Wrestling coach goes the extra mile to raise money for program

ENGLEWOOD, Fla. - Englewood Lemon Bay High School wrestling coach Mike Schyck is teaching his athletes some important lessons. The small school doesn't have a lot of money for its sports programs. So, coaches raise some of their own funds for special things like wrestling camp. 

"Over the course of the last five years, I've done a pretty good job of raising money for our program. I've been creative with having concerts and stuff like that," shared Coach Mike.

But this year Coach Mike decided to do something that he has never done before. 

"I ended up going on a grand scale and doing a walk. I walked the Appalachian Trail, which was through 14 states, 2,193.1 miles," said the coach.

For Coach Mike, the walk gave him an opportunity to practice what he preached. 

"I'm always preaching to these guys about setting goals and working hard towards something. And, you know, I don't think I've ever put that in play showing them that I could do the same.

He was surprised about the amount of money his social media effort raised.  

"My goal would be $25,000. And then as I started inching closer to that while I was on my hike, I moved it to 30, then to 35, and now it's at 50," said Coach Mike.

The former Ohio State All-American Wrestler says the journey wasn't easy.

"Back half of my trip, the balls of my feet, my heels just got swollen. I mean, I'm walking around right now and my feet are kind of like when you go to the dentist and after like an hour after, you still feel that numbness in your mouth. That's the way my feet feel. They're numb. And I don't know if I'll get them back. I'm hoping that I will," explained the coach.

Coach Mike sacrificed his body to teach a lesson to his players to work hard and never give up.