Throughout Jersey Shore’s rich wrestling history, the program has produced numerous victories as a team and has sent many to districts, regionals and states. Two main wrestlers throughout the program’s history stand at the forefront: Dan Muthler and Sam Eck.

Muthler wrestled for the Jersey Shore Bulldogs from 1969-71 with 45 career wins. He made his mark as Jersey Shore’s first state champion during his junior year, renewing his title during his senior year. After graduation, Muthler went on to wrestle for the Naval Academy and was a two-time Wilkes Open Champion, an Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association champion and won the NCAA championship in 1973.

To date, Muthler is the only wrestler for the Naval Academy to hold a first-place national championship title. Muthler also served as an alternate for the US World freestyle team, was a four-time Inter-Service Champion, won two freestyle and two Greco-Roman Titles, was a three-time AAU national freestyle place winner and was a Greco-Roman place winner.

Following his time on the mat, Muthler served 36 1/2 years in military service, on active duty from 1975-87 and with the Pennsylvania National Guard from 1989-2013 as a helicopter pilot. After his military service, Muthler returned to the area as an assistant coach from 2004 to present day, with many in the program referring to him as “Coach Pappy.”

Muthler was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2023, being the first of two Jersey Shore alumni to be inducted into the wrestling hall of fame.

Eck wrestled for Jersey Shore during the early 2000s with 112 wins in his high school career and winning four District 4 Class AAA championships, a 2006 Northeast Class AAA regional title and was a fifth-place finisher in 2005 in Class AAA. In 2006, he won the state title becoming the 2005-06 District 4 Athlete of the Year and the second athlete in Jersey Shore wrestling history earn a state title.

Eck marked the second ever state champion, receiving that title during his 2006 season. He was also a part of Jersey Shore’s first team to win the team district title and of the only team to beat Central Mountain in dual competition at that point. After graduation, Eck became a member of the Penn State wrestling team under Troy Sunderland, later being involved in football and track and field at Bloomsburg, becoming a three-time state champion in the javelin in Class AAA.

After college, Eck worked for his family’s business Eck’s Agway for several years, until he became a patient care technician at Susquehanna Health in 2014. Eck was inducted into the District 4 Hall of Fame in 2024.

Both Eck and Muthler set an amazing precedent for Jersey Shore’s wrestling program, leading to large present-day community on track to follow in their footsteps. Their contributions to the community, both past and present, have made an immense permanent imprint on Jersey Shore’s ever evolving program and have aided in the betterment and inspiration of the next generation of young wrestlers.

This article was written by a local student at Jersey Shore High School as part of the Press Forward Program through the Centre Foundation