Youth Director

​Matt Gochberg is our Youth Director.  Since relocating to Austin from New York in 2009 Coach Matt has devoted himself to central Texas wrestling full time -- as a coach, official, administrator, and wrestling announcer.  In 2009 he was a co-founder of the Four Points Youth Wrestling Club.  (3F high school program Coach John Sloan was also a co-founder.) What started as a winter only neighborhood feeder club for the newly created Vandegrift High School grew in a few years to a year round program known as Four Points Viper Wrestling.  Over the years the program grew into much more than a neighborhood feeder, with youth wrestlers from throughout the Austin area.  

 

Coach Matt’s affiliation with 3F Wrestling goes back many, many years.  As Viper club wrestlers progressed in their technical development, many moved up the 3F program.  Several of 3F’s high school stars over the years began their youth careers in the Viper program. In 2018, Four Points Viper Wrestling was fully merged into 3F Wrestling to form a single integrated youth wrestling development system with 3 different levels in its training program -- young beginners, competitive, and elite.  

 

As a referee, Coach Matt has served both as the head trainer and rules interpreter for the Austin chapter of the TWOA (UIL officials) and the trainer, head referee and staffer for the TX-USAW Central region both for folkstyle and freestyle/Greco.  On the administrative side, he served for many years on the Central Region board. And of course, Coach Matt served and continues to serve as the “voice of Viper Nation,” bringing some well needed hype and excitement to high school dual meets and tournaments as the announcer.  

 

Coach Matt  grew up in East Lansing, Michigan and began competing in wrestling in 5th grade.  His days as a youth wrestler revolved around the Michigan State University wrestling program.  In those days Michigan State was a powerhouse team, and forever etched in his memory are his childhood days watching college dual meets and being coached as a youth wrestler by 1968 Olympian Don Behm.  The passion and discipline Coach Matt brings to our youth program today started on the Michigan State campus in the early 70’s!

 

His high school folkstyle career was highlighted by a trip to the Michigan State tournament in a year where he also set the East Lansing High School team record for season takedowns.  His high school freestyle career included multiple state medals and trips to the AAU Grand Nationals and the USWF Junior Nationals (now known as Fargo).  

 

In college Coach Matt walked on to a University of Wisconsin team that featured Jim Jordan as a teammate and Dave Schultz as an assistant coach.  He loved his time on that team, particularly his interactions with Dave, but mostly in college Coach Matt refocused his wrestling intensity and passion into academic pursuits. He graduated from Wisconsin Phi Beta Kappa and with highest distinction.  Following that he earned a JD from Yale Law School. From there, he went on to two careers: first as a tax attorney in Chicago, then as an investment banker in New York.

 

Throughout his long professional career, Coach Matt never forgot his wrestling experience.  Each step up the career ladder he drew on the passion and intensity honed on the wrestling mat.  In 2009, having made his mark on Wall Street, he was ready to return to his greatest love. He relocated to Austin and began to once again devote his energies to wrestling.  Coach Matt lives in Steiner Ranch with his son Noah, a State Champion and Fargo All American in our high school program.