Bio

Mike Machholz was promoted to Athletic Director at Missouri Valley College in the summer of 2022, after a more than 30-year career leading the men's wrestling program at the college.  Machholz has been around Missouri Valley College for much of his life, beginning with work in the college's bookstore folding shirts while still in grade school.  A Marshall, Mo., native, Machholz graduated from Marshall (Mo.) High School.  He earned a bachelor's degree in business administration in 1984 from Missouri Valley, and earned a master's of business administration from Lindenwood (Mo.) in 1994.  After a brief time away from the college, Machholz returned in the spring of 1989 to help resurrect the men's wrestling program, which had gone dormant for nearly two decades.  After three seasons as top assistant coach, and lead recruiter, Machholz took over as head coach in 1994, and created one of the most successful men's wrestling programs in the NAIA.

During his more than three decades leading the program, Coach Machholz's teams have produced eleven regional team titles, three National Titles, four National Runner-ups as well as a third and three fourth place team finishes.  Machholz coached 168 All-Americans, 17 National Champions, 37 National Finalists, 22 straight seasons placing in the top 10 nationally with a career record of 222-115-3 in duals.

During his first year as Head Coach, Machholz was named, “1995 Rookie Coach of the Year” by Amateur Wrestling News.  In 2003, Coach Machholz was named the NAIA Coach of the Year for the third time. Additionally, Coach Machholz has also earned eight Regional Coach of the Year Awards during his tenure.  Machholz also served as a member of the coaching staff for the 1997 National Wrestling Coaching Association All-Star Classic held in Clarion, PA and directed USA Exchange trips to Sydney, Australia where 15 of 18 athletes earned medals in the 1997 Australian National Freestyle/Greco Championships and to Beijing, China in 2002 with competitions against the Chinese National, University and Army teams.

Machholz's impact on wrestling wasn't only focused on the men's team, but he helped pioneer the way for Missouri Valley to become the first four-year collegiate institution in the country to offer women's wrestling as a varsity scholarship program in 1999.  Through his work with both men's and women's wrestling programs, Machholz was inducted into the Missouri Valley College Athletic Hall of Fame in 2004, the National Wrestling Hall of Fame-Mo Chapter 2022 and the NAIA Hall of Fame 2024.

Machholz was promoted to Assistant Athletic Director in 2003, Associate Athletic Director in 2013 and to Senior Associate Athletic Director in 2018.  He now leads the Missouri Valley College Athletic Department which sponsors 31 varsity athletic teams, and nearly a dozen varsity reserve athletic teams.  

He is married to his wife Janine of 35 years.