West Virginia's Tim Flynn has simple plan for Mountaineers ahead of CFFC Match Day: 'I want to win them all'

With 27 years of coaching success at the highest level, Flynn has big plans for his quickly emerging program.

West Virginia University isn't a name you typically rattle off when asked to spotlight the top college wrestling programs in the nation, but head coach Tim Flynn is working to change that in relatively short order.

Following an incredible 21-year run at Edinboro University, where he led the Fighting Scots to five top-10 finishes at the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships and coached an impressive 38 All-Americans, Flynn is aiming to build an equally impressive record for the Mountaineers, and in his sixth season at the helm, the team seems to be right on track.

"I think the key is just bringing kids down, and you've got to start winning eventually," Flynn said. "You know, we have everything in place. We have the facilities, the backing from the school. I believe in our staff. I believe in what we're doing, and then you've got to show results, you know? So it's tough. 

"It's like you're losing, so we sold some kids on coming down and what our vision was, and now we're starting to get better and better kids, and that's exciting, and our next recruiting class is really good, so things are looking bright."

Flynn's first season saw the Mountaineers go 4-14 on the year and finish 43rd at the NCAA Championships. However, this season, the team stands at 7-1 thus far and has cracked the top 20 in the National Wrestling Coaches Association poll.

Flynn said he's happy with where the team stands but has visions of even greater success.

"We're satisfied," Flynn said. "We've been putting in a lot of work. You know, I guess we're not totally satisfied or else we'd be No. 1, right? But things are going well, and we have a good group of guys, so that's what really makes it fun."

On Sunday, Flynn leads his team against the Columbia Lions, a talented Ivy League program that has struggled to win so far on the season but has already faced off with three top-10 programs and has stood toe-to-toe with the nation's best. The dual, labeled the "Battle on the Boardwalk," streams live on UFC FIGHT PASS from New Jersey's Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City.

It's West Virginia's debut for CFFC Match Day, and Flynn said the team is looking forward to the opportunity.

"Yeah, I think everyone's excited," Flynn said. "UFC Fight Pass is cool. You know, it's cool for the kids, and most of our kids are big UFC fans. Going to Atlantic City I think is a neat thing. A lot of these kids haven't been there, so I think the whole event is going to be neat, you know? 

"We saw Columbia took out Northern Iowa, so that kind of scared us a little bit, so it's going to be a good, good dual. I think it's going to be a good day."

To Flynn's point, Columbia currently stands just outside the national team rankings, however several starting wrestlers are recognized on InterMat's individual list.

Flynn said he's certainly not overlooking the challenge that his team will face.

"I think unless you have a dominant dual meet team, which, you know, obviously we're not a top-five team yet, but you go into dual meets and it's all how you match up," Flynn said. "I know they have some stud guys and they got I think like three or four falls against Northern Iowa, so yeah, I mean, I think it's setting up to be some kind of dual."

West Virginia will certainly be the favorites in the matchup, but Columbia has made it clear they're not showing up in Atlantic City just to be someone's opponent. But Flynn, who admits he may finally be nearing the end of a legendary career that saw him earn more than 100 wins as a wrestler at Penn State before launching a coaching run that has spanned nearly three decades, plans on keeping the ball rolling for his emerging powerhouse.

"I think winning is fun," Flynn said. "I think anyone that's a competitor thinks the same way and yeah, we want to win them all. 

"You know, we got to West Virginia a couple of years ago and we took a lot of losses, so there's no one-offs. I want to win them all."