FOREST CITY, Iowa – Coach Ryan Dickinson, a serviceman of the Iowa National Guard, is answering his call of duty, and Assistant Coach Joe Lupton is stepping in as interim head coach during his deployment. Coach Dickinson just finished his fourth season with the Warriors and Coach Lupton finished his second season.

Coach Dickinson said, "As always, I am sad to leave the team and program behind, even if it is only temporary. The program has been continuing to trend upwards. I feel good about where we are at and where we are going. I trust in Coach Lupton to continue steering the team in the right direction. I am proud of my service to this country and everything that it entails. I look forward to following the program while I am gone, and I am excited to see where we are when I return."

Coach Lupton joined the Waldorf Men's Wrestling staff in 2023 as a graduate assistant. He then moved into the role of assistant and now his current role as interim head coach. During his time at Waldorf so far, he has coached two wrestlers to the NAIA national tournament and has helped coach six NWCA Scholar All-Americans.

Prior to coming to Waldorf, Lupton graduated from Graceland University where he achieved exceptional feats as a student-athlete.  A four-time National Qualifier, he secured All-American status twice with a 4th and 6th place finish at the NAIA National Tournament. Lupton was a conference finalist four times, and he accumulated a total of 110 college wins during his time competing. He was voted by his teammates as outstanding wrestler, MVP (2x), and was voted as the senior male athlete of the year at Graceland. Notably, he also earned the honors of academic all-conference and scholar All-American for 3 years and was also part of the 2020-21 NAIA Scholar National Championship team at Graceland.   

"I am truly honored to take over the program while Coach Dickinson is serving our country overseas," Coach Lupton said. "It truly is the ultimate sacrifice, and I cannot be more appreciative of his dedication and mentorship in preparing me for this role. I know that he trusts me to keep the program moving in the right direction during his leave, and I cannot thank him enough. His presence in the office and wrestling room will be missed, but I am looking forward to seeing him back here in the Spring! I also want to thank God for giving me this opportunity as I get to coach these young men to success. Getting to impact their lives and be a mentor to them is something that I am so grateful for. I am excited to take on another role here for these guys and still be a familiar face to everyone on the team. It truly is a blessing, and I am looking forward to the upcoming season!"

Coach Dickinson will be deploying for the second time in his tenure as Head Men's Wrestling Coach. He will return in the Spring of 2026.