My Story
Three-time All-American A.J. Schopp joined the Purdue wrestling staff as an assistant coach in August 2017. From his high-level experience as one of the nation’s top 133-pounders throughout his career at Edinboro, to his time building a program as an assistant coach at South Dakota State, Schopp brings an exceptional skill set and high level of competitiveness to Purdue.
In his four seasons with the Boilermakers, Schopp has mentored a variety of standouts and national qualifiers, including two-time Big Ten Championship 125-pound runner-up Devin Schroder, 2018 NCAA Round of 12 qualifier Luke Welch, two-time national qualifier Ben Thornton and 2021 NCAA qualifier Jacob Rundell. Schroder and Thornton earned spots on the Boilermakers’ back-point record lists under Schopp’s tutelage, with Schroder sitting second all-time in program history.
Schopp joined the Boilermakers’ staff after spending the 2015-16 and 2016-17 seasons as an assistant coach at South Dakota State. Numerous program firsts were established at SDSU with Schopp on staff, highlighted by the program’s first-ever Big 12 Conference champion and Division I All-Americans in Seth Gross and Alex Kocer. Gross was the NCAA runner-up at 133 pounds in 2017, while Kocer placed eighth at 149 pounds.
Schopp’s influence on Gross extended into freestyle, coaching him to a UWW national championship and a spot on the U.S. Junior World Freestyle Team in 2016.
In two seasons with Schopp on staff, the Jackrabbits posted a 28-11 dual record, qualified 10 to the NCAA Championships, totaled 11 Academic All-Big 12 honors and totaled eight NWCA All-Academic distinctions.
Wrestling at 133 pounds at Edinboro (2012-15), Schopp was consistently ranked among the nation’s elite. He was known for his ability to rack up bonus points and his dominance on top.
Schopp was a four-time NCAA Championships qualifier, earning All-America honors three times, and was a three-time Eastern Wrestling League champion.
He placed fourth at the 2013 and 2014 NCAA Championships and had his highest NCAA finish in his final campaign, taking third in 2015. After being upended in the first round, the No. 9 seed stormed through wrestlebacks, winning seven straight to place third. Schopp was bestowed with the Gorriaran Award for the most falls in the least amount of time, sticking four opponents in 11:53 during wrestlebacks. The Fighting Scots’ third-place finish in the team standings marked the highest finish in program history at the Division I championships.
Schopp is scattered throughout Edinboro’s record book. With a career mark of 133-17, his .887 winning percentage ranks second and his 133 wins are tied for sixth. He tops the career falls list with 67 and he earned a spot on the Fighting Scots’ top-20 season falls list in each of his four campaigns
The Tyrone, Pennsylvania, native earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration, along with a minor in economics, from Edinboro in May 2015. He and his wife Katie have two sons, Ryder and Jones.