Jerry Hartman arrived in Buies Creek in 1979 as a sophomore transfer in the Campbell University wrestling program.
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Little did he know that two years later, he would be leading that same team as head coach – while still an undergraduate.
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Campbell started its wrestling team in the 1960s and was guided by Gerald Brown, Ike Sherlock, and PJ Smith to national recognition during the NAIA era.
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As the team transitioned to NCAA Division I, a native of Illinois, by way of UCF, would lay the foundation of a program that now ranks among the nation's best.
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In the next installment of Tales from the Creek, Stan Cole talks with Jerry Hartman about his path from student-athlete to head coach in just three years and his journey that led to a more than four-decade long association with the wrestling program and induction into the Campbell Athletics Hall of Fame.
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