National Wrestling Hall of Fame New Jersey Chapter to induct Class of '26

Griscom’s teams went 213-63-2 with three South Jersey Group 2 titles, eight Tri-County Conference crowns and three district team championships. He also coached 25 district, eight regional and two state champions during his tenure.

He was a three-time District 31 Coach of the Year and was selected as Region 8 Coach of the Year once. After stepping down as head coach at Pennsville, Griscom served as an assistant coach at Woodstown from 2005-2020.

Griscom taught physical education at Pennsville and also coached cross country at the school for 17 years.

After retiring from teaching, Griscom served for six years on the Salem County Board of Chosen Freeholders (now called commissioners) starting in 2017.

After wrestling at George School in Newtown, Pennsylvania, Griscom was a standout at West Chester University, where he was a team captain and placed seventh/eighth during his senior season in 1969.

Griscom is a member of the Salem County Sports, South Jersey Wrestling, South Jersey Coaches Association Boys Athletics halls of fame.

Bruce Moran

Moran was one of the sport’s top scribes, churning out stories on scholastic and collegiate wrestling for close to three decades for The Star-Ledger. He covered every NJSIAA state wrestling tournament from 1981-2010 as well as the NCAA National Wrestling Championships from 1983-1990.

Along with his reporting duties, Moran was a columnist, editor and bureau chief, managing a staff of more than 80 reporters and freelancers for Dorf Feature Service, a bureau of the state’s largest newspaper The Star-Ledger.

With his passion and enthusiasm for the sport coming through in his written words, Moran was the voice of wrestling in the Garden State, telling stories for generations of grapplers. His work helped the growth of New Jersey wrestling, especially during the time when the state wrestling tournament moved from Princeton University’s Jadwin Gym to Atlantic City’s Boardwalk Hall.

He would later serve as the press coordinator for the state tournament under director Ernie Finizio.

A graduate of Glassboro State College (now Rowan University) in 1980, Moran reported on wrestling for several publications including Amateur Wrestling News.

The NJSIAA honored Moran’s work with the Service Award for Media in 1988 and 2005.

Paul Morina

There are many people that helped build Paulsboro wrestling into one of the nation’s premier programs, but Paul Morina will always be the face of Big Red.

After a standout career at Paulsboro High, Morina returned to his alma mater and took the program to even greater heights.

Morina took over for legendary coach and NWHOF member Bob Fredrick in 1985 and has amassed eye-popping numbers across the board, including a New Jersey record 820 victories and 31 state Group 1 titles.

The program has won 39 sectional titles, 39 Colonial Conference championships and 35 district titles. The Red Raiders are 820-68-4 under Morina’s watch.

Individually, Paulsboro wrestlers have crowned 235 district champs, 81 region titlists and 15 state champions.

Morina has earned the district Coach of the Year honor 21 times, region Coach of the Year four times and New Jersey Coach of the Year twice (1991 and 2011). He was awarded the NWCA National Coach of the year in 2011.

On the mat, Morina was a state runner-up as a senior at Paulsboro in 1977. He was a two-time district champion and a Region 8 titlist.

Morina went on to wrestle two years at Temple University before transferring to James Madison where he was a two-time captain. He went 108-25-1 at the two schools, claiming two Eastern Regional titles and was a two-time NCAA Division I qualifier.

Morina is enshrined in the Paulsboro High School, James Madison University, South Jersey Wrestling and Gloucester County hall of fames.

Samuel “Sam” Rossi

Following in the footsteps of his mentor Richard Mirshak, Sam Rossi also charted his own journey.

Rossi wrestled for Mirshak at Roxbury High School where he was a senior captain as well as district champion and region runner-up. He went on to wrestle at Seton Hall University, where he compiled a 39-3-1 record over three seasons, becoming the first Pirate to qualify for the NCAA Division I tournament. Rossi was a two-time captain and two-time Metropolitan champion.

Rossi returned to his alma mater where he worked as an assistant coach under Mirshak before landing the top job with the program in 1972. In six years, Rossi’s teams compiled a 57-19-3 record with three district team titles and two conference crowns. He coached three state champions, three state runner-ups and 12 regional champions during his tenure.

The Gaels went undefeated with a 13-0-1 mark en route to the No. 1 ranking in the state in 1975. The team finished fourth the following season.

Rossi’s success in the coaching ranks landed him the Region 4 Coach of the Year honor and a spot in the Morris County Wrestling Hall of Fame.

Rossi worked 26 years in the Roxbury Public School District as a teacher, instructor, trainer, coach and athletic director.

Working the whistle, Rossi was a NJSIAA official from 1968-1985, earning many important assignments including the state finals.

Rossi was honored with the Richard Mirshak Award for Excellence in Officiating in 1992. He also is an active member of the Richard Mirshak Scholarship Committee, which raises funding for student-wrestlers.

Frank Sica

A Montclair State College (now University) graduate in 1963, Sica devoted 55 years to the sport of wrestling as coach and later as a well-respected official.

A physical education teach and later director of the department for more than four decades, Sica was an assistant wrestling coach at the school from 1965-1977.

Wanting to stay involved in the sport, Sica became an official in 1978 and worked the whistle for the next 42 seasons, working NJSIAA district, regional and state tournament bouts. He also earned an invitation to work the New Jersey Prep School wrestling championship during his career.

A member of the Union/Essex Chapter of the New Jersey Wrestling Officials Association for 42 years, Sica would rise to become an officer and president as well as serving on the NJWOA Executive Board. He also was an assistant cadet supervisor for three years.

Sica was selected at the “Outstanding Wrestling Official” by the National Federation of High School Athletics in 2008 and served as the weighmaster and scorekeeper at the NJSIAA state wrestling tournament for over 23 years.

An Executive Board Member of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame New Jersey Chapter, Sica has been with the organization for 23 years, including 15 as Banquet Director, where his diligence, dedication and hard work have really shined.

Sica volunteered with the Visiting Nurses Association, where he was a chairman for 23 years, earning the Outstanding Volunteer award in 2015.

Craig Spencer

Affectionally known as “Spence,” Craig Spencer was a dedicated athlete, coach and mentor in the sport of wresting for over a half-century.

Spencer’s stellar coaching career began at Union County College in 1974 and spanned across scholastic and collegiate levels over the next five decades.

At Pequannock High School, Spencer compiled a 113-55-5 record as head coach, leading the team to three league championships and five district titles while leading his 1987 squad to the Skyline Conference championship – the program’s first in 16 years. He was named Coach of the Year four times before stepping down following the 1988 season.

Along with wrestling, Spencer also coached soccer and track at the Pompton Lakes-based school.

Spencer moved onto the college ranks where he took over the Kean College program for seven seasons. He coached 14 All-Americans, including a national champion (Frank Croce, 1995) a national runner-up (Joe Dasti, 1989) and a third-place finisher (Chris Steinbacher, 1993. Five of his teams finished in the Top 20 for Division III, including an eight-place finish in 1991.

His next coaching stop came at Lakeland High School where he coached for 12 seasons, helping lead Tom Fazio to the top of the state podium at 145 pounds in 2005.

Even in his seventies, Spencer was in the wrestling room sharing his knowledge and teaching the younger generation of mat men, working as an assistant coach at West Milford.

Spencer was a NCAA Division III All-American at Montclair State College, a two-time Metropolitan  Intercollegiate champ and New York Athletic Club Freestyle MVP in 1975. He was a two-time U.S. Olympic Wrestling Trials qualifier in 1974 and 1976.

Along with being the visionary for the Morris County Wrestling Coaches Tournament, Spencer was inducted into the Pequannock Wrestling and Morris County Coaching hall of fames.

Spencer passed away on June 14, 2025.

Tom McGurk is a regional sports editor for the Courier-Post, The Daily Journal and Burlington County Times, covering South Jersey sports for over 35 years. If you have a sports story that needs to be told, contact him by emailat tmcgurk@usatodayco.com. Follow him on Twitter at @McGurkSports. Help support local journalism with a digital subscription.

This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: National Wrestling Hall of Fame New Jersey Chapter to induct seven new members