(Atlantic) Lynn Barnes helped launch the wrestling program in Atlantic in 1968 and was on the Trojan football staff for more than four decades. The Glenwood alum recently spoke with KSOM/KS95.7 FM to reflect on his coaching days.
Barnes is well known for his toughness and strict discipline. “Personally I thought if all they got out of athletics was the skill of a sport, you were a failure. The self discipline and the regimentation of athletics has such a tremendous carryover in your adult life in any occupation you may get into and so I think it’s just the idea of self discipline and the idea that your teammates are more important than you. That’s the reality of life.”
Barnes was a basketball player in high school, but got into wrestling during his sophomore year at Dana College. He was the original coach at Plattsmouth, NE in his first teaching and coaching stop. Eventually he’d be pegged as the first wrestling coach in Atlantic. The Atlantic AD was Rollin Dyer who knew Barnes from his time in Glenwood when they wrestled against Plattsmouth. “It was because of the tie from Glenwood to Plattsmouth and back to Atlantic. So that’s how I ended up coaching wrestling. I’m kind of proud of this, I was involved in three wrestling programs from the ground up at Dana College, Plattsmouth, NE, and in ’68 at Atlantic.”
Barnes admits things fell together perfectly to have early success. Anybody who has been around him very much at all has probably heard one key piece of advice…Head up, butt down, feet apart, short choppy steps. “You stop and think about it, you use that in wrestling, basketball, football, tennis, about the only sport you probably don’t do that is golf. So I have no idea where it came up, it just popped into my mind one year.”
Barnes joined forces with head coach Bob Younger and fellow assistant Chuck Burnett on a football staff that had a lot of success throughout the 70’s and 80’s. “When we went to practice we knew exactly what our responsibility was from the time we walked on the practice field to the time we walked off. There was a tremendous advantage.”
Barnes spent about ten seasons in two different stints as an assistant baseball coach. On each occasion he agreed to help out for one summer, but each lasted much longer than that. Barnes retired in the early 2000’s and is enjoying retirement in Colorado where he spends a lot of time with his kids and grandkids.
Previous Coaches
John Kesselring, Adair-Casey alum
Eric Maassen, (AHST grad) Sheldon
Jerome Hoegh, Atlantic grad (West Sioux)
Gaylord Schelling, Atlantic and Tri-Center
Chad Klein, Audubon Native (Kuemper Catholic and Boone)
In Memory of Bob Monahan, Audubon (Monte Riebhoff)
In Memory of Bob Monahan, Audubon (Steve Ahrendsen)
In Memory of Bob Monahan, Audubon (Scott Weber)
In Memory of Bob Monahan, Audubon (Curt Mace)
Chris Stimson, Elk Horn-Kimballton
Jan Jensen, Elk Horn-Kimballton alum
Seth Poldberg, EH-K grad and Guthrie Center coach
Trevor Gipple, (Griswold grad) SW Valley
Angie Spangenberg, Harlan and Red Oak
Eric Stein (Harlan grad) Iowa Central
Darrell Burmeister, Nodaway Valley
Lanny Kliefoth, Nodaway Valley
