If brothers Blake and Colton Miller aren't the best wrestlers for Collinsville, it's not for a lack of effort.
Blake, a 126-pound junior, and Colton, a 120-pound sophomore, have been wrestling for only three years, but they've earned the respect of Kahoks coach Tom Blaha.
"They're great kids, they're coachable and they're the hardest workers in the (practice) room," Blaha said. "If we get everybody working as hard as they do, we're going to be really tough.
"I can already see improvement in both of them. Colton didn't wrestle any varsity last year and people don't realize how hard the transition is. As a sophomore, you're wrestling juniors and seniors and many of them are state qualifiers.
"Blake moved up to the varsity last year and he was 10-11. He ran up against some tough competition in our season opener (a quad meet against Carbondale, Chatham Glenwood and Quincy on Nov. 22), but that will just make him work even harder."
Blaha describes the brothers as "brawlers."
"They don't mind sticking their heads in there and shooting takedowns and pounding guys," Blaha said. "They'll practice every move and try to get better at it. They're fun to have around and with that work ethic, they're definitely going to be better by the end of the season."
"I guess the work I would to describe us is ‘gutsy,'" Blake said. "We get along with each other really well and we wrestle each other in practice every day, so that helps."
Blake started wrestling as a freshman at Collinsville.
"I can't really say what got me into it, but I just wanted to try it," Blake said. "I played soccer, but it wasn't the sport for me.
"My freshman year I could barely win a match, but my sophomore year I came up to the varsity and claimed my letter. It was a big step, but I gained a lot of confidence.
"I won't get pinned and I never give up. Determination is the big thing for me."
Colton started wrestling the same year as his brother, as an eighth-grader at Collinsville Middle School.
"(Blake) had the idea and said he wanted to wrestle, so I decided to try it and see if I liked it," Colton said. "My first year I didn't have a positive record, but I did alright and I put hard work and dedication into it.
"As a freshman I went 23-14 with 22 pins for the JV and freshman teams. I placed at every tournament except the regional, where I got a concussion.
"Varsity is a lot harder, but I feel pretty good about how I've wrestled. I still have to work to get better."
The brothers are anxious to see what they can accomplish this season.
"I'd like at least make it to the sectional," Colton said. "I eventually want to place at state, at least by my senior year."
Collinsville started the season with wins in all three dual meets.
"We lost a lot of seniors from last year, but we have some guys that are stepping up," Blake said. "We may not be as good now, but we're getting there pretty fast."
