By Mike Finn

Jason Borrelli had seen plenty of the ups and downs of coaching while wrestling for his dad at Central Michigan. One of those moments came when he saw his father, Tom, forced to choose between being a coach and a father.

            That time came Jan. 22, 2005, when the Chippewas opened the NWCA National Duals in Cleveland, Ohio, where CMU faced Minnesota in a first-round dual. Unfortunately for Jason, his season ended that Saturday when he severely injured his knee in his 133-pound match with Mack Reiter.

            “As a coach, when you have injuries, even though it really bothers you, you have to act like it doesn’t and act like ‘next guy in,’ ” said recalled Tom, who remained matside, while Jason anguished else where in Cleveland State’s Convocation Center. “I had to let the trainers take care of him. One of the Cleveland State physicians came out and talked to me about Jason while I was on the bench about the seriousness of Jason’s injury.”

            As tough as that day was for the Borrelli family and Central Michigan — which lost 20-18 to the Gophers — it apparently did not turn off Jason on the role of a coach.

            Fast forward nearly four years later and Jason has joined his father’s profession as a 27-year-old head coach at Stanford.

            “I’ve been intrigued by college coaching for a long time,” said Jason, who was promoted to the Cardinal head job after spending just one year as an assistant under Kerry McCoy, who took over the Maryland job last summer. “A lot of times you look up to your parents, especially if you have a good relationship with them.”

            At a time when many young people reject the leadership of parents, especially those who also become coaches, Jason showed no bitterness or jealousy when it came to his father’s role of overseeing over 30 individual wrestlers.

            “Maybe I’m not as stressed out as most coaches,” laughed Tom, who also coached his older son, Bob, at Central Michigan. “Jason was just around so much and I think it was kind of natural for him to follow in those footsteps. He is real good with people, a real good communicator. I think it is something that he has always enjoyed.”

            And Jason may have had no better role model than Tom Borrelli, 52, who is in his 18th season at Central Michigan, where his Chippewas have dominated the Mid-American Conference the past nine years and has held their own against Div. I superpowers from their mid-major home in Mt. Pleasant, Mich.

            Central Michigan has finished among the top-ten teams in the past ten NCAA tournaments, highlighted by a No. 5 team finish. Even in 2005, when Jason recovered in time to win the MAC championship and qualify for the NCAAs, the Chippewas finished 12th as a team.

            “I just started watching things that my Dad was able to do,” said Jason. “Watching him build a program was something that always intrigued me.”

            That included watching the Chippewas compete with a budget and facilities that did not rate as high as many other Div. I programs.

            “I still think there is something said for taking something with very little and making ends meet while building a program,” Jason said. “I watched my Dad do it and it excited me more than anything. The ability to do that is something special. And while it is not always fair, that is not a reason to quit trying and fighting for the sport.”

            Jason admitted he may be a chip off the block when it comes to comparing himself to his father.

            “I think we are very similar,” Jason said. “I don’t think the apple falls too far from the tree and didn’t in this case either. I try to take what I learn under him and what I learned under Kerry for a year. I feel that if I put the two together, it can make one of the best coaches. That’s what I try to model myself after.”

            Tom agreed that he and Jason have similar coaching traits.

            “We are quietly competitive,” Tom said. “I don’t know if we are as outwardly as competitive as most coaches. Most coaches wear their competitiveness on the outside.”

            But the older Borrelli said there is a stark difference between the two coaches.

            “Jason is different than me in that he’s probably not as ornery as I am,” laughed Tom. “I’ve never seen the ornery side to Jason. I always felt that was something that held him back; he wasn’t very mean-spirited. Wrestling was just wrestling to him. He competed hard, but I never saw a mean side to him.”

            Jason admitted he was becoming more like his dad in his initial season in Palo Alto, Calif.

            “I feel like I want results right away and I forget how patient I need to be and how much time it’s going to take,” said Jason, who took over a team that finished 19th nationally — second highest in school history — but did not return either of its two All-Americans.

            Jason maintains a regular line of communication with his dad, who lives 2,500 miles away.

            “There are things that are frustrating so I call him and it’s kind of reassuring to see that every successful coach went through those frustrations,” Jason said. “Sometimes I pick his brain about training. I have a ton of respect about his ability to train a kid.

            At Stanford, because of its mission and lack of scholarship money, you really, really have to develop kids. It’s pretty rare that we are going to get the superstar because admissions are so hard and we don’t have the scholarship money to offer a kid.”

            Tom said he told his son to focus on individual athletes as he builds a program.

            “I told him to try to get individuals to the national tournament and have some success with those individuals until you’ve had an opportunity to build a team,” said Tom.

            Jason’s age may help him deal with the current-day athletes.

            “I was probably the same way but these kids are stubborn,” Jason said. “When you get to the college level, you realize it’s not high school anymore and you have to be willing to change, especially here because these kids are not as responsive to when they are just told to do something. They want to know why and you have to break it down.

            “When I was younger, when a coach told you something, I just did it. Here you have to take your time and explain it, which makes it a little longer of a process.”

            A family hiring restriction clause at Central Michigan prevented Tom from hiring Jason as a full-time assistant after Jason served as a part-time aide in 2006. But Jason would like nothing better to see his second Cardinal squad travel to Mt. Pleasant, Mich., next season.

             “I thought about going back there since I got the job,” Jason said. “For me it would be an awesome experience.”

            And the only one more proud of such a future moment would be the head of this Borrelli coaching clan. n