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Class Wrestling - Quality


Westforkwhite

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How do you anticipate multi class wrestling will help the quality of Indiana HS wrestling, or hurt it?

 

Please limit the discussion to perceived improvements/detractions to Quality. Thanks

 

I think the real question is how could it possibly help the quality? Even if there were only two classes wouldn't each be watered down? it would seem the only real argument for an overall rise in quality would be the increased participation that some would expect. So then we have to ask how many years would it take to see a rise in numbers? And during those years how watered down would talent become in each class? Given the fact that most states with class wrestling have numbers that far exceed Indiana's  

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It is not going to help the quality of wrestling immediately - It will help the quality in the long run.  Small school youth see success at their high school, so they start wrestling earlier.  A high school wrestler who has wrestled several years > a freshman first-time wrestler.  Also, an increase in Indiana wrestlers competing in college leads to an increase in high school, junior high, & youth club coaches with college wrestling experience.  

 

If you're looking to improve the overall quality in our state right now, there's not much that can be done.  But there are ways to improve the future quality of our state.  Class wrestling is one of those ways.

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Long term, I believe the best way to help improve the quality of wrestling (and likely participation) is to involve kids/parents in the sport at the youth level.  Best case in point is the success being seen in Avon/Brownsburg/Danville, much of which can be attributed to the Contenders academy run by Ryan Parrish.

 

There are literally thousands of youth that do a year or two stint in local karate/Tae Kwan Do academies.  Why do parents like them?  They are somewhat structured in a curriculum, and very structured in visible advancements (belt system). Some of the martial arts academies encourage competition aspects (tournaments) while others focus on skill improvements. I think the same could be done with wrestling, A few key youth academies, especially near large cities such as Fort Wayne, Indianapolis with a "fun" environment, good teaching and attractive to parents could go a long way to developing early skills that would raise up an area down the road

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How do academies in large cities help increase participation in small schools?  Imagine you're a parent in a small town.  Would you want to drive over an hour each direction to take your kid to an academy or would you rather have a local youth coach who wrestled in college?  Which do you think would increase youth participation and eventually better high school quality?  Academies have been great for our elite wrestlers, but they do not help our rural kids first trying the sport.

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Sorry you're right -- the youth academies should be strategically placed throughout the state if possible to draw from both large school kids and small school kids.  What if there were roughly one youth-specializing academy per sectional?

 

I was thinking of something else (sectional forfeits) when I mentioned the large cities...

 

 

As far as the college coaches at small schools -- that would be fantastic but it's only a theory that they would come back to their community and coach. How often does this happen among current college graduates that wrestled?  And in the cases when they do come back in the room, has it helped participation numbers?  I'm sure there are a couple of examples out there where it has helped but is it more often than not?

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