Years ago, in a garage in Bermuda Dunes, Calif., four brothers – under the watchful eye of their father – were practicing their wrestling skills, their technique uniquely defined by a combination of wrestling and jiu-jitsu.
Two of those brothers would go off to wrestle at Oklahoma, while the other two decided that Michigan was the right place for them. But even as the brothers drifted further and further away from their hometown and family, two things tied them all together: a love for wrestling and the unbreakable bond that stemmed from it.
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Anthony Mantanona didn’t wrestle growing up, instead taking part in jiu-jitsu and judo. But when his oldest son started wrestling, Anthony decided to learn as well, mainly because his son was too young to retain all the wrestling knowledge. For Anthony, this would begin his tenure as his sons’ wrestling coach.
Anthony’s younger sons – Beau and Brock – looked up to their older brothers, wanting to copy whatever they were doing. So when both older brothers started wrestling, they did too.
“They started out pretty young, and they had success pretty early,” Anthony told The Michigan Daily. “ … They were babies going to tournaments, going to practices and watching their brothers, and obviously at home, wrestling around with their brothers and each other. It definitely gave an advantage.”
Following in their older brothers’ footsteps meant Beau and Brock were familiar with wrestling and its biggest tournaments from a young age. But having a leg up didn’t just benefit them when it came to matches — it was also another way for the siblings to bond. Competing alongside all their brothers, especially with long road trips to Reno, Nev., and Iowa, were some of Beau and Brock’s fondest memories growing up.
Anthony facilitated a unique coaching style that led the family to make a lasting impression on the collegiate wrestling scene. Under Anthony’s coaching, the Mantanonas wrestled with a distinct combination of jiu-jitsu and wrestling skills. Jiu-jitsu taught them how to be comfortable in uncomfortable positions, enhancing their overall strength, technique and countering and scrambling abilities.
“I thought it was pretty fun because it becomes a built in family thing,” Brock told The Daily about Anthony being his coach. “You don’t have to schedule practice with a coach and go to a gym. I could just go in my garage to work on some things I want to work on. And then the whole family buys in because it’s part of us now at this point … It helped build a relationship too (because) we could bond over a sport like that.”
Beau and Brock’s success in the sport grew over time, developing even further during their high school careers. Though the competition was stronger, they didn’t change the way they trained. They balanced schoolwork, wrestling and other fun activities, all while making honor roll and graduating cum laude. On top of that, both of them were state champions.
Naturally, collegiate wrestling was the next step and was always a goal for both. At the time of their commitments, Beau was the No. 14 overall recruit and the No. 1 wrestler in the 152-pound weight class while Brock was the No. 9 overall recruit and the No. 1 wrestler in the 150-pound weight class. But, rather than following their older brothers to Oklahoma — Beau, the older of the two — decided to forge his own path.
“A lot of people thought I was gonna go to Oklahoma, and it was a really good school,” Beau told The Daily. “Was definitely in my top two to three, but at the end of the day, I just wanted to do what I thought was best for me. And I thought Michigan was a better fit for me.”
Brock decided to follow his older brother. After all, he did help Beau with his decision.
“(Beau) and Brock are really close, and when (Beau) was trying to make a decision, he was talking to Brock about it,” Anthony said. “He’s like, ‘Where do you think we should go?’ … They kind of knew they were going to end up together.”
This was typical of their relationship. Growing up, they were — and still are — best friends. More importantly, they are each other’s support system, even when challenges arise.
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After redshirting his freshman year, Beau was ready to make his debut as the Wolverines’ 165-pound starter this season. He was ranked No. 24 in the preseason rankings, and he would’ve started with Brock at his side.
But in an early-season wrestle-off match, Beau hurt his knee. The trainers told him he tore his ACL, and all of a sudden, Beau was facing a season-ending injury. So, while one brother went down, the other stepped up.
“Well, I mean, obviously surprising,” Brock said about stepping up after Beau’s injury. “(I was) expecting not to wrestle much this year, and then Beau goes down … so I stepped in a couple tough matches out the gates, and I did pretty good. A lot better than I expected, to be honest, and I didn’t know if I was ready to compete at a high level. And I proved myself pretty fast, which was really fun.”
Brock had an explosive first half of the season wrestling for the Wolverines. He came in second in the Clarion Open, had a tech fall victory in his dual meet debut, clinched a Big Ten Freshman of the Week honor and at one point was ranked No. 16 in the NCAA.
But, as fast as Brock’s season started, it soon came to an end.
In November, Beau got life-changing news. He actually didn’t tear his ACL and wouldn’t need surgery. Instead, he could quickly rehab his way back to full strength. In January, Beau finally made his regular season debut against Maryland, while Brock redshirted the rest of the season.
“From my side, it was pretty awesome, even when Beau went down,” Brock said. “He’s walking around before my matches, limping around and he’s in my ear just telling me I’m ready for this … And now I’m on the flip side. Before Maryland, I was in his ear, basically trying to boost his confidence, which I think is so awesome.”
Since his debut, Beau has wrestled in five duals, only dropping one to Nebraska. He upset three higher-ranked 165-pounders in the Northwestern, Minnesota and Indiana dual meets and has enjoyed competing in front of Michigan fans. But most importantly for Beau, it was nice to just get back to wrestling.
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Through a whirlwind season, Beau and Brock’s relationship has remained the same — and maybe even grew stronger. Throughout it all, they stuck together. To this day, they study their opponents together and discuss techniques together. They have been teammates for as long as they can remember, and now they get to wrestle in the same weight class for the first time, together.
“We’re always each other’s main partners,” Beau said. “We went to all the same tournaments together and trained together, and it’s been pretty cool to go through all these years and have him still be my size. … We do everything together.”
Wrestling has done a lot for the Mantanona family. It’s taught them discipline, structure and how being successful in a sport can translate into being successful in life. But most of all, it’s given the brothers an unbreakable bond that fuels their love for wrestling.
You see that bond whenever Beau and Brock cheer for each other. But it’s also visible every time one of them steps onto the wrestling mat, utilizing those same jiu-jitsu and wrestling techniques from that mat in the garage in Bermuda Dunes — where it all started.
The post ‘We do everything together’: How the Mantanonas’ brotherly bond has shaped them as wrestlers appeared first on The Michigan Daily.
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