Slippery Rock University has named Jeff Breese as head coach of its wrestling program, director of athletics Roberta Page announced. Breese comes to The Rock after four seasons as director of wrestling development at Army West Point.

Breese will begin his tenure at SRU in July and will be tasked with launching an NCAA Division II wrestling program set to begin competing in the 2027-28 academic year. It marks a return of wrestling at Slippery Rock after the program was discontinued in 2006, when it competed at the Division I level.
At Army West Point, Breese oversaw all team operations while also serving as head coach of the Army Prep team and the West Point Wrestling Club. During his tenure, the Black Knights sent 20 wrestlers to the NCAA Division I Championships over four seasons, including seven in 2024-25. Breese also helped develop three U23 Pan American champions, 19 U23 All-Americans and 34 EIWA medalists. Last weekend, he guided three West Point Club wrestlers to All-America honors and a pair of national runner-up finishes at the U23 National Championships in Geneva, Ohio.

Prior to Army, Breese spent four seasons as head coach of the Division II program at Lake Erie College, where he led the team to a Great Midwest Athletic Conference title and three GMAC finals appearances. He coached 10 NCAA qualifiers, three NCAA All-Americans and 40 Scholar All-Americans during his time there. Before Lake Erie, Breese was the head coach at Buena Vista University in Iowa from 2014-18, where he established a USA Wrestling Regional Training Center on campus and sent one athlete to nationals.

A western Pennsylvania native from Claysville in Washington County, Breese was a two-time PIAA state champion at McGuffey High School. He went on to become a three-year starter at North Carolina State, helping the Wolfpack win the 2004 ACC championship. He returned to NC State in 2012 as director of operations, helping the program climb from 70th to 19th in the NCAA Division I rankings.

Breese will use the 2026-27 academic year to recruit and build the foundation for the program ahead of its 2027-28 competitive debut. Information for prospective recruits will be available in July.