Tom Hontz arrived with his team at Upper Perkimen for wrestler weigh-ins around 5:15 p.m. Feb. 1. Across the empty gym, Hontz noticed Jake Engle, one of many protégés and the Indians' interim head coach.

        "Do you know where you're going?" Engle asked Hontz.

        A few minutes later, Hontz provided the referee access to his locker room. The gesture caught Engle off guard.

        "The visiting coach had a key to unlock the door," he said. "That's not typical."

        On Feb. 1, Hontz attended his first Upper Perkiomen wrestling match since resigning as coach at the end of the 2013-14 season. He later accepted the same position with Pope John Paul II.

        "This was a little awkward," he said after the match, which Upper Perkiomen won 48-28. "But it's great to see so many familiar faces."

        Hontz resigned after 24 seasons with the Indians, and collected a successful resume of individual and team successes, including four state championships, 19 PIAA medalists, 18 Southeast Region champs, 31 District 1 titlists and a whopping 76 sectional winners. But he never left the school and continues to teach at the high school and serves as the head coach for varsity football team.

        "At that point in my life, it was time for a different challenge," Hontz said after the match.

        Still, Engle said it "felt weird" talking to his former coach in that context. Hontz coached Engle, a 2004 graduate of Upper Perkiomen, to 109 career wins and two appearances in the PIAA championship tournament.

        Engle, who started the season as an assistant coach with the Indians, said he was looking forward to the match against Hontz and his new team since the schedule was released.

        According to Engle, the novelty wore off as soon as the bout began. He found comfort in hearing a familiar voice and seeing the same bulging veins in Hontz's neck from across the mat.

        According to Engle, the Panthers displayed a team work ethic, which has been a key component of their new coach's success.

        "Their guys did not get tired in the third period, which means (Hontz) is working them pretty hard," Engle said. "That's one thing he always stressed. A hard working wrestler who is in shape always gives himself a chance to an opponent with more ability."

        Hontz said Pope John Paul's wrestling program, with several novices, is similar to the situation in Upper Perkiomen when he took over for the 1990-91 season.

        "The guys on this team are tough," said Hontz, whose coaching staff includes Chris Sheetz, a 2007 graduate of Upper Perkiomen who captured a PIAA championship title in 2005 and wrestled at Kutztown University. "They want to win. We're working hard to build a program."