as a coach in a tournament setting.”
Prochaska said it’s customary for wrestlers with remaining eligibility to decompress after a season. For guys headed to nationals, such as two-time state champion Kristian Scott, that time off may be reduced to a handful of days before resuming their training.
There are Greco-Roman and Freestyle events that are optional, but there are four days of lifting and technique work beginning in June. After a month off, the process is repeated with no work on the mats and more of a focus on team building.
Following the Labor Day holiday, wrestlers are allowed for non-intensive work on the mats with practice ramping up in October and November, signifying the start of another season.
“To me, the real season kicks in when we get our football players,” Prochaska said. “We’re always short in upper weights. You take your lumps. We lost a couple of early this year because we couldn’t fill 14 weight classes.”
A Catholic High season is bridged by two bus trips. There’s a 547-mile ride in June to the campus of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga for team camp, and a 249-mile trip next week to Bossier City.
“What we do in that time period is going to determine how happy we are on that bus to the state championship,” Prochaska said.
Prochaska navigated another challenging schedule of dual meets and tournaments that twice took Catholic to Alabama for prestigious tournaments that would expose his wrestlers to keen competition.
Because of a 67-man roster, Prochaska was able to split his team up to compete in different tournaments on the same weekend.
“We get them to compete,” he said. “Practice is important because kids get excited about competing. If they’re out competing and they like it, then we’re going to be OK with them sticking with it.”
Catholic has built momentum over the latter stretch of the schedule with team titles in both the Louisiana Classic and City Championships – considered highwater marks for the season.
Scott’s one of Prochaska’s star pupils, becoming the first four-time winner in the history of the City Championships since Redemptorist’s Guy Mistretta in 1987. He carries a sterling career 168-15 mark into the state tournament.
The next week will bring about a familiar refrain from Prochaska when he addresses his team.
“One match” is what he’ll leave each wrestler with when the Bears begin competition, emphasizing the importance of the outcome one match can make in a state championship.
“In 2010, we won by four points,” he said. “In 2012 and 2023 (both state runners-up finishes), we lost by four points. We lost by two points in 2022 (a third-place showing). The state meet is the best time, but it can be the worst of times for a coach because you’re so emotionally invested in it.
“There are still times when I get fired up,” he said. “It’s the kids. The excitement they have when we start, the excitement for those new kids to figure it out. It doesn’t get easier, but I wouldn’t change it. I can’t see myself doing anything else. I don’t know if I’ll coach as long as Coach Boudreaux (57 years). I get the question every year about when I’m retiring. Coach Boudreaux told me you’ll know when it’s time. I don’t see it anytime soon.”