Connor Cummings and Danny Balderas started the War Dog Training Center in 2023. Coach Cummings and Balderas wrestled together since they were in high school at Downers Grove North. After their high school careers, these teammates became rivals while wrestling against each other in the CCIW conference.

Connor Cummings was a four year starter and captain at Augustana College from 2011-2015 . During his career, Augustana College was consistently ranked as a Top 15 Division III school. Connor placed 4th at the Iowa Regional in 2014. He trained under University of Iowa two-time national champion Eric Juergens. Connor was an assistant coach for the Young Guns Wrestling Club in Iowa during that time, training youth and high school wrestlers in the Quad Cities area. Danny Balderas trained at Elmhurst College and was coached by University of Illinois national champion Steve Marrianeti. Danny qualified for the Division III national tournament in 2014 and was a part of the National Runner Up Elmhurst College wrestling team in 2012-2013.

As their collegiate careers came to an end, both Connor and Danny entered into education and coaching. Danny spent his first 5 years as an assistant coach for Downers Grove North and head coach for the Downers Grove Wrestling Club. In just 5 short years, the brand new DGWC became a USA Wrestling top 100 club in the nation under Danny’s leadership. Connor began teaching at Jefferson Junior High in Woodridge, Illinois and over the course of 8 seasons has developed one of the strongest IESA programs in the state with over 66 state qualifiers, 26 placers, and multiple IESA finalists and champions. In recent years, Connor and Danny have also been the head coaches for Team Illinois at the Middle School National Duals coaching against national competition.

Danny and Connor have decided to continue to help young people in the area develop as wrestlers and competitors. Their experience mentoring and pushing young wrestlers to the best of their ability is second to none, and they are excited to continue to build on their past coaching success with the opening of the War Dog Wrestling Training Center.