Homer (Hoss) King: The man behind the "Delmarva Wrestling Club"
If you have been around high school wrestling on Delmarva at some point over the past 20 years, then you have probably heard of Homer King.
On Sunday, Oct. 2, King was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame’s Maryland Chapter.
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King’s wrestling career started at Bel Air High School under Coach Bob Heagy. After graduating from Bel Air in 1971, he wrestled one year at Towson State under coach Dick Forbes. In 1983, he opened Delmarva Auto Glass in Salisbury. Delmarva Auto Glass now has four locations and has diversified into glass tinting, auto upholstery, residential and commercial glass and auto and truck accessories.
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10 years later, King’s interest in wrestling was reignited in 1993 when his oldest son started wrestling at Parkside High School under coach Pat Briscoe. He coached at Parkside until 2003 and then, with the help of Kevin Gilligan and Todd Martinek, King started an offseason program for local student-athletes which later became the Delmarva Wrestling Club. After three years of trying to find practice gyms to accommodate a growing demand, Homer built a facility big enough for a large mat.
After 13 years, the Delmarva Wrestling Club has provided an offseason place where wrestlers can sharpen their skills and improve. 40 State Champs and over 100 state placers have taken advantage of the King’s club. This includes not only Maryland wrestlers but also grapplers from Delaware and Virginia.
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In 2006, King was named Maryland State Wrestling Association Person of the Year by USA Wrestling Magazine. In 2012, he was given the Maryland Service to Wrestling Award.
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King still lives in Salisbury with his wife of 42 years, Karen, and his three children, Brian, Michael and Kelly. The tradition continues as one of Homer’s seven grandchildren has started wrestling at age five.
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Mitchell Northam, tnortham@dmg.gannett.com
Published 6:26 p.m. ET Oct. 3, 2016