Mountaineer Wrestling
CLIFF MOORE
Cliff Moore, a former NCAA champion at 141 pounds for Iowa, is in his fourth season at West Virginia University and was announced as an assistant head coach on April 17, 2018. His responsibilities include managing the day-to-day operations of the West Virginia wrestling program, assisting with the organization of the team’s travel and coordinating community outreach work and fundraising opportunities. Moore also serves as an integral part of the recruiting process and has assisted in bringing in the No. 12-ranked recruiting class via FloWrestling for the upcoming 2020-21 season.
ASSISTANT HEAD COACH FOURTH SEASON IOWA 2004
WVU placed 10th at the 2020 Big 12 Wrestling Championship before the season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Noah Adams’ performances highlighted the 2019-20 season, as he won the 197-pound title at the conference tournament to cap an undefeated season at 32-0. Adams, a two-time NCAA Qualifier, was the nation’s second-seeded wrestler heading into the NCAA Tournament.
21 All-Americans for the Fighting Scots. In addition, Edinboro has won seven Eastern Wrestling League (EWL) Championships and 10 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) titles with Moore on staff.
The 197-pound grappler finished his redshirt sophomore campaign with several postseason accolades, most notably earning National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) All-America First Team honors, as well as becoming the program’s first Big 12 Wrestler of the Year award winner.
As a Hawkeye, Moore earned All-America status three times in addition to claiming two Big Ten titles. After competing at 133 pounds for three consecutive seasons, Moore moved up to 141 his senior year. He posted a 33-2 record after defeating Matt Murray of Nebraska in a 5-2 decision at the 2004 NCAA Tournament, ending his final season with 20 straight wins and a national title. The Dubuque, Iowa, native notched a 109-24 career record and was named the 2004 Mike Howard Award winner, an honor given to Iowa’s most valuable wrestler.
In Moore’s first season in Morgantown, he helped five Mountaineers qualify for the 2019 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, marking the first time since 2014 that five grapplers earned themselves a spot at nationals. As a team, West Virginia earned four dual-match wins and placed ninth at the 2019 Big 12 Championship. Moore previously spent 12 seasons at Edinboro, helping coach Tim Flynn build the Fighting Scots into a wrestling powerhouse. His specialty is with the lighter weight classes, as he helped produce two NCAA champions, seven NCAA finalists and
Prior to Edinboro, Moore spent two years with the Iowa wrestling program. After serving as the strength and conditioning coach during the 2004-05 season, he became an administrative assistant in his second year at his alma mater.
After redshirting his freshman year, Moore notched a 17-3 record at 133 pounds. He then took over as the starter during the 2001-02 season, eventually earning All-America honors with a sixth-place finish at nationals. Moore ended the year with a 28-10 record, also placing fifth at the 2002 Big Ten Championships. He gained another sixth-place finish at the 2003 NCAA Championships, earning backto-back All-America honors at 133 pounds. Moore ended his junior season with a 31-9 record, capturing his first Big Ten title with a 3-1 win over Minnesota’s Ryan Lewis in sudden victory. He was named the 2003 John and Dorothy Sill Award winner, an honor given to Iowa’s most dedicated wrestler. Additionally, Moore has been inducted into a pair of Hall of Fames: the Iowa High School Wrestling Hall of Fame and the Hempstead High School Hall of Fame. Moore, a member of the 2006 USA Freestyle National Team, graduated from Iowa with a bachelor’s degree in business administration in 2004. He later received his master’s in educational leadership from Edinboro in 2011. Moore has two sons, Carver and Maddox.
34
