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Unfortunately this is how he and his ilk conduct themselves when discussing a controversial issue. Beacon of tolerance and diversity...unless it's diversity of opinion. In that case, they have no tolerance. His rebuttal will be he doesn't tolerate, "racist behavior," never mind there is not one piece of evidence that would suggest this incident has anything to do with racism other than the wrestler involved is black. Any fair-minded person would see that the coach, wrestler, and official all play a part in this unfortunate incident but somehow the coach and kid get a pass and the official is the racist boogey-man. At the end of the day, the kid did not report legally equipped to wrestle and the official enforced the rule. The kid could have forfeited the match and then made sure he had a legal head cover for the next meet. He chose to cut his hair mat-side which is on him and his coach. Yes, this should have been resolved at weigh-ins and the official is at fault for that mistake. Again, all three parties are at fault for this debacle.

Want wish all of you coaches a Merry Christmas and a happy New Year! Hope you all are able to relax and enjoy your families. Good luck on your second half of the year. Blessings

I know I sound like a grumpy old man here, but instead of the Team State Seeding Committee working on seeding, we are busy entering in all the results that aren't posted.......

It is easy to blame officials for not checking at weigh ins. I get that they are the ruling authority figure at the tournament so they do deserve some blame--it is, of course, part of their duties. But I am shocked how quickly we are to point the finger at the official. What about the wrestler's responsibility to properly groom him/herself? It also is a responsibility of the coach to verify that their wrestlers are groomed, properly equipped and ready to wrestle. That is part of my issue with this NJ incident. Where is the personal responsibility of the wrestler? Why has his coach not worked with him to obtain legal hair covering? This wasn't a rule change this year. The rule that hair covering must attach to the headgear it at least 2-3 years old. Why has he been allowed to slide this long? Other officials should have enforced the rule. Then you wouldn't have the "well they him wrestle last week" excuse I am seeing many use and maybe he'd have the proper equipment. It is a point of emphasis this year that officials are not to allow illegal equipment (like hair covering that doesn't attach), so the ref wasn't in the wrong in the ruling on the mat. It just should have been addressed earlier. According to the NYT coverage an official who graduated from Johnson's school had warned them that the hair cover wasn't legal the week prior. I get that the ref has had the past experience/suspension with using the racial slur. That isn't ok. There isn't room for hatred and racism in the ranks of officials in the sport. If they deem he should lose his license because of that, I can understand and support that ruling. But I doubt that most of the outrage wouldn't be the same or similar had he not had that happen. People on social media were quick to respond prior to that fact coming to light. I don't want any wrestler to feel as if this sport isn't for them or that the rules don't allow them to express themselves (including having whatever hairstyle they want). Our sport is one of the most inclusive sports when it comes to accommodations for contestants. How many sports allow a 5' 100 lb participant to be able to contribute as much as a 6'6" 250 lb participant? How many other sports allow for female and male athletes to compete against each other? We allow all participants to wrestle with accommodation if need be. I can't think of another sport that alters rules so that visually impaired contestants can compete with those who aren't and that allows contestants without limbs to compete freely. I know there are religions that don't permit shaving or cutting of the hair, wrestling allows those individuals to compete using legal coverings or facemasks. If wearing your hair in dreadlocks or a Mississippi Mudflap (mullet for those who aren't familiar) help you express yourself, wear your hair like that to your heart's content. Just please use the proper hair covering.

They have ruble at 152 in that tourney on track lineup

Conner Gimson was 5th at 138 and Matt Gimson was 8th at 132 last year.You had the placements correct just not the weights.

The Al Smith has always been at the top of this list for me,but this year’s level of competition is the best I’ve seen it in the past 25+ yrs that I’ve been going to it.

By STEVE KRAH stvkrh905@gmail.com Ewan Donovan has made a bigger and bigger impact on the wrestling scene as the Hebron High School grappler has gotten bigger. Now a 195-pound senior, he hopes to end his prep career in a big way. “I’m really looking forward to the state series,” says Donovan, who among Indiana’s top-ranked grapplers in his weight class. “I really want to get going. I really want to make some noise. “It’s the heart. I have a desire to be the best. I never want to settle for mediocrity. I push myself.” Ryan and Shayne Donovan have four children — Heaven (20), Ewan (17), Myah (14) and Hadley (10). Ewan is the line boy. He has been encouraged by his father in all that he does, including wrestling. Ryan Donovan was an assistant at Hebron when his son took up wrestling around the fifth grade. “He always told me the best I can be in anything I do in life,” says Ewan Donovan of his father. “He’s been huge in my wrestling career.” A four-year varsity competitor, Donvan was a 160-pounder as a freshman. He worked out and bumped up to 182 as a sophomore. Working even harder, he went to 195 as a junior. Donovan has sweated with the trainers at Sports Medical Institute in the off-season to increase his power, speed and strength. “They shaped me into a better athlete,” says Donovan. “I really couldn’t have done it without them.” He also put in long sessions at Calumet-based Regional Wrestling Academy led by Alex Tsirtsis and practiced his moves around northwest Indiana. “There’s definitely a special breed around The Region,” says Donovan. “It’s a really good environment. “I love the feeling of all the mat rooms around here.” Donovan enjoyed a strong junior season, losing just two matches. Unfortunately, one of those setbacks — against Calumet's A.J. Fowler — came in the “ticket round” at the Merrillville Semistate. Fowler has moved up to 220 in 2018-19. Donovan has wrestled bouts at 195 and 220 this season and was on-pace to become Hebron’s all-time victory leader, topping the 81 wins of 2014 graduate Giovanni Phan. Hawks head coach Todd Adamczyk, who has Donovan in a weightlifting class, and has watched the biggest wrestller on the current squad add to his successes. “He goes above and beyond and does all the extra things,” says Adamczyk, who is his 12th season in charge at Hebron. “Like most freshmen, he had a rough transition middle school to high school. But he made up for it the next couple years. “He’s the whole package right now.” Adamczyk’s advice has stuck with Donovan. “He says you need to push yourself when you’re training,” says Donovan. “Your mind is telling you stop, but you have to push yourself to keep going. “Wresting is definitely a lifestyle and it’s year-round and you have to be fully-committed. It teaches you life and about putting in the hard work and trying to be the best you can be at everything.” That work ethic extends to the classroom for Donovan, who carries a grade-point average in the 3.7 range (on a 4.0 scale). His favorite subjects are History and English. After high school, he hopes to continue his wrestling career while attending college as a double major for business and environmental. This will help him as he is next in line to run the family farm. The Donovans grow corn and soybean on more than 2,000 acres around Hebron. Hebron had wrestling for two years in the early ’80s then the program faded away. Adamczyk brought it back, first as a club sport, then two years with a junior varsity schedule. The first varsity season with 2009-10. There were growing pains, but the Hawks have come a long way since then. “When we first started, we asked ‘are we ever going to get there?,’” says Adamczyk. “We don’t fill every weight class. There’s only 320 kids in the school. We do the best with what we’ve got.” Adamczyk wrestled at Hammond High School for head coaches Karl Deak and Bill Malkovich. His Hebron staff includes former Crown Point grappler Troy Bush (who is also middle school coach at Hebon) and Hebron grads Ryan Perez and Raul Fierro. Perez is also on the roster at Calumet College of St. Joseph. View full article

White kid from muncie central had his haircut matside at ecic in jay county Saturday. Thats on the officials...they need to do a.better check at weighins.