Our Instructors
The people you will train with.
A small, hands-on coaching staff is the whole point of a place like Riverbend. You learn from the same people every week, and they get to know you.
Owner & Head Coach
Professor Robert Hupman
Like many martial artists of his generation, Professor Robert Hupman first found his passion for martial arts through watching the UFC in the 1990s. In 2006, he finally built up the nerve to step onto the mats himself. At the time, there were no nearby academies, and training required significant travel. As life became busier, making that trip consistently became increasingly difficult.
In 2013, Professor Robert committed to training full-time under 4th-degree Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Professor Tony Passos of Team Passos BJJ. Under Professor Tony, Professor Robert progressed from white belt through purple belt.
In 2015, Professor Robert took the next major step in his journey and opened Riverbend Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Academy.
In 2018, Professor Robert transitioned from Team Passos and began training under Professor Kristian Woodmansee of Logic Jiu-Jitsu. Under Professor Kristian, Professor Robert earned both his brown belt and, ultimately, his black belt.
In 2025, Professor Robert made the decision to end his formal affiliation with Professor Kristian and establish Riverbend as a fully independent academy. The goal was simple: allow Riverbend to develop its own identity without the bureaucracy that can sometimes come with formal affiliations, while continuing to build relationships throughout the broader Jiu-Jitsu community.
Today, Riverbend is affiliated with and competes under PACE Jiu-Jitsu and Professor Lucas "Hulk" Barbosa. Professor Lucas also awarded Professor Robert his 1st degree on his Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt.
Professor Brad Souders of Round Table Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu has helped establish Riverbend as an IBJJF-certified academy and provides the necessary sign-off for provisional black belts earned through Riverbend.
Riverbend has always taken pride in being a melting pot of different teams, affiliations, backgrounds, and friendships. The name on someone's patch has never mattered as much as the person wearing it.
From the beginning, Professor Robert has had one simple goal for Riverbend: build a family-first academy where everyone is welcome. More than ten years later, that remains the standard.
Professor Robert teaches throughout Riverbend's youth, teen, and adult programs and remains hands-on with every age group. He knows most students by name and works to ensure that the culture and values of the academy remain consistent from the top down.
Off the mats, Professor Robert is active in youth mental health and suicide prevention advocacy. That work has had a meaningful influence on how he approaches coaching and how Riverbend treats every person who walks through its doors.
For Professor Robert, Riverbend has never been about simply creating successful Jiu-Jitsu practitioners. It is about creating a place where people can train hard, grow, belong, and know that they are welcome.
Black Belt Instructor
Professor Drew Nicholson
Drew was a musician trying to get away from the drinking lifestyle. He found purpose in lifting. After realizing he couldn't be a competitive weightlifter without PEDs, a friend suggested Jiu-Jitsu. Drew found the idea silly.
A short time later, that friend lost his life to suicide. Drew felt he owed it to that friend to at least give Jiu-Jitsu a shot because he had always been supportive of everything positive in Drew's life.
Drew sought out a friend, Joe Roberts, who he knew had trained and asked him to help get started. When some old drinking buddies from his former days found out, they mocked Drew. Out of spite, he told himself, "I'll train until I get my blue belt just to prove them all wrong."
About four months into training, Drew met Robert Hupman, who managed to see something in Drew that he didn't yet see in himself. Robert supported Drew and took him under his wing. With the support of a great team and coach, Drew found a family that wanted nothing but the very best for him.
Now, all these years later, Drew is a black belt and just as passionate. His favorite moments are when new people start. He enjoys being the person who makes them feel welcome and tries to take away some of the fear and anxiety that comes with trying something new and hard.
Drew loves this sport, and he loves the Jiu-Jitsu community.
Jiu Jitsu & MMA Coach
Matthew Armentrout
Matthew Armentrout began his martial arts journey at a young age when his father enrolled him in Taekwondo. By age 12, he had earned the highest rank available to him at the time, a Junior Black Belt.
At 14, Matt began expanding his martial arts experience, transitioning into Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Muay Thai. With no local gyms available, consistent training meant traveling outside the area, making attendance difficult throughout his teenage years.
As a young adult, Matt found his primary passion in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. He has continued training and progressing in the art and is now a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu brown belt.
While Matt enjoys training himself, his greatest fulfillment comes from coaching others, particularly youth athletes. Having grown up without consistent access to martial arts training in his own community, he takes great pride in helping provide today's kids with the opportunity he wished he had: a local place to train, learn, build confidence, and experience multiple martial arts disciplines.
Jiu Jitsu Coach
Coach Zach Jackson
Zach Jackson began his martial arts journey at just eight years old with wrestling. Throughout his teenage years, he continued expanding his experience by exploring several disciplines, including Taekwondo, Muay Thai, Judo, and Jiu Jitsu.
As an adult, Zach's focus shifted primarily to Jiu Jitsu. His experience eventually led him to Harrisonburg, where he ran the Jiu Jitsu program for an MMA team. After moving back to Front Royal, Zach began coaching at Riverbend Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Academy.
Zach's passion for coaching extends well beyond the mats. Outside of Riverbend, he also serves as a high school football coach, giving him another opportunity to mentor young athletes, develop their skills, and help them grow both as competitors and individuals.
Youth MMA Coach
Coach Mike Hughes
Like so many others, Coach Mike's love for martial arts began with watching the UFC. As a teenager, he trained whenever and wherever he could, whether that meant getting time in at a local gym or simply training in a basement with friends.
In 2022, life finally gave Mike the opportunity to begin training consistently, and he's been hitting the mats at Riverbend Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Academy every chance he gets. At times, Mike jokes that he spends more time at Riverbend than he does at home, and he wouldn't have it any other way.
With his Jiu Jitsu background and experience in various striking disciplines, Mike now helps coach Riverbend's Youth MMA program. He loves martial arts, but even more than that, he enjoys the opportunity to pass what he's learned on to the next generation.
For Coach Mike, helping the youth in our community build their skills, confidence, and love for martial arts is one of the most rewarding parts of being on the mats.
Jiu Jitsu Coach
Coach Kris Fulton
Kris began his Brazilian Jiu Jitsu journey in 2005, training in a small room tucked away in the back of a Gold's Gym in Virginia Beach. Over the next two decades, military service and life took him across the country, giving him the opportunity to train at academies in Virginia Beach, Atlanta, Fort Worth, Dothan, and El Paso before eventually finding his way home to Riverbend Jiu Jitsu.
A veteran of both the U.S. Navy and U.S. Army and a Firefighter/EMT, Kris brings a strong belief in service, teamwork, resilience, and community to the mats.
More than anything, Kris believes in the community that Jiu Jitsu creates. People from different backgrounds come together, challenge one another, support one another, and become stronger in the process. That philosophy is summed up in Proverbs 27:17: "Iron sharpens iron, and one person sharpens another."
After more than 20 years on the mats, Kris is proud to call Riverbend home and enjoys helping others build confidence, resilience, and a lifelong love for Jiu Jitsu.
Jiu Jitsu Coach
Coach Codie Sine
Coach Codie has been training at Riverbend for over nine years, training and coaching at both the Front Royal location and the former Luray location.
One of the things he loves most about Riverbend is how inviting the gym has always been. He's always felt welcome on the mats, and as a coach, he enjoys making sure others feel that same sense of belonging.
Coach Codie wanted to keep his bio short, so he'll leave you with one valuable piece of advice:
T-Rex arms are your friend.
Boxing Coach
Coach Terry "T-Brick" Roy
Terry "T-Brick" Roy was a professional boxer who made his debut in 2006 and compiled a career record of 8 wins, 4 losses, and 2 draws.
Across 14 professional bouts, Roy earned a reputation as a tough, competitive fighter. The nickname "T-Brick" fit the kind of durability and grit associated with his career—he wasn't simply someone who stepped into the ring; he put together a winning professional record over the course of his run.
Terry now coaches boxing at Riverbend Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Academy, where he leads a co-ed boxing program open to both youth and adults. His classes bring different ages and experience levels together under one roof.