Eastern Guilford wrestling coach Maurice Atwood received a national honor from the National Federation of State High School Associations on Monday.

Atwood, who has coached wrestling for 24 years, was named the NFHS Wrestling Coach of the Year. The award is for the 2023-2024 school year.

The award winner is chosen after each state association nominates a coach of the year. Then, sectional coaches of the year are named. Atwood has now been named the national coach of the year.

“Maurice Atwood focuses on the fundamentals as he leads his athletes, most of whom are socioeconomically challenged and come into the program as freshmen without prior wrestling experience. The foundation that Atwood instills has led to many of his former athletes becoming successful coaches, including eight current high school or club coaches,” the NFHS said.

This past season, Atwood led Eastern Guilford to its first NCHSAA 3A dual-team state championship in school history. The Wildcats were a perfect 48-0 during the 2023-2024 season.

Over his 24-year career, Atwood’s teams have posted 865 dual-team wins, including 12 team state titles. A total of 39 individual wrestlers have also won state titles under Atwood’s guidance.

Atwood has been named the N.C. Mat News Wrestling Coach of the Year 10 times and was the NCHSAA Wrestling Coach of the Year in 2014.