MANKATO, Minn. -- Minnesota State men's wrestling coach Jim Makovsky has announced Paul Bianchi is joining the staff as the Assistant Wrestling Coach.
 
"I am excited to have Coach Bianchi on staff," said Makovsky. "We have an unbelievable tradition here and we have a way of doing things. I found Coach Bianchi to be a guy that cares a lot about the individuals in the program, not just the wrestling, but their entire journey. He's knowledgeable, a great recruiter, organized… and he's an excellent coach, knows the technique and tactics. Happy to have him here."
 
"I'm excited to be a part of such a great program, they have a lot of history and success, it's awesome to start my next chapter as a coach in such a great program and become a part of something bigger than myself," said Bianchi. "I get to learn from a coach who's been at it for many years and get to build an understanding of how things work and learn the ropes, and hopefully become the best that I can be in the coaching world."
 
Bianchi, a native of Two Rivers, Wis., spent the 2021-22 season as a graduate assistant with the wrestling program at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.
 
Bianchi has experience coaching as a volunteer coach at Central Arkansas Christian Schools in Little Rock, Ark., during the 2021-22 season, as well as was a Wisconsin Wrestling Federation Coach in the summer of 2019, which is associated with USA Wrestling. Bianchi also helped as an Askren Wrestling Academy Camp counselor/clinician in 2018-19.
 
Bianchi wrestled at University of Arkansas at Little Rock between 2019-22. In 2021, Bianchi was a NCAA Division I national championships qualifier at 133. Before transferring to UALR, Bianchi wrestled for North Dakota State from 2016-19. In 2018, Bianchi was also a national championship qualifier at 125.
 
Bianchi, who earned an undergraduate degree in Applied Communication from UALR in 2020 and a master's degree in Sport Management from UALR in 2022, was a three-time Wisconsin high school state champion, fashioning a career record of 205-6 at Two Rivers.