Mark Thompson joins the Duke wrestling staff this year after completing his MBA at The Citadel in Charleston, S.C. Thompson began his career as a Blue Devil on the mat at 197 pounds and on the football field in 2001. He immediately placed highly in nationally-recognized wrestling tournaments and earned a football scholarship during the spring of his freshman year. He suffered what some would consider a career-ending injury as a sophomore when he completely dislocated his elbow on the mat. He was able to come back to wrestle as a senior, placing second at the ACC championships to a nationally-ranked foe.

While competing as a graduate student at The Citadel, he was nationally-ranked and defeated top 10 opponents. He finished second in the Southern Conference in his final season of eligibility. Thompson finished his career as a two-time NCAA Academic All-America.

Thompson placed second in New Jersey during his senior year of high school. He also quarterbacked his high school's state championship football team.

He is applying to the Fuqua School of Business in the hopes of completing a doctoral program in Organizational Behavior and Leadership Studies.