Peterson Roll: A Beginner’s Guide for Wrestlers and Parents

Peterson roll for beginners

The Peterson Roll is a wrestling reversal that allows a wrestler on bottom to flip the script – turning a defensive position into an offensive one. Named after Olympic champion John Peterson (who popularized it in the 1970s)(fanaticwrestling.com), this move involves rolling your opponent onto their back while trapping their arm. In folkstyle wrestling, a successful Peterson Roll earns a two-point reversal (and often near-fall points if you expose your opponent’s back)(redrootswrestlingclub.org). For young wrestlers and their parents, learning the Peterson Roll can be exciting; it’s a dynamic technique that can dramatically change the outcome of a match. This guide will break down the move step by step, offer coaching tips, highlight common mistakes (with corrections), and outline counters opponents might use – all in clear, 10th-grade language. Our tone is supportive and instructional, so parents can confidently help their beginners practice this move. (Remember: safety first – always practice under proper supervision and with a partner of similar size and skill.)

Step-by-Step Breakdown of the Peterson Roll

Starting Position: The Peterson Roll typically starts from the referee’s position (you are on bottom, opponent on top). For explanation, assume your opponent is on your right side in top position. Adjust left/right as needed if situations differ.

1. Secure the Arm: Begin by controlling your opponent’s right arm, which is the arm they likely have around your waist. Use your left hand to reach back and grab that arm. Ideally, hook at their elbow or upper arm. Pull their arm tight against your body so they cannot pull it away or post on the mat (fanaticwrestling.com). Tip: If possible, lock your hands by grabbing your own wrist (creating a “figure-four” on their captured arm) for a stronger grip. This traps the arm and prevents your opponent from basing out.

2. Build a Base & Elevate: Simultaneously, base up on your knees and toes – a tripod position. From bottom, rise so that your weight is on your feet and one hand, with your back slightly arched. This gives you a stable base to roll from. As you tripod, look away from your opponent (to the left, since opponent is on your right). This head turn will facilitate a smoother roll.

3. Hook the Near Leg: With your opponent’s arm secured, you must also control their right leg (the leg nearest you) to roll them. Take your right leg and step over and hook behind your opponent’s right leg. Your right knee should slip under their thigh if possible. This leg hook blocks your opponent from simply stepping out. It also ensures they come along when you roll. Think of it like tripping the opponent’s leg from underneath.

4. Roll Through: Now the actual roll – this is the core of the Peterson. Tuck your chin slightly and perform a forward roll toward your left shoulder. Important: Roll in the direction of the arm you have trapped (here, toward your left, because you secured their right arm) (fanaticwrestling.com). Explosively kick your legs and roll shoulder-to-shoulder with your opponent. Keep a tight hold on their arm and leg as you roll. Your momentum will flip them over your body. As you roll through, do not let go of the arm grip – maintaining control is crucial to end up on top.

5. Finish on Top: Complete the roll by coming perpendicular to your opponent. You should end in a position facing their side, chest-to-chest with them. Their right arm is still trapped in your grasp, and they are flat on their back or side. Settle your weight on them. This is essentially a reversal to the top position – you’ve gone from bottom to top control. From here you can secure a pinning hold or simply maintain control for the referee’s two-point reversal signal (redrootswrestlingclub.org). If you continue holding the arm and leg tightly and drive into them, you may also expose their back for near-fall points.

Each step should be practiced in sequence. Start slowly, ensuring your child understands how to trap the arm, hook the leg, and roll in the correct direction. When done correctly, the Peterson Roll will feel smooth – you use your opponent’s momentum and lack of base against them, rather than pure strength (fanaticwrestling.com). Encourage your wrestler to commit to the roll once they initiate it; a half-hearted attempt can stall midway. With drilling, the sequence of secure, base up, hook, and roll will become one fluid motion.

Coaching Tips for Parents

Parents can play a supportive role in helping young wrestlers learn the Peterson Roll. Here are some coaching tips in plain language:

• Emphasize Position and Control: Remind your wrestler that the Peterson Roll isn’t about muscling an opponent over. It’s about position. Make sure they start with a solid base (knees under hips, weight on toes) and secure control of the opponent’s arm before rolling. A strong grip on the wrist/arm and a tight leg hook will do the work if their body position is right (fanaticwrestling.com).

• Break it into Parts: If the full move is overwhelming, break practice into chunks. For example, first just practice the arm trap and leg hook without the roll. Then practice the rolling motion separately on a crash pad or with a parent assisting. Once each part feels comfortable, combine them. This stepwise learning builds confidence.

• Use Relatable Analogies: For a 10th-grade level, analogies help. You can say, “Imagine doing a somersault over your shoulder while holding someone’s arm.” Or compare the motion to rolling out of bed while pulling a blanket over – a similar idea of rolling while holding on to something. Such imagery makes the mechanics less abstract.

• Safety First: Ensure your child tucks their head and rolls on the shoulder – not the neck. You can physically spot them by guiding their shoulder down and helping them flip until they learn to do it alone. Also, use proper mats. As a parent, don’t be afraid to get on the mat to walk them through the motion slowly. Your involvement can make practice feel supportive rather than scary.

• Positive Reinforcement: Celebrate the small victories. If your wrestler secures the arm correctly or does a nice roll, praise that specifically. For example, “Great job keeping his arm tight!” This encourages them and builds muscle memory. Wrestling moves can be complex; knowing a parent sees their progress boosts the child’s confidence.

By applying these tips, parents help reinforce what coaches teach. The goal is to make learning the Peterson Roll a fun challenge rather than a source of frustration. Keep practice sessions short and positive, and end on a good note (such as a successful attempt, even if assisted).

Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Learning a new technique often comes with mistakes. Here are common errors with the Peterson Roll and ways to fix them:

• Mistake 1: Rolling the Wrong Way. A frequent error is rolling over the wrong shoulder, which can leave the wrestler flat on their back (bad news!). Fix: Always roll toward the arm you have trapped. A helpful reminder from coach Ben Askren: “roll over the shoulder of the arm that is not grabbing your opponent’s leg.” (fanaticwrestling.com) In our example, you trap their right arm, so you roll toward your left shoulder. Rehearse this with a coach or parent pointing to the correct shoulder before each attempt.

• Mistake 2: Failing to Trap the Arm Tightly. If you don’t secure your opponent’s arm, they will post their hand on the mat mid-roll and stop your Peterson cold. Fix: Emphasize arm control. Clamp their arm against your body and do not let go through the roll. One coaching mantra: “No arm, no roll.” You might practice just grabbing and holding the arm as a drill. Parents can check that their child is really locking that arm in (“Is his arm stuck, like glued to you? Good!”). A trapped arm denies the opponent a base to prevent the roll (fanaticwrestling.com).

• Mistake 3: Forgetting to Hook the Leg. Some beginners focus so much on the arm that they forget to involve their legs. Without hooking the opponent’s leg, you might roll out (Granby-style) but not take your opponent with you, or you could allow them to step over and crush you. Fix: Always “lasso” the leg before you roll. If your opponent’s leg is too far, scoot your hips closer and then hook it. Coaches often drill a “tripod, hook, then roll” sequence to instill this habit. A parent can give a verbal cue: “Leg!” during practice if the hook is missing.

• Mistake 4: Lack of Momentum in the Roll. A timid, slow-motion Peterson will stall, potentially leaving you underneath an opponent who now knows your plan. Fix: Once the arm and leg are secured, commit to the roll with a burst of explosiveness. Drive with your legs and pop your hips through as you roll. Your opponent’s weight will help carry the momentum, flipping them over (they effectively trip over you). Encourage your wrestler to “explode on the roll”. Practicing on a padded surface or into a crash mat can help them gain confidence to go hard. As Stan Dziedzic notes in general, timing and momentum are key to success in these kinds of moves (Dziedzic 1983, 99).

• Mistake 5: Letting Go Too Soon. Sometimes kids get excited and after rolling, they release the arm or leg prematurely, thinking the move is done. This can allow the opponent to scramble away. Fix: Finish the move. Instruct your wrestler to maintain control of the arm (and leg, if possible) until they are fully on top and the opponent is on their back. Only once you’ve established top position should you consider transitioning to another hold. A good habit is to keep the arm trapped and elevate it slightly as you come on top – this also helps turn the opponent’s back toward the mat for possible back points.

By anticipating these mistakes and correcting them early, beginners can refine their Peterson Roll technique. Encourage a mindset that mistakes are part of learning. Each error is an opportunity to adjust and improve. With each practice rep, they’ll build muscle memory to execute the roll correctly under pressure.

Common Counters and How to Defend Against Them

Just as wrestlers learn the Peterson Roll, savvy opponents will learn to counter it. A big part of mastering the move is understanding what your opponent might do – and being ready with answers. Wrestling coach Bobby Douglas emphasized that knowing an opponent’s countermoves is as important as knowing your own moves (Douglas 1972). Below are common counters to the Peterson Roll and tips to overcome them:

• Counter 1: Staying Square and Heavy. A well-coached top wrestler will try to “sink” their weight and stay square behind you as soon as they sense you attempting a roll. By keeping hips low and directly behind (rather than to the side), they make it hard for you to roll them. They may also sprawl back to kill your base. Your Defense: If you feel your opponent sagging or staying square, don’t force the Peterson from a dead stop. Instead, react with a different move: for example, switch to a basic sit-out or hip heist to create movement. Often, hitting a Peterson works best as the opponent is moving to your side, not when they’re parked directly behind. Create an opportunity: you might bait them by starting a sit-out or stand-up; if they reposition to your side, then execute the Peterson Roll. (This is actually a trained sequence: one drill teaches that when a top wrestler chops and “follows around” to your side, the bottom wrestler should tripod up and hit the Peterson roll.) The key is to feel when their weight shifts to the side; that’s your green light.

• Counter 2: Posting a Hand or Foot. A quick opponent might post their free hand or outside foot on the mat to brace against your roll. Essentially, they’re trying to stop the rotation by getting a post out – this often happens if you didn’t trap the arm or if they still have one limb free. Your Defense: This comes back to proper technique – eliminate their posts. Make sure you’ve secured the near arm before rolling. If their far arm (the one you didn’t trap) is posting, sometimes you can still complete the roll by driving harder and “running your feet” mid-roll to push through the post. However, if they successfully post and block the roll, transition immediately to plan B: often a switch or a stand-up. Let go of the Peterson attempt and move your hips out to one side for a switch reversal, or come to your feet if the opportunity presents. It’s better to abort the Peterson than to get stuck underneath a stalemated roll. Remember, a Peterson attempted when the opponent has a strong post can lead to a stalemate or you caught underneath – so recognize the blocked roll and switch tactics fast.

• Counter 3: Stepping Over the Leg Hook. Skilled opponents may feel your leg coming to hook theirs and quickly step their leg away or over. For instance, as you try to hook their right leg, they might kick that leg out or step it high, making your hook miss. Without that leg, you might roll under them instead of taking them with you. Your Defense: If you notice their leg has disappeared, you have a couple of options. One is to re-hook using your other leg or even your arm. A famous adjustment (taught by Ben Askren) involves, when the opponent steps out of your leg hook, immediately wrapping your arm around that stepping leg and proceeding with the roll (fanaticwrestling.com). In other words, if your right leg can’t hook theirs, use your left arm to grab behind their knee as they step – then roll, pulling that leg. This makes the roll a bit more like a “head roll” variant, but it can still work since you’ve trapped an inside limb. Another strategy: if they step over to counter, sometimes they expose themselves to a different move like a switch (their hips might be high). Be ready to switch if you feel their leg escape. In summary, don’t give up – if one hook fails, either find another hook (use an arm or your other leg) or flow into a different reversal.

• Counter 4: The “Re-roll” or Follow-through by Opponent. In higher-level scrambles, an opponent might actually roll with you intentionally and try to come out on top at the end (a sort of counter roll). This is less common for youth, but worth noting. Your Defense: Keep your tight grip and continue the motion. Often the wrestler who initiates the Peterson with better control will prevail in a rolling scramble. By maintaining control of the arm and leg and continuing to roll through, you can shut down their attempt to re-roll. Also, be ready to adjust your hips in mid-roll; if you feel them trying to come on top, shift your weight and kick harder to complete the move. Practicing the Peterson with a partner who offers some resistance will help your child learn to feel this and adjust. If the opponent somehow manages to roll through and end on top, your wrestler should immediately bail to their stomach and recover guard (preventing a pin) – then work to escape. It’s a rare counter, but awareness is key.

Training for Counters: A great way to prepare is to do situational sparring. For example, start with your wrestler in the beginning of a Peterson Roll (arm trapped, ready to roll) and have a partner give different reactions (heavy hips, posting out, etc.). Your child can then practice the appropriate response in each case. This kind of reactive drilling makes them comfortable with plan A, B, or C. As one coaching resource notes, “design a system for reactions and drill it until it becomes automatic” – in other words, practice the counters so that during a match, your wrestler instinctively knows how to finish the Peterson or switch to another move.

In summary, the Peterson Roll is powerful, but it’s not unstoppable. By learning the common counters, your wrestler will also learn how to set the move up correctly (to avoid giving easy counters) and how to transition if the roll doesn’t go perfectly. This adaptability is what turns a beginner into a skilled wrestler. Encourage your child to view counters not as failures, but as an expected part of wrestling – and to always wrestle through the position. Whether the Peterson succeeds or gets defended, the next move is what matters!

References

Askren, Ben. “Counter Standing Peterson With Ben Askren.” Fanatic Wrestling, n.d. Accessed September 24, 2025.

Douglas, Bobby. Wrestling—The Making of a Champion: The Takedown. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1972.

Dziedzic, Stan. The United States Wrestling Syllabus. Champaign, IL: Leisure Press, 1983.

Fanatic Wrestling. “Cool Wrestling Moves.” FanaticWrestling.com, n.d. Accessed September 24, 2025.

Johnson, Dennis A. The Wrestling Drill Book. Champaign, IL: Leisure Press/Human Kinetics, 1991.

Red Roots Wrestling Club. “Scoring & Rules.” RedRootsWrestlingClub.org, n.d. Accessed September 24, 2025.