Mock Answers Call to Lead Tar Heels Once Again

Mock responded to the call and became UNC's first ever All-America selection and national champion.

Today, Lam is calling on Mock again, this time to continue building the UNC program into a full-fledged powerhouse.

When Lam retires after this season, Mock will inherit the responsibility of adding to the prestige that Lam has brought to UNC wrestling during the last 30 years. Mock helped develop that honor by winning individual national championship in the 134-pound weight class in 1982, the first title in program history.

"I feel like it's destiny -- the reasons why he came back, the reasons why he stayed here," Lam said. "I think it's destiny that he takes over and takes (the program) one step higher -- just like he was the first national champion."

If there is one person who can foresee success out of Mock, it is Lam.

Mock did not begin wrestling until ninth grade and did not compete at the varsity level until his junior year.

While most top programs did not pursue him at the start of his senior year, Lam chose to recruit Mock.

"I told him, 'You can go to Penn State and you'll just be another national champion,'" Lam said. "'If you come (to UNC), you'll be the first national champion ever. It'll be a big thing.'"

Mock went on to win the Pennsylvania state championship that year and the likes of Penn State and Lehigh came calling, but Mock remembered who was there first.

"I had a bit of a chip on my shoulder because the Pennsylvania schools that I had learned to admire and look up to and idolize hadn't recruited me at all," Mock said.

Although it was loyalty that jumped UNC to the top of his list, Mock ultimately chose the school for a challenge.

"I chose to come here because I wanted to build a foundation," he said.

In 1979, Mock became the first All-America selection out of UNC and won the ACC championship and tournament MVP award. But in 1982, Mock's senior year, everything came together.

After redshirting the 1981 season at Lam's request, Mock entered his senior year improved, rejuvenated and focused on winning the championship.

Mock went 35-0, claiming his third ACC championship, earning All-America honors and capturing the first-ever national championship in school history. The Tar Heels would take fifth at the NCAAs that year and Lam was named the national coach of the year.

David Cooke, a former teammate and All-America selection in 1981 and 1982, said it was sheer determination, and not raw ability, that allowed Mock to become a champion and help elevate UNC's standing in the wrestling landscape.

"I don't know if he was one of the most talented wrestlers, but he was one of the hardest workers," said Cooke.

Mock graduated after the 1982 season and turned his back on wrestling to pursue a career, opening a securities broker dealer outside of Philadelphia.

But his passion for wrestling was too strong, and at the insistence of his wife, he returned to coach at his former high school, Rock Council, replacing the man who coached him in high school.

In 2000, Mock accepted Lam's offer to return to UNC as an assistant coach.

"When I left Carolina, I was done with wrestling, and never really had any intention of getting back into wrestling," said Mock. "I learned through high school wrestling that I was wrong, I missed my calling because I really do enjoy it."

Mock approached coaching with the same intensity he had in his playing days. He became so successful in three years that Lam is confident to leave to Mock the program he worked so hard to elevate.

"His work ethic was great," said Lam. "I had been waiting to see that before I wanted to step down because I had spent 30 years trying to build the program, and I wanted to make sure that someone was going to be able to at least continue and hopefully take it a step higher -- and I believe that he's the person who can do that."

The Sports Editor can be reached at sports@unc.edu.