GREEN COVE SPRINGS - Any Florida high school wrestling fan in the past decade or two has heard the name Fox Baldwin mentioned when it comes to great grapplers from the Sunshine State.

Simply stated, Fox Baldwin, now 29, still holds the state and national wins record after accumulating an eighth-grade state title with four straight Florida high school state titles up to 2015. Baldwin did not lose a match from December of his freshman season at Osceola High.

"I had 395 wins (305 by pin) with 17 losses in high school," Baldwin said. "My career had a lot of opportunities for championship wins and I learned how to compete at that level from my sixth grade on. As a sixth grader, I wrestled Super 32 high school division because they didn't have a middle school division then got fifth as a sixth grader in the Florida state tournament and second as a seventh grader. Most of those 17 losses were in my sixth and seventh grade matches."

Baldwin's prowess was not a one-move arsenal, but rather a breadth of knowledge from every position. Nationally, Baldwin was a Fargo Cadet champion, a FloNationals champ, a Super 32 champion and a Beast of the East champion with top finishes at such powerhouse meets as Powerade, FILA Cadet's and FILA Juniors. His final high school match was a win at the Dapper Dan against Pennsylvania state champion TeShan Campbell, an NCAA qualifier for four years while at Michigan State University now a coach for the Spartans.

"I could execute solid moves on top, on bottom and neutral," Baldwin said. "When I get asked if I miss wrestling, I truly believed I was meant to wrestle at a high level to become a better coach. Wrestling has made me want to be the best at everything I do—being a dad, being a friend, being a husband. All that."

Baldwin came to Green Cove Springs off a phone call from Joseph Fiore, dad to St. Johns Country Day School 113 Clay Rotary champion Bryce Fiore, who asked Baldwin if he could come to Clay County to personally coach Bryce.

"I was a school administrator and principal in Titusville when I started a wrestling program," said Baldwin, married with four young children. "With the four kids and the long days of teaching and wrestling practice, I had to decide what was going to give. I wanted to be with my family more."

Baldwin's passion for the sport of wrestling drew the short stick and he uprooted his family into a fifth wheel recreational vehicle.

"Most of my coaching was making me travel to different cities and my wife and I decided to sell the house, buy the fifth wheel and travel the country with everyone and see as much country and coach wrestling at the same time," Baldwin said. "I got the call from Joey Fiore to coach him up for Super 32."

Baldwin reversed course from a trip to the Florida Keys and got rolling and wound up at the Clay County Fairgrounds in August.

"My wife loves to travel and we homeschool the kids," Baldwin said. "We found out that it didn't matter where we were living and what we were living in if we were all happy. That was the bottom line for all of us."

Baldwin started working with Fiore before other wrestling aficionados started seeing him around local mats—one being Clay High coach Jim Reape. Reape got Baldwin involved with the Green Cove Springs Wrestling Club with Baldwin having one hesitation.

"When you are in one place a few years working with kids and developing them, you have to stick around to see the work come through as the competition gets better," Baldwin said. "The people in Clay County have been super in supporting us and making us part of the family. I'm not ruling it out, but nothing is permanent just yet."

Baldwin left Osceola High as arguably the greatest wrestler in Florida. He attended University of Virginia but his college career, with a 9-0 start and a first loss from Ohio State No. 1 ranked Bo Jordan, was quickly stalled by persistent injuries.

"Concussions, torn hamstrings and regular wrestling nicks and bumps," Baldwin said. "That's where the coaching part started to grab my passion."

For Fiore, Baldwin sees a possible athlete that can challenge his own record of excellence.

"As a young wrestler, Bryce was more a defensive wrestler and was winning matches 2-1, 3-1 when I started coaching with him at 11 years old," Baldwin said. "I think the kid wants to win really, really bad. We've had to build his offensive arsenal, and we had to create more wrestling positions for him to be exposed to on the mat. I remind him that his defense is the best in the country and that his defense skills are always in his muscle memory. Now, we score points."

Baldwin credits legendary Osceola High coach Jim Bird with his development.

"He coached me since I was four years old and in diapers."

He noted that Coach Bird's prowess was in the mental preparation of wrestling.

"He once told me, as a sophomore, to relax and put music on at state when I was pacing like six matches away from my match against a kid who I wrestled against my whole life—Aaron Hartman, a nationally ranked wrestler (Palm Harbor High and Hofstra University) and a guy who beat me multiple times as a kid," Baldwin said. "Coach Bird saw me pacing and getting all worked up and told me to calm down. Hartman was also pacing crazy, but I won with a tech fall like 17-1."

Baldwin's family includes wife Kaitlin, an Osceola High volleyball standout, and children Little Fox, 6; Lion, 3; Ellie, 2; and Bear "Brawler," 1.

"I think Little Fox knows what I did, but I want him to be coached by others because we butt heads," Baldwin said. "He's very competitive and likes to figure out his own way."