indypharmd

I've always wondered how many more football players might wrestle if there were more classes between 175-310...? If you had weight classes where another linebacker, edge rusher, tight end or fullback could fit in, you never know how much that would help both sports... For years, I had to hear how some kid had to wrestle up a weight class and give up 5-7 pounds when light heavys often give up a higher percentage difference and no one blinks... Seems to be a lot of things are done to increase inclusivity nowadays, so why not add back in a 97 and 285+?

amazing what he was able to do this year feeling as lousy as he did...

Will be interesting how the Ford Center staff will handle shaking down everyone at the gate, can't wait to see some Region Rats go off as they get frisked and told they can't bring in a pack of gum even... might be worth the $25 Ford Center box of popcorn to watch... Hopefully the Ford Center staff lightens up, they open more entry points and modify the outrageous concession prices. After the EvSS this year, made a deal with myself that was the last time visiting Evansville... I imagine the live stream prices will be even higher than the price of a Ford Center hotdog and Coke, but at least only have to pay that once... On a parallel note, did IHSAA agree to move the southwestern semi state out of Evansville for 2023? Bloomington would be perfect, btw...

You talking about Tony Vaughn of Ft Wayne Snider? Man, I had to wrestle him in regionals back in the day. He was a beast!

And add one other... Leighton Jones (IFCA OL of the Year)

A few questions...: 1. What's the problem statement? 2. What's the hypothesis? 3. How will a "change" potentially solve the problem? 4. How will success be measured? I'd also surmise that a little more data aggregation and analysis would be necessary to come to a decision point that "problems" exist and need to be addressed. Additionally, a further definition of what the goal of the IHSAA Championship actually is would help further help define courses of action or inaction... For example, is the goal to identify a champion or is it crown a champion and maximize gate/ticket sales or is it to have parity and/or equity or is it TBD? The Team State provided by the IHSWCA has done quite a bit to provide better equity in a team race already. So, would a solution for a classed individual tournament lie with a group outside of IHSAA? I think these type questions would help answer what an alternative would look like and potential impacts.

looking good in the burg!

If you would read the post that may reply was in response to, it was discussing not applying success factors to individual sports but going straight enrollment... I have heard complaints when Cathedral and Roncalli were dropped previously back to the enrollment class or the one above... The IHSWCA team state has definitely become more equitable with the addition of the 4A class vs having just 3...

i could imagine the smaller enrollment schools really being upset competing with Chatard, Roncalli, Cathedral and Mater Dei when the intent was to get rid of a power differential based upon enrollment...

SHS

Will be interesting. Ben is driven. If anywhere it is possible to do both, then Iowa would be the place. The relationship between football and wrestling is extremely good in Iowa City. The linebacker corp is pretty deep and if he gets bigger, then playing EDGE comes into play. Iowa rotates its DL and to a degree, the LBs, so he may not be taking every snap when he gets to that point. I imagine we will see him first on special teams for football... The football training table is dope. Iowa spends the most $$ out of any B1G program on food/nutrition. Ben at a lean, mean 245 lbs will be very scary...

A few thoughts... I grew up in Wabash County and my wife in Fulton County and have raised my family in Purplesburg. We chose not move back north after college because of job opportunities and when we had kids, the educational opportunities that exist in Brownsburg Community School Corporation vs. what the wife and I had in the late 80's up north. Some of the student athletes who attended Brownsburg HS when their siblings attended an other HCC rival have spoken volumes about how those opportunities in educaton were best for those kids... Almost every single football visit my son took his junior year, the football staff spoke to him/us about wrestling almost more than football in all cases. They recognize the grind, discipline, etc. it takes to be an elite wrestler while being a P5 football recruit. He visited multiple footballs camps and even met the Red Cobra contingent at an exit in Iowa City following a football camp to catch a ride to Lincoln, NE for a week of wrestling camp during summer football workouts... While being a multi sport athlete, you have to continue to train for wrestling while practicing football, track, baseball, CC, etc. You can't just pick it up in season... That requires A LOT of sacrifice of time, effort, etc. How many are willing to do that? How many coaches of those other sports are willing to at least look the other way while the wrestler still trains? And if the coach doesn't like it, are the parents and student athlete willing to continue with their plan/goals? (experienced this) One of my son's future #SWARM23 classmates is a guy some may have heard of... Name is Ben Kueter - 4x Iowa State Champ, U20 World Champion, etc. He drives from Iowa City to Sebolt's Academy a few times a week. Check the distance if interested... And he plays baseball. Iowa's high school association has it set so that kids can do FOUR (4) sports seasons - as track and field is in the spring and baseball follows it into the summer and some of their best athletes are 3 or 4 sport kids and those coaches acknowledge that sometimes you need to let those elite athletes participate/train concurrently. Another walk-on classmate played basketball for his high school and wrestled AND made their state tournament! Another young man you will hear more about in the future, Aaron Graves - gatorade player of the year, 1000 career basketball points and 4th at state in wrestling - he will be a B1G DL of the year and likely a 1st rd draft pick in the future. Some would say this is easy for someone from Purplesburg to say, but the training he did consisted of private sessions with C-Red outside of normal team or academy practices because of other time committments... I guess what I'm trying to say is something along the lines of if you want something bad enough, are you willing to put the time and sacrifices into trying to achieve it...? Class wrestling probably would help a few things - maybe shortening up the tournament series length by a week or two, shortening distances for driving to the regional/ss weekend, too.

how many rooms at the Purdue Union would be available during that time frame?

The finals were available through about Monday on Track/Flo. Then, they weren't. On the IHSAA TV web page, there's a link to purchase the downloadable version of the finals with intros, matches and interviews. I imagine there is a timeline that has to be met before the matches are available again on Track/Flo. (The matches show on the Track profile page, but not available when clicking on that link over to the file on Flo...)

Now if the finals move to Mackey, then the southern semi state needs to be in B town!