CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Illinois wrestling volunteer assistant coach Isaiah Martinez has been named an assistant coach at Oregon State.

Statement from Illinois head coach Jim Heffernan
"I'm excited for Isaiah to enter this next stage of his career as a full-time coach, and he is ready for the challenge. I know one of his goals was to get back to the West Coast and be closer to family, and Oregon State will be a better program for hiring Isaiah. He has been the most successful student-athlete to come from our program, and his character, work ethic and loyalty have been present since the day he joined our program.  We will miss Isaiah being part of our family but wish him well as he enters the next chapter of his career."

Statement from Isaiah Martinez
"My time at Illinois has been nothing but exceptional. It has shaped so much about me. The experiences have given me some of my best friends and life-long relationships. Thinking about my time fills me with immense gratitude. The coaches, the teammates and the people have taught me what high-level wrestling and community is all about. 

Lastly, I can't stress how important the Illini RTC was to my development post-college. It provided the chance to travel the world and gather invaluable experience in pursuit of a dream. Thank you so much to coach (Bryan) Medlin and to the amazing donors.

Representing that Block I on my chest has been one of the greatest honors of my life. I am proud to have been an Illini."

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Martinez joined the Illinois wrestling coaching staff as a volunteer assistant in June, 2018, after his storied Illini career came to a close that March. One of the most successful wrestlers in program history, Martinez finished his career as a two-time NCAA Champion (2015, 2016), four-time national finalist (2015-2018) and four-time Big Ten Champion. He is one of just 16 wrestlers in the 108-year history of the conference to win four individual Big Ten titles.

The Leemore, California native ended his collegiate career with a 116-3 record, good for a .975 win percentage that is the highest in school history. He won 54-consecutive matches from November 9, 2014-January 23, 2016, and his 116-career victories tie for ninth on the all-time Illinois wins list. Martinez was a two-time winner of the Illinois Dike Eddleman Male Athlete of the Year award, receiving the honor in 2016 and 2017. He was the recipient of the Big Ten Medal of Honor in 2018.

During his time serving as a volunteer assistant on the Illinois coaching staff, Martinez trained for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics with the Illinois Regional Training Center. In 2019, Martinez won his second-consecutive U.S. Open men's freestyle title at 74 kg. In March, 2020, it was announced that the Tokyo 2020 Olympics would be postponed to 2021 due to the impact of COVID-19.

Illinois wrestling has started a national search to fill Martinez's position on its coaching staff. There have been multiple interviews thus far during the search process.

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