In the Corner with Coach Atwood: Chris Waddell retires from coaching; Son Hayden takes over
All good things come to an end. That is as demonstrably true as the certainty of paying taxes and dying. It’s just the way things are in the crazy worlds of life and sport. For Chris Waddell, the opportunity to move up in position to Athletic Director, as well as take on other assigned duties at Uwharrie Charter Academy, were too immense to continue as head wrestling coach. On August 28, 2024, Chris retired from actively coaching wrestling.
Chris has a long story to tell that encompasses lessons from a tough upbringing to experiencing tremendous success as an athlete and coach to raising and caring for a special needs child that will be a lifetime commitment for him and his wife, Deanna.
Chris is the son of Eddie and Emily Waddell (married 54 years). They, along with Chris’s older brother, Charles, were a middle-class family out in the country of Thomasville. Both parents were athletes themselves with Eddie playing football in high school and college, and Emily being a cheerleader and basketball player.
Eddie grew up poor with a tough father, James, who fought in two wars. Because of that, James wasn’t around much. James served in the Marines and fought in Okinawa during WWII and Korea. James drank a lot due to all the combat he saw, and he was either gone or “just plain mean” when he was present. James would eventually become an incredible grandfather, but he was not a good father to Eddie.
James changed dramatically when he started to have grandchildren and great-grandchildren. He had 4 children, 7 grandchildren, and 15 great-grandchildren when he died at 91. He was a big part of Chris’s life and Chris’s children’s lives. James never missed any of Chris’s football games or wrestling matches.
In 1970, Eddie joined the Army and would eventually serve as a drill sergeant. His years of service were 1970-86 with most of those years serving in the Reserves. Chris was born in 1977. On growing up, Chris reflected, “My father's upbringing and military service probably drove him to bring me up to be tough, hard-working, and mean. I had chores and a workout that I had to complete every day, and if I didn't, there would be a consequence. The consequence was a leather belt, which I became very familiar with. He was never abusive or mean. The lesson was simple: do as you're told, and you will be rewarded. Disobey me; sitting down may be uncomfortable for a while. Boys need love, discipline, reinforcement, and correction to become men. My father was instrumental in making me into the man I am today.”
Chris attended East Davidson High School and graduated in 1995. He played football, wrestled, and ran track. He was on the 1993 Dual-Team State championship team and was a starter on the 1994 team Regional Runners-up team and the 1995 Dual-Team State Championship team. Chris was a varsity starter during the 1994 and 1995 seasons and was All-Conference and a state qualifier in 1995.
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After high school, during the 1995-96 school year, Chris attended Davidson County Community College. That same school year he worked as an assistant coach at South Davidson HS under legendary coach, Mike Crowell. Chris refers to Coach Crowell as “an incredible man and coach.”
For the 1996-97 school year, Chris transferred to Appalachian State. He would be a Mountaineer for just 1 year and chose the beach over the mountains transferring to UNC-Wilmington.
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While attending App State and UNCW, Chris got involved with playing rugby and was selected to the NC All-Star Rugby team while representing UNCW. He also continued serving as an assistant wrestling coach assisting another legendary high school coach, Alan Sewell of Laney, during the 1997-98 school year. Regarding Coach Sewall, Chris said, “He is another incredible man and coach.”
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Chris graduated in 2000 with a Degree in Physical Education and was hired at Southwestern Randolph. Chris commented, “I graduated in December of 2000 and was hired as the Intervention Center Coordinator at SWR January 4, 2001.”
Chris did not coach at SWR right away. His first son, Hayden, was born a little more than 1 month after he was hired. He began his SWR coaching career in the summer of 2001 as an assistant coach. He would do that for 2 years before taking over the program as head coach in April 2002.
Chris served as the assistant to Trent Taylor. On Coach Taylor, Chris stated, “a great man, team builder, and storyteller.”
Chris’s hiring in April 2002 would be the beginning of what would become a storied coaching career.
Here is a rundown of Chris’s statistics while serving as head wrestling coach:
2002-16 Southwestern Randolph High School
2016-24 Uwharrie Charter Academy
Career Coaching Record of 733-68
1A North Carolina Coach of the Year 3x 2019, 2020, 2024
School Coach of the Year 4x 2010, 2012, 2019, 2023-2024
Conference Coach of the Year 8x 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2022, 2023
3 NCHSAA Dual Team State Champs 2019, 2023, 2024.
2 NCHSAA Tournament State Champions 2018, 2019
3 NCHSAA Dual Team Runner-up 2012, 2020, 2022
1 NCHSAA State Tournament Runner-up 2020
NC All-Star Coach 3x 2020, 2023, 2024
Coached 80 NCHSAA State Place winners
18 State Champions
17 State Runner-ups
16 3rd Place
16 4th Place
5 5th Place
8 6th Place
67 wrestlers selected to All-State Teams
17 Conference Championships
Never finished lower than 2nd place in 22 seasons as Head Coach.
22 consecutive playoff appearances
14 wrestlers were selected as the Conference Wrestler of the Year
Over 200 wrestlers selected to All-Conference Teams
At Uwharrie, Chris started the program from scratch.
Beyond the coaching success, Chris feels gratitude for the wrestling related relationships he established along the way. The truth is, however, that if not for being born blind in his right eye none of this would have ever happened. Chris wanted to join the military out of high school, but he couldn’t due to his eye not working. Chris stated, “God knew I needed to be a coach, so he took my eye and gave me the gift of leadership.”
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Regarding those wrestling related relationships, Chris stated, “I have many wrestling brothers and children. Brothers- Eric Soto, Kevin Brackett, Dakota Aldridge, Kyle Gabby, Jeremy Perdue, Josh Hatfield, Daniel Hernandez, Mike Chitavong, Jacob Clapp, Talon Flowers, John Musser, David lackey, Richard Herman, Maurice Atwood, Lee Lawson, Bobby Shriner, Brian Tutterow, Kendall Nelson, Todd Odom, Josh Winfrey, and all my boys in black from Robbinsville. Children- Any wrestler that I have coached since I have been at UCA and any child of a wrestler that I have ever coached or worked with because wrestling means family. If I have forgotten anyone, it was not intentional. I have been forever blessed by this sport and the relationships that came from being involved in it over the past 26 years as a coach.”
Of course, with coaching there is more that comes with that position than just teaching kids how to wrestle and enhancing their high school experience. There is the other side that involves mentors, adversaries, colleagues, administrators, and family. Regarding all these, Chris stated, “Mentors, First and foremost my father, Eddie Waddell for teaching me to be a man. Bobby House, Brian Lingerfelt, and Phil Kanoy for introducing and teaching me how to wrestle. Mike Crowell, Alan Sewell, and Trent Taylor for showing me there is more than one way to coach, and the value of relationships in coaching. Richard Herman, Bob Shriner, and Brian Tutterow for mentoring me as a young coach. Maurice Atwood, Todd Odom and all my boys in black from Robbinsville who went from hated rivals to some of my closest and most respected colleagues and friends. Lee Lawson, Daniel Hernandez, Kendall Nelson, and Mike Chitavong, who I have come to know and deeply respect as friends and colleagues through this wonderful sport. John Musser and David Lackey, my best friends and teammates in high school who are still a part of my families lives today. Eric Soto, Kevin Brackett, Kyle Gabby, Jeremy Perdue, Josh Hatfield, Jacob Clapp, Dakota Aldridge, Scotty Phagan, and Talon Flowers who I coached in high school and are now grown men with their own families. I am so proud of all of them. All the parents of the kids I have coached who are now part of my family, there are too many to name.”
Chris is married to Deanna Waddell. They have been married 24 years and have 2 children, Hayden (23) and Maddox (20). Regarding Deanna, Chris stated, “I must thank my wife, Deanna, without her none of this would be possible. She has supported me and my teams from the beginning. She is my number one fan and has sacrificed over half her life to a sport she knew nothing about when we got married. Now she is one of the most passionate and sometimes rabid wrestling fans you will ever meet. I love you, Deanna.”
Hayden is teaching at UCA Elementary School and was named the new Head Wrestling Coach at Uwharrie Charter Academy. Hayden was a 3x NCHSAA State Champion, Holy Angels Champion, and a 5-year starter on the University of Mount Olive wrestling team.
Maddox is a senior at UCA, and he is Autistic. Chris stated, “Maddox is the kindest, most gentle person that you will ever meet. He is an incredible artist and enjoys acting in his theater class at school.”
Maddox is the inspiration for The Pin Down Autism Super Duals that are held over two days the first weekend in January. Chris created this tournament beginning in January 2019 and it has become a staple for several teams seeking quality dual meet competition at that point in the season. Chris commented, “Part of the proceeds every year go back to our 3 school’s exceptional children’s classes to spend as they see fit. Any special needs individual is admitted free and receives a shirt. We recognize each wrestler on the second day of the tournament. They are allowed to challenge wrestlers from their teams to matches. Everybody cheers and has a good time.”
Obviously, having a special needs child brings significant life changing requirements and challenges that the Waddell family has embraced. I asked Deanna to share how Maddox’s Autism affects him to introduce and educate readers about Autism. She responded:
“Maddox’s autism is quite honestly loaded, confusing and unique to himself. Basically, it’s a lifelong neurodevelopmental disability. It affects people in different ways with lots of other disorders, symptoms and degrees of severity. That’s why they call it a spectrum. I describe it as an umbrella. At the top of the umbrella is autism, then each spoke that comes off the top spoke to form the umbrella is all those other disorders, traits and symptoms. For Maddox he struggles with Tourette’s syndrome, severe epilepsy, ADHD, anxiety, echolalia, sensory issues, understanding basic social cues and is most definitely a creature of habit. He likes routine in everything. He has a hard time making eye contact, understanding emotions and interpreting facial expressions which lead to communication issues and how he interacts with others (making friends and forging relationships). Most with autism also have physical issues like odd walking or running gait, lack of body awareness, poor coordination, some have repetitive flapping, rocking or head banging. That’s one place where Maddox is different. He’s blessed with excellent physical motor skills and body awareness. Yet he has immense problems with comprehension and everyday learning and life skills. He didn’t learn to read until he was in 6th grade, but potty trained completely at 16 months and was running circles around Chris and I then. He has no real sense of danger because he can’t read a situation. He knows to look both ways before crossing the road, but his mind is on a mission to get to the other side, so cars are not even a thought. He can’t tell time unless it’s digital, has no concept of AM and PM, has no understanding of a calendar, money, expiration dates and gets mentally overloaded reading the cooking directions on a frozen pizza. I think some of the biggest things that have benefited Maddox is that he’s had total support and encouragement from day one. He’s never been told he can’t do something because he has Autism or whatever. We refuse to let anything hinder our kids’ dreams or goals. It’s always been “Yes you can and will. You just might do it differently.” He’s also been blessed with the absolute BEST big brother ever and so many wrestlers over the years that love and celebrate him just the way he is. They’re his friends and family too. Maddox’s Autism doesn’t define him, it’s his whip topping with sprinkles that make him so much more. Our family is pretty freaking blessed to have been gifted with that perfect soul. Caring for Maddox is our life. We can never change the entire world in preparation for a child with special needs, but we can try our best to plant seeds in others and prepare our child for the world in hopes that it’s a better place than the one he was born into.”
WOW. What an incredible statement. Please take the time to read it again. I did several times and each time it brings tears to my eyes.
Now that Chris is retired from coaching, he will focus on being Athletic Director and serve in other capacities around UCA. Having recently earned his master’s degree in educational leadership from Western Governors University, he would like to become a Principal one day.
Other areas of interest that Chris has are working out, hanging with family and friends, and “sadly” being a Carolina Panthers fan.
I reached out to several people to get a quote on Chris. Here are their responses:
Bobby House- Former East Davidson Head Coach
“Chris was a very dependable and aggressive wrestler when he wrestled for me at East Davidson. He took that aggressiveness to his coaching and was a very good coach. I wish him all the luck in the world in his coaching retirement. He will do well as AD.”
Alan Sewell- Former Laney Head Coach
“I have watched Chris since he volunteered at Laney HS while he was in college. Had the pleasure of coaching his son Hayden at The University of Mount Olive. Always classy, a true builder of our great sport. Blessed to have been a part of his journey and so very proud of his growth as a husband, father, teacher and coach. Well done my friend.”
Richard Herman- Retired Coach from numerous schools
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“Chris is an excellent coach and a terrific friend. I have enjoyed competing against him because he instills the correct attributes in the young men and women that he coaches and teaches.”
Todd Odum- Retired Robbinsville Head Coach
“I had never met Chris, and I hated him. He was my nemesis. The enemy. He had something I wanted, and he was the bad guy. I was the hero, and he was the villain. But then he shook my hand. He spoke with direction and passion for the sport. So, I started watching him from a distance and I discovered something about Coach Waddell. I watched how he interacted with his kids, and how they responded to his coaching. I also watched him be a great dad to his sons, and how he would stop the world just to hang on to every word they had to say. He also had the best Assistant Coach at that end of the state with his wife Deanna. He was all in on the sport of wrestling and suddenly, my enemy was my friend. He was and is one of the good guys. For the last 25 years Coach Waddell has had a huge impact on our sport. The countless trajectories he has changed in the lives of his athletes is unmeasurable. I’m proud to be called his friend and hope that he doesn’t get too far away from the corner. Congrats Coach Waddell and God Bless you and your bunch!”
Eric Soto- Uwharrie Charter Assistant Coach
“I think it’s a great thing for Coach Waddell to pass the torch to his son. After 5 years of college Hayden has developed a technical knowledge of the sport that is beyond us. Hayden is young, passionate about wrestling and has the same desire to win just like Chris does. Hayden was on the very first UCA team, he was the first UCA state champion, and on the team that won our first title. Chris will still be in the room very often to help guide Hayden in the right direction and so will I. We are both very excited, we’ve watched his entire career as a wrestler, and we can’t wait to see what he does as a head coach.”
Dakota Aldridge- Former wrestler at Southwestern Randolph HS
“Coach Waddell was a leader of young men. He taught us so much more than just wrestling. If we ever needed advice or just someone to talk to, he was always there for us. He really built more than just a great wrestling program; he built a huge family.”
Deanna Waddell- Chris’s wife
“Not many wives can say she’s actually been present to watch the full completion of her husband’s dream. I’ve been blessed to say I have. It’s not been an easy journey. Along the way I learned a lot about myself, the sport of wrestling and my husband. I watched the man I married have a complete evolution during wrestling season. I remember telling someone jokingly many years ago, “I don’t know who that man is, that’s not who I married.” Haha!! The joke was on me, but I’m so happy that it was. I couldn’t be prouder or love him anymore than I do at this second. He’s done so much for so many young wrestlers. He changed lives with his passion for the sport of wrestling. That’s a profound statement if you think about it. The average person might have a handful of opportunities to change the lives of others in their lifetime, some coaches do it all the time if they’re good, and in my opinion, he’s great. There’s proof to that statement, just ask any wrestler he’s ever coached or look at all his assistant coaches. All good things come to an end. It’s a bittersweet feeling, but I’m so excited for this new path. It won’t be the end of wrestling for him or our family. Wrestling has subtlety in the most beautiful way tainted our blood. Our oldest, Hayden, will be taking the Uwharrie Charter head coach’s seat and making it his own. Chris and our family will always be a wrestling family. We’ll just be watching from a different view.”
Hayden Waddell- Chris’s son and new Head Coach at Uwharrie Charter
“My coach or dad, depending on which time of year it is, is the kind of man and wrestling coach I strive to be. He’s the best. I’m happy for him and extremely proud of everything he’s done in the sport. Most of all, I’m blessed to have called my coach, dad, but I hope he gets used to bringing me coffee and calling me “Head Coach.” Joking, if you’re reading this, “I love you dad.”
Maddox Waddell- Chris’s Autistic son
Does this mean we’re going to be rich? Daddy was awesome. Is he still going to take me to wrestling camp? He better so we can eat ice cream and drink chocolate milk.”
Congratulations to Chris Waddell on a stellar coaching career and for moving up into the Athletic Director position. Chris has a great life that he has worked hard to obtain, and the day will come when he is serving as a principal. Whatever school that is will be lucky to have him.
Until next time…
Coach Atwood-XX