Truett-McConnell College Men's Wrestling

Bond is enterin ghis first year as the Head Wrestling Coach. Bond joins the TMU family after wrestling at Appalachian State University for seven years, where he earned his spot as a four-year starter in the 149 and 157 weight classes.    The Madison County native is a two-time NCAA National Championships qualifier, along with qualifying a third time in his career as an alternate. After finishing 2-2 at the 2024 championships, Bond was ranked in the top 16 in the nation.    Bond is an NCAA Academic All-American and has received an undergraduate degree in Health and Physical Education, while currently pursuing his masters in Higher Education: Concentration in Leadership, which he will complete in May of 2024. 

Cobbs's first year, the Bears went 5-7 in duals, and Joe Hulen (141lbs) was the first wrestler in school history to be named NAIA/Daktronics Academic Scholar Athlete.  The Bears wrestling team excelled greatly in the academic field under Cobbs' direction, with the team finishing No.1 in the NAIA for GPA with a 3.424 GPA. A former assistant wrestling coach at Cumberland University in Lebanon, Tennessee, Cobbs coached 13 national qualifiers, six academic All-Americans and six All-Americans. In 2013, his team finished fifth in the country for academics with a team GPA of 3.29 and second in 2014. He also helped lead his team to a sixth place finish in the 2014 NAIA national tournament. The Chicago native previously coached at Concordia University in Seward, Nebraska, serving as a graduate assistant for one semester before being named Interim Head Coach for the second semester. At Concordia, Cobbs coached eight NAIA national qualifiers, three All-Americans and one NAIA Scholar-Athlete. Cobbs also served as a volunteer coach at Lifeline for Team Powerhouse in Des Moines, Iowa, for three years and was head coach of the OFC Twisters in Oskaloosa, Iowa, for one year. He was a four-year camp clinician at Richmond-Burton Community High School in Richmond, Illinois, two-year spring coach for Harpeth High School in Kingston Springs, Tennessee, and served two years as a camp clinician at Glenbard East High School in Lombard, Illinois. Cobbs began his collegiate career at Loras College in Dubuque, Iowa, earning a trip to the NCAA Division III National Championships as a freshman. He then transferred to William Rainey Harper Community College in Palatine, Illinois, garnering All-America honors and placing fourth at the national tournament in his one season at WRHCC. Cobbs received his Bachelors in Physical Education/Strength and Conditioning from William Penn in May 2011 and a Masters in Sport and Exercise Pedagogy/Sports Management at Cumberland in May 2014.  Cobbs is also a USA Wrestling bronze level certified coach and active volunteer/national coach for Team Georgia.  Cobbs is still actively competing; a complete list of his competitive accolades are as follows: D3 NCAA National Qualifier (Loras) 02-03, NJCAA All-American (Harper) 04-05, 4th, NAIA national qualifier (William Penn) 08-09, two time Illinois state placer, high school record of 127-19, trained at the Olympic Training Center (Colorado Springs) spring of 2006 to the fall of 2006 (Same time as Olympic Champion Henry Cejudo), and has finished as high as the top 12 at 2013 and 2014 U.S. Open. Cobbs is married to wife, Jennifer, and has four children: Jackson (6), Jacobi (5), Marli (2), Jenson (4 months).  He currently resides in Cleveland.

Coach Winkler is entering his fourth season as the Head Competitive Gaming Coach at Truett McConnell University. In Fall 2023, Winkler received federal orders to support Border Patrol in Arizona and served for 15 months along the Southwest Border Mission as a U.S. Army Soldier. Returning in Spring 2025, he resumed his role leading TMU’s Competitive Gaming program with a renewed sense of discipline and professionalism.   Winkler has brought a high level of leadership and structure to the Esports/Competitive Gaming world, drawing on his service in the South Carolina Army National Guard. His military training as an Engineering Officer includes advanced work with military drone technology, and he will continue his military education by completing the Captains Career Course in July 2026. He is set to advance from First Lieutenant to Captain in October 2025.   Since taking over the program, Winkler has guided the Bears through a rapidly evolving esports landscape, forming partnerships with organizations such as AVGL, GEL, Stride, and NACE Starleague (now PCL). He continues to innovate with emerging technologies, including the integration of AI into team training and development.   Originally from a competitive gaming background, Winkler has long been passionate about both video games and tabletop strategy games. His favorite titles include the Halo Trilogy, Legend of the Dragoon, and Dragon Age: Origins, while his tabletop favorites include HeroQuest, Dungeons & Dragons, and Warhammer 40k. He and his wife, Ayana, enjoy gaming together and are looking forward to welcoming their first child in Fall 2025.   Before beginning his coaching career, Winkler competed in wrestling at Iowa Central Community College, where he was a member of the 2012 National Duals Wrestling Championship Team. He later attended Midland University, earning his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration while competing on the wrestling team and helping establish the foundation of Midland’s competitive gaming program.   Winkler plans to pursue his master’s degree at Truett McConnell University while balancing his coaching and military careers. He remains committed to using competitive gaming as a platform to share his faith and glorify God.