Jim Andrassy has put Kent State wrestling into the national spotlight and kept it there.  Andrassy has been a part of KSU's program for 31 seasons, including the last 18 as head coach.

In 14 of the last 15 seasons, the Golden Flashes have sent two or more qualifiers to the NCAA Championships and five or more qualifiers in nine of those seasons. In 2019 and again in 2020, Andrassy guided Andrew McNally (184) and Tim Rooney (133) to a spot in the NCAA tournament. In 2021, Andrassy guided four wrestlers Jake Ferri (125), Kody Komara (149), Andrew McNally (174) and Colin McCracken (197) to Nationals.

Away from the mat, Andrassy's squads have excelled as well. Tim Rooney graduated as a 4x Academic All-MAC selection and a 2x Scholar All-America award. The 2021 squad sent 11 wrestlers to the academic All-MAC team, tying for most in the conference and setting a program record.

Named Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year in 2009, Andrassy has helped produce 11 All-American performances from six different wrestlers including a 2011 national champion (Dustin Kilgore) and four NCAA top 25 team finishes.

In 2012, Kent State sent a program-record seven wrestlers to the NCAA Championships and won the Mid-American Conference regular season title with a 5-0 mark in conference duals. The Flashes were ranked No. 13 in the final NWCA Coaches Poll and won a Virginia Duals title.

One year earlier, the Golden Flashes totaled six NCAA qualifiers and their 17th place finish at the NCAA Championships was the highest since 1985.  KSU earned a share of the MAC regular season title in 2011 and placed third at the Virgnia Duals with a victory over No. 8 Lehigh in the consolation final.  The Flashes were ranked No. 17 in the final NWCA Coaches Poll.

Andrassy's 2009-10 squad earned a No. 16 ranking in the final 2010 NWCA Coaches Poll, proving just how far the program had come since his first season, (2003-04) when the Flashes tied for last place at the MAC Tournament.  While facing a number of nationally ranked opponents, KSU finished 15-4 in dual meets and captured the school's first Body Bar Invitational title.

In 2008-09, KSU won the MAC regular season title by going 5-0 in conference duals, carrying an overall mark of 13-4. The Flashes claimed four individual MAC championships and finished runner-up at the MAC Tournament. KSU sent a school record six wrestlers to the NCAA Championships that season, all of whom won at least two matches as KSU tied for 18th place, its highest finish since 1985.

During Andrassy’s tenure, the Golden Flashes have finished second at MAC Tournament in seven straight years.  Kent State’s list of 100-win wrestlers has grown from four to 17 on Andrassy’s watch.  He has also helped bring in some of the nation's top recruiting classes, including a national top-10 class in 2007 and a top-20 class in 2008.

"People on the outside think more of the program now," Andrassy said. "Our schedule's gotten tougher.  And because of all that, we've been able to recruit better kids. We had done well in the past in dual meets, but it was a different type of schedule.  If you look at our schedules in recent years, it's been one of the toughest in the country.  That's helped us get ranked nationally the last five years."

Prior to being named the head coach in 2003, Andrassy was an assistant coach for the Golden Flashes for the previous nine seasons - the last six as a full-time assistant - after earning four letters and a MAC individual title as a wrestler from 1991-94.  He replaced Frank Romano who retired following seven seasons as head coach.

Following his collegiate career, Andrassy joined the Kent State wrestling staff as a student assistant for one year while finishing his degree, then spent another year as a volunteer coach and a third as a graduate assistant prior to being elevated to a full-time assistant in 1997.

Andrassy is just the sixth head coach in the 88-year history of Kent State wrestling, joining A.S. Roberts (1927-29), Joe Tabor (1942-43), Joe Begala (1929-42, '45-71), Ron Gray (1971-96) and Romano (1996-2003).

As a wrestler at Kent State, Andrassy posted a career record of 106-25-1. He is one of just two KSU wrestlers to reach 100 victories in only four seasons.  He was 26-6 his junior season en route to a MAC championship at 158 pounds and finished 27-7 as a senior, earning one of the MAC's wildcard bids to the NCAA Championships.  At the national meet, he won two of his four matches and finished one victory away from All-America status.

Andrassy earned a bachelor's degree in rhetoric and communications from Kent State in 1995 and a master's in sport management in 2002.  Since 2000, he has served as a part-time instructor in KSU's physical education department.

A native of Macedonia, Ohio, Andrassy resides in Stow with his three daughters, Megan, Emily and Ryann.

Danny Mitcheff officially returned to his alma mater on June 1, 2016, bringing a wide array of experience in both coaching and competition.

Mitcheff’s wrestling career continued for six years after Kent State in freestyle competition.  He qualified for the United States World Team Trials four times, placing as high as fourth.  Mitcheff also has five top six finishes at the U.S. Open and won a tournament title at the 2014 Guelph Open.

Prior to his return at Kent State, he served as a full-time assistant coach at Army for two seasons, Mitcheff has also been a volunteer assistant at Penn and Cleveland State.

“It’s great to have Danny back,” Head Coach Jim Andrassy said.  “I’m excited for our lightweights.  He gives them a coach they can go to and work on anything they need.  When he wrestled with us, he brought a lot of integrity and an incredible work ethic.  Now he will bring that as a coach.”

In 2010, Mitcheff was named Mid-American Conference Wrestler of the Year and became the fourth wrestler in Kent State’s history to be a four-time NCAA qualifier. Mitcheff also earned All-American status in 2010, placing sixth at the National Tournament.

Named Outstanding Wrestler at the MAC Championships in both his junior and senior seasons, he was a four-time MAC finalist.  Mitcheff also owns the second most career victories in Flashes’ history with 131. He was inducted to the Kent State Varsity "K" Hall of Fame in 2017.

Mitcheff was a resident at the Pennsylvania Olympic Regional Training Center and coached the Philadelphia branch of Beat The Streets.  The Lorain, Ohio native has also worked numerous camps and clinics throughout the country.

Danny and his wife Lindsey reside in Cleveland.

Kent State head wrestling coach Jim Andrassy  hired Malik McDonald as an assistant coach during the summer of 2021.

Vittorio Santillo joined the Kent State wrestling coaching staff in the fall of 2021 as a volunteer.

Santillo comes to the Golden Flashes from John Carroll University where he was a four-year starter.  Santillo racked up 35 wins in his career at John Carroll and placed at the NCAA regional tournament. He graduated with a degree in exercise science with a minor in entrepreneurship. A Cleveland native, Santillo wrestled at Saint Edward's and qualified for the state tournament as a senior.