Mike Elsbury

Byron

Coach

Mike Elsbury wrestled in high school at Starmont in Arlington, Iowa, where he was a two-time Iowa state

qualifier, placing fifth his senior year 1985. He was a Tri-Rivers Conference champion in 1985 at Heavyweight

and was part of three Tri-Rivers Conference team championships. He wrestled there for Doug Guilford, a 2007

Iowa Wrestling Coaches Hall of Fame inductee.

Mike attended Coe College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, an NCAA Division III school. In football, Mike was a fouryear

letter winner, Team captain, All-Conference, and voted MVP his senior season. In 1985 he played on Coe

College's first NCAA qualifying playoff team.

Mike wrestled at Heavyweight for Coe College for two seasons until he suffered a shoulder injury. He was able

to help his team win a Midwest Conference wrestling team title in 1986.

In 1992, Mike began his first tenure as head wrestling coach in Clear Lake, Wisconsin. He served three years as

head wrestling coach there before heading to Tipton, Iowa to continue teaching and to pursue other coaching

aspirations.

In Tipton, Iowa, he served as assistant wrestling coach under Matt Nerem and he also was an assistant wrestling

coach in Winnebago under Dave Norris.

Mike became the head wrestling coach at Byron in the winter of 2007-08 season. He had 320 wins in his career.

He had 58 State qualifiers, 32 State place winners, 16 State finalists and nine State Champions. His teams also

won seven Big Northern Conference Championships.

His teams went 293-86 in his 18 seasons at Byron and 12 of his teams won 16 or more duals and the program

never had a losing season during his tenure.

In 2014, he was voted as the Class 1A Coach of the year by the IWCOA and also was an Honorary Illinois/Indiana

Dual Team Coach. His 2024 team won an IHSA Regional championship and he had many seconds in regionals

behind Dakota and Lena-Winslow.

Mike served as an IWCOA Executive board member and was an IWCOA Frosh/Soph coach and volunteer. He

also was on the Illinois/Indiana selection committee and a volunteer in addition to being an IHSA regional

representative.

He was a member of the Byron Wrestling Association and little kids developmental programs that provided many

opportunities for kids to go to wrestling camps when finances prevented them.