Pueblo is known as Colorado’s Steel City. With a reputation forged by proud (and tough) Puebloans who work hard and let their actions do the talking, it’s a city rich in culture, history, and tradition. Pat Laughlin turned steel into gold at Pueblo’s East High School and now finds himself permanently enshrined with the Lifetime Service to Wrestling honor from the National Wrestling Hall of Fame - Colorado Chapter.

An East graduate himself, Laughlin wrestled under legendary prep coach Larry Wagner — a fellow HOF inductee — before taking a circuitous route to Alamosa and Adams State University (then Adams State College). After dabbling as an assistant with legendary coach Gary Ramstetter at Alamosa High School, Laughlin eventually returned to his roots in Pueblo and took a student teaching job at Pueblo Central. It was there that he was approached by the district’s athletic director, Fred Rodriguez, to fill a void on the mat. “Fred said if I wanted to get a teaching job in the district I’d have to volunteer for the Central wrestling program,” Laughlin joked. “When I finished wrestling, I had said I’d never step on a mat again. I was tired of it. But after coaching at Central those first few years, I was locked in. I had a lot of fun, and you feel like you’re accomplishing something.” Laughlin took a few more jobs around Pueblo, but eventually all roads led back to the East side. He joined his old coach as an Eagles’ assistant in 1995 and took over the program as the head man after Wagner’s retirement in 2008.

Once at the helm, Laughlin helped elevate the already storied program to new heights. From 2013 to 2023, Laughlin’s final season, the Eagles finished in the top 10 in the Class 4A state tournament. In 2018, the Eagles came as close as you could possibly come to winning the state tournament, losing to Windsor by one-half of a point. But the story wasn’t over there. East finally ascended the throne the next year, winning the Class 4A state wrestling championship for the first time in school history off the strength of three individual champions in the final three weight classes.

After a long and successful tenure, the Eagles ultimately sent Laughlin out on top with back-to-back team championships in 2022 and 2023. “East has a great wrestling history with some great coaches,” Laughlin said. “That was just awesome to get over that hump, It was probably more awesome for the kids than myself. We always had great support from the community and the school.” “It was cool to put East on the map as a state champ.” Since retiring from coaching, Laughlin has continued to teach at East and still follows his former Eagles in their college careers.

He received the Hall of Fame nod on a Sunday evening after returning from a family trip. “I usually don’t answer phone numbers that I don’t recognize, but for some reason I did that day,” Laughlin said. “I was shocked, but really, I am just honored and happy. “What really stands out is the relationships that you created with some of your wrestlers, some of the kids. Those are like gold.”

(Presenter- Brian Velarde)