Cody Thorn
Charles Bryant just had to watch a little bit of video last summer when he heard Arlington Seguin a pair of brothers transferred in from Portage, Indiana.
Newcomers E’Shawn and Lashon Tolbert were joining a Cougars program.
E’Shawn, a senior, was a state-ranked wrestler in Indiana and won a sectional title last year. By the end of the year, he became one of the most unlikiest state champions in Texas — perhaps even in all of UIL history.
When Tolbert arrived at Seguin he had an interest in wrestling, but he was 18 and wasn’t all the way in when it came to wrestling in a new state.
“I knew he could still wrestle and was capable, he just needs some coaching,” Bryant recalls.
Instead of wrestling, he joined the workforce and started working in an Amazon warehouse. Bryant didn’t give up on the transfer.
He kept the communication line open and left the ball in his court if he wanted to join the team during the wrestling season.
His brother, Lashon, opened his time in Texas by having four top-four finishes, including winning first at the Fort Worth ISD Championship and Seguin Cougar Classic.
The season ticked along for the Cougars and still were without E’Shawn Tolbert. He wrestled one match, a dual against Keller Central on Dec. 13 and got a pin in 17 seconds to win.
But, he stepped back away from the team again. After the state final wins, he simply said ‘choices’ when asked why didn’t he wrestle.
“He wasn’t committed to it at the time,” Bryant said. “When that happened, we had to rethink and see what would happen. I tried to keep him close and have a relationship with him to see what he wanted to do.”
Finally, as the postseason neared, he heard his brother’s excitement….
